[Spridgets] Electronic Ignition

[72 Spridget]

I have never had a Pertronix fail on me in probably close to 60,000 miles of 
use.

OTOH, I used to have a 1987 Plymouth Duster 2.2. The electronic gizmo in the 
distributor (Hall effect?) failed on me three times in the eight years I 
drove that car.

The first time was lots of fun; I had less than 10,000 miles on the car from 
new and I would be driving merrily down the road and the plugs would stop 
firing. Drift to the side of the road, pop the hood, scratch my head, close 
the hood, jump in the car and drive off. A day or so later the cycle would 
repeat. By the time you could try to figure out what was wrong, it would 
start working again. The only indication I had was that the tach would drop 
like a rock, so I was fairly sure it was on the primary side of the 
ignition. One day it did it to me just as the shoulder was about to end on 
the left side of the Dan Ryan coming north into the Chicago Loop. By then I 
knew that all I had to do was pull over, wait a minute or so, and drive 
away, so I did. I moved over to the right lane and it did it again JUST as 
the shoulder re-appeared on the right side of the road. Fine all the way 
home from there. A few days later, it finally died for good. I had parked it 
in the driveway one night and the next morning it would not start. Rather 
kind and considerate of it, I must admit.

Another time the wires broke right at the edge of the module. DInda 
irritating to replace a $50 module because of a broken wire.

I can't complain too much, however, since the only time that car failed to 
get me home under its own power was when the timing belt broke with 201,000 
miles on it.
David Lieb