From: Edward Burns <uunet!EDDIE.MIT.EDU!mit-eddie!ads.com!eburns>
Subject: electronic ignition
Have any of you replaced the old system with one of the
electronic ignition systems available?
Yup. Still keep a spare set of points with me just in case it
craps out, tho! I wired the thing so that I can switch back to
points in the field. If nothing else, the unit will be honour-
bound not to fail lest it lose face to a lowly set of points!
I'm thinking of doing so on my `67 B. I can't drive it
very often because of a back problem and I'd like to make
it a little more reliable for my wife. She likes the car
a lot, but isn't terribly comfortable about driving it daily.
My car is a '71 MGB that is road raced as well as driven on the street.
As an aside, my back isn't the best, either. You might consider
switching to a more supportive bucket seat. I was able to squeeze
a Sparco racing bucket in that Andy had already cut to fit his MGB-GT.
I don't have any problems with support in it.
I'd like to know which type(and brand) you have, your thoughts
on the installation and the performance change. Are you glad
you did it?
The Allison XR-700 (??? The unit that's most common and also
approved for use on pollution controlled vehicles). I got their
spark plug wires, as well as the 60 kV track coil.
I basically took longer on the installation due to competition
considerations. I ended up putzing around and finally settling
on mounting the electronic module in the passenger footwell, on
the outside wall right below a hole that I passed the wires into
the engine compartment thru (after popping out a plastic plug and
replacing it with a grommet). This location helps keep the unit
cooler - my engine runs _very_ hot on the track (water temperature
guage pinned) and I wanted to be as nice to the electronics as
possible. This mounting location also was neater for me as I didn't
like any of the possible mounting locations in the engine compartment.
Also great for confusing people when you tell them that you have
electronic ignition but they can't find the electronics under the
hood! (er, bonnet!). The unit also ends up being protected from
water from engine hosing and cooling system failures.
My one unhappiness with the Allison system is the pickup mounting
in the distributor. It just isn't rock-solid like the pickup in
my Mustang's distributor, or other OEM electronic ignition systems.
It's not totally flimsy, but I was sure to use lots of Locktite to
keep all the little parts in place. I haven't actually had any
problems with it after one race weekend and a number of days of
street driving. It works great up to (and beyond!) redline, whereas
I had problems with my points keeping up with continuous high rpm
operation with a rich mixture. The engine feels a bit peppier, and
certainly smoother, without any hint of cutout under the severest
conditions. I'm completely happy with the system, and very glad
that I installed it. I bought it from Victoria British (one of the
few things that I haven't gotten from Seven Enterprises due to
pricing considerations).
The most widely available system is the Allison and it seems to
be the cheapest too. They guy at the parts store told me they
were great and I'll wish I had done it long ago. I expected a
response like that from a salesperson though. I'd really
appreciate some of opinions. Thanks.
Seems to be a case of a salesperson who's correct!
-Ed
-me
eburns@ads.com
sam@sco.COM
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