ignition systems

[jhughes26]

hey i was wondering if anyone had converted to electrical ignition, i was considering it, but still not sure. if so, what did you convert to? how much did it cost? how hard was the install and did it mess with wiring? and how much did the car improve?

[DryHeat]

There are several conversions available to you ... I chose this one ...

http://www.dimequarterly.tierranet.com/ ... h_hei.html

Inexpensive, reliable and very easy to install.

Other opinions and lot's of good info on this site using the search button too!

[okayfine]

hey i was wondering if anyone had converted to electrical ignition, i was considering it, but still not sure. if so, what did you convert to? how much did it cost? how hard was the install and did it mess with wiring? and how much did the car improve?

Why don't you help us out and tell us your budget, acceptable difficulty level, fabrication experience, etc? Cut to the chase, so to speak. You'll also want to tell us about your car, specifically your engine, and any future upgrade plans.

Nissan EI is cheap and easy. Other aftermarket stuff is expensive and has a high learning curve, but you could take it with you if you swapped out an L-series for a KA, if you were so inclined.

[defdes]

I run the Electromotive crank fire and it's great. As Julian said above, it's one of the spendier items at about $900, but given my situation, was worth the expense.

[510rob]

I made a 24-1 skip-tooth crank trigger pulley, hall sensor pickup, & twin coil wasted spark ignition for a friend's 510, all from scratch. It was more expensive to create than a Nissan EI dizzy swap, no more reliable, and in my opinion doesn't really offer much performance advantage over the Nissan EI option. It was all based on looks & whim. I think it looks kind of cool though, but I'd rather covet the crank pulley than put it on a motor, like Golem and his ring!

[jhughes26]

hey thanks for the input everyone, it helps

i guess i will have to tell you all that i am really a novice, and got this idea from coming into about $500 usd and killing time on the MSD web page. i really know very little about the system in general, other than it can be made to make bigger and better sparks. (sorry to showcase my ignorance, but its true) any information as to what is usually replaced and how it works would be great, i appreciate links as well, i am taking this car restoration as a chance to learn, which this site has been very supportive to.

i have a 69 sedan with what appears to be a rebuilt L16. i have put in a weber 32/36 and a bigger radiator, and replaced the brake master cylinder. thats about where i am now, thinking i will keep the L16 for a while, if a L20B, KA or Sr is down the road, its a long way off. as you can see i have not undertaken anything to major on the car, and therefore do not have much more experience with fabrication than asking a machine shop to make some custom radiator brackets.

guess i will once again show my ignorance, what is the Nissan El dizzy? is it distributor, coil...

think that sums it up for okfine

defdes, how difficult was the Electromotive crank to put in? how much of a gain do you think it was over the stock one? would you buy again? and where did you get it?

510rob, i will not pretend to understand anything you said. if anyone who is interested in explaining this to a idiot, don't feel shy

[James]

The EL Dizzy - or electronic distributor replaces your whole distributor. The benefits comes from eliminating the points. The points always need to be adjusted. With The EL Dizzy one you set the timing - it doesn't change.
If you are going to rev your engine a lot, thats when the limitations of a typical dizzy are uncovered. At a high rpm - the shaft can wobble a bit, causing the timing to be inconsistent. That's where a crankfire ignition is extremely stable.
Given what you are doing - you may be fine with your stock distributor. The stock system, when in good shape is perfectly serviceable, it just needs to be maintained.
Another option would be to run a pertronix unit on your stock distributor - solves the point problems easily. The matchbox dizzy (Nissan EL Dizzy) is an easy option that is probably slightly more stable than the pertronix in your stock unit (I still run points in both my cars).
A well tuned stock unit will not feel different in typical driving than anything else. If you are pushing 6-8k RPM's constantly then you may want to consider going into other options.
On another note - don't be afraid to lay out exactly what you are wanting info on in your posts. It helps to know what you are wanting to do, and what your experience level so people on here can tailor the information to your needs.

[jhughes26]

thanks again, that helps clear things up a bit, for now i think the stock system will be fine. the 69 didn't come with a tach, but i'm pretty sure its not up to 6-8k revs

[jhughes26]

thanks again, that helps clear things up a bit, for now i think the stock system will be fine. the 69 didn't come with a tach, but i'm pretty sure its not up to 6-8k revs

[banzai510(hainz)]

if you have a true 68-69 distributor(single point) you can use the stock coil and ballast and just put in a Pertronix ignition for about 75Dollars US.

The matchbox is very good to Better than this But I have done about 5 cars and a jeep with no proplems

Pertronix part #1741 will be for the Hitachi single point distributor. Never have to adjust again and EZ to install.

One of the best things to do is get rid of the point system.

find a Youtube vedio on Pertrinx electric ignition install to see how ez it is.

[Dimebag]

guess i will once again show my ignorance, what is the Nissan El dizzy? is it distributor, coil...

CLICK HERE for a good lesson on converting to a Nissan EI distributor setup. I did this a couple years ago and its been good. There was almost no hope of finding a junkyard donor in my area so I bought all rebuilt stuff from a local auto parts store citing a '79 200SX for the distributor, matching coil, cap, rotor, leads, and plugs for about $250, but this did not included the ignitor, the so-called matchbox. That thing was over $100 from the auto parts store, so I bought a cheap $35 one from an internet auto store which I later discovered was DOA after quite a bit of grief when I first tried to start the car following the conversion. I got lucky and found a Nissan one off a 280ZX at the junkyard and life's been good ever since.

[jhughes26]

alright, i found this youtube on the pertronix ignitor, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UYZBE6Q ... re=related and it looks pretty simple. i know its for a vw, but it should be pretty much the same. the page on the Nissan unit was good too, if i probably wont be in that high a range too often, which one would maximize my sparks the most, or are they equivalent?

[okayfine]

which one would maximize my sparks the most, or are they equivalent?

Essentially the Pertronix kit and the Nissan EI distributor are equivalent, especially for stock L16 duty. Your decision will likely be much more influenced by what is more readily available to you - a Nissan EI dizzy/box/pedestal, or a Nissan single points dizzy and the Pertronix kit.

By the by, I'm using a Nissan EI distributor on my 7500rpm SR20DE.

[jhughes26]

sounds good, i have a sense of what the most sensible upgrade is now

thanks again