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Upgrading to electronic ignition - something to note.

Jnr-Renospeed

Enthusiast
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171
Location
Newington
Dad was fitting an electronic ignition to a customer’s vehicle, using a kit that he has fitted multiple times over the years. However, with this new kit he noticed a design change that may prove less reliable in the future.

The latest version of the kits magnetic ring (see pictures below), unlike the original, it now has the magnets held in with glue from underneath rather than from above and is physically smaller meaning that it needs to be enlarged to fit it on the distributor shaft. This change means that the magnets are relying only on the strength of the glue and are not additionally held in by gravity like the original. So, if the glue deteriorates the magnets could then fall out of the ring and into the distributor and the car would stop working.

He contacted the manufacturer regarding the change but unfortunately this will be the way they are made from now, so he will use an alternative from now on.

We thought this would be good to bring to peoples attention before making a purchase :).


The new design showing magnets fitted underneath.
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View from above.
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The complete installation.
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Would be useful to know Which Brand are we talking about here.. -Reid

I thought it was best not to name any manufacturers for the forums sake, though it is one of the well know producers, and you should be able to find them by searching google images and matching the kit.
 
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I'm not so sure about the advantages of electronic ignition systems... Although I used to be a mechanic & I realise that they are a "fit and forget" item once fitted, I'm beginning to believe in the old adage "if it ain't bust, don't fix it!". I still have an old-fashioned points and distributor set up on my classic car, and it runs perfectly. I reckon that a points set up, if adjusted properly, work as well as an electronic system, although I appreciate they need periodical adjustment. Maybe some owners have had unfortunate experiences with points, but the use of a decent dwell angle meter, used properly and with accurate measurement of same can give an enormous amount of improvement. If you're running a classic car it needs more servicing than modern cars anyway; you'll be doing oil and filter changes more often, so why not check and adjust the points at the same time?

I bought a strobe light with a built-in digital rev-counter, a digital dwell angle meter and a small pot of tipped to mark the thing marks and started experimenting....My classic is now running MUCH more smoothly and quickly. It's all part of class car ownership and fun!
 
In addition, using the right fuel adds to better engine and ignition performance as well, as I used and will use the old original setup.
And indeed do as @Andrew4Renaults here above describes, as I do the same and never experienced problems in the original setup.

As producers add more and more ethanol, overall engine and ignition performances drop on older cars as well as newer cars.
I notice on my humble Honda CRV that fuel consumption rises using ethanol based fuel so it's more polluting.
I use higher octane fuel (98 or even 102) and I see a rise in performance and lower consumption.

Looking to a future when producers keep adding more and more ethanol, I think I switch to 123 ignition for my R4, but that's just a thought.
 
Yes, I agree an original points set up can work perfectly well providing the quality of the points and the condenser are to original standard, as Dad has experienced lots of problems with OEM Ducellier parts where the condensers have failed prematurely, in one case only 3 weeks after fitting in his own daily driver Renault 12TL, though the previous set had lasted 30,000 miles without even needing adjustment. Also he has had problems on customers vehicles when after short periods of use the points were burnt out due to repeated condenser failures, which led to the view that electronic ignitions are the most reliable choice, especially for drivers without mechanical knowledge who don't want to have to tinker under the bonnet every so often.

Adding to what @JdeW said, ethanol is a definite problem for the future. Luckily, we haven't got E10 pumps here in the UK yet...
 
Yes, I agree an original points set up can work perfectly well providing the quality of the points and the condenser are to original standard, as Dad has experienced lots of problems with OEM Ducellier parts where the condensers have failed prematurely, in one case only 3 weeks after fitting in his own daily driver Renault 12TL, though the previous set had lasted 30,000 miles without even needing adjustment.
I wrote it many times times I know, but driven over 280,000 miles with my first R4 I can't remember I've ever replaced a condenser. I've replaced points I know but a condensor never. I'm sure the parts in the old days were better quality then nowadays. I'm still buying NOS parts and keeping a sharp eye for the right date of manufacturing.

Adding to what @JdeW said, ethanol is a definite problem for the future. Luckily, we haven't got E10 pumps here in the UK yet...
I envy you, wishing we were not part of the EU, and kept our Guilder as you did keeping the Pound even when you were part of the EU.
The less I see that EU-anusstar the better it suits me.
 
I envy you, wishing we were not part of the EU, and kept our Guilder as you did keeping the Pound even when you were part of the EU.
The less I see that EU-anusstar the better it suits me.

....If the Dutch were to leave the E.U., would that be "Nexit".....(or "Dexit?) LOL !

There's always been a strong link between the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, going back many hundreds of years. In point of fact, my DAF classic car group was going to visit the Netherlands in May, to mark the 75th anniversary of their liberation by British Forces at the end of WW2. Daf classic car club, Dutch beer, 75th anniversary.... it was going to be a huge party, but Covid 19 has put an end to that. That said, everyones' personal safely, is of course, paramount.
 
I wrote it many times times I know, but driven over 280,000 miles with my first R4 I can't remember I've ever replaced a condenser. I've replaced points I know but a condensor never. I'm sure the parts in the old days were better quality then nowadays. I'm still buying NOS parts and keeping a sharp eye for the right date of manufacturing.

Well, they don't make them like they used to, the newer manufactured stuff doesn't have the reliability of the older bits some can go on indefinitely, but once they're replaced the cycle continues.
 
most aftermarket parts are of debatable quality
this has been an issue with points for a long time
perhaps the valeo ones from Mister auto are ok or just a reboxing exercise by valeo
I am still using the last of my hoarded genuine parts
 
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