Hello, can I get many opinions on installing electronic ignition on 914s?

I'm sure you can.
Is there a system that you are looking at?
I have a crankwheel on my 914 and my ignition is run through the ECU to coil packs.

I've got a 123Ignition on my 2002 (and installed on on a friend's 914) and they work great.

Zach

Hello, I saw one on page 131 of the auto atlanta parts book fireball xr700

I ran the XR700 Fireball on my 914-4 for years without a problem.
I tried the Pertronix for a bit and found it didn't provide the same power as the Fireball.
So, I switched it back and now the Pertronix is sitting on a shelf gathering dust.

[quote name='a71914' date='Oct 7 2019, 12:46 PM' post='2752905']
I ran the XR700 Fireball on my 914-4 for years without a problem.
I tried the Pertronix for a bit and found it didn't provide the same power as the Fireball.
So, I switched it back and now the Pertronix is sitting on a shelf gathering dust.
[/quote
Hello,.......................Thanks...........how many years about? did you run it in hot weather too? any noticable problems? Did you take it on any longer trips with the fireball?

I must have had it in for 15 years. I would still be using it if I didn't convert the car to a -6.
We, my wife and I, did several 500mi trips each year. Of course the car was only out during the summer. Up here in the Northeast we park our toys for 5 months of the year. Heat doesn't affect it, at least the 90 degree days we get here. I can't image another 20 degrees would make any difference.

Petronix on my 74 1.8. In six years, never had a problem.

Can I add a more basic (might seem like a stupid) question. I have been looking into this on my motor that has been built to 2046 - carbs, etc....what is the real advantage? is it just getting out of some of the fiddling with points and adjustments or is there a performance gain here? I was really getting close to pulling the trigger on something than i realized i really dont even know what i will get out of it

Thanks for indulging a stupid question

Hi,you have a few options here I can think of,you have Accuspark,Hotspark and Pertronics Ignitor ,the latter being popular with many on here and the second generation Ignitor II addresses issues that the cheaper Accuspark and Hotspark don't as far as module failures.
Fit the correct rated coil and you will be impressed over running conventional points.

Only down side is if the ignition goes boom it's generally not repairable side of the road. If doing a long tour or trip some people will carry a second drop in distributor. That said - properly wired and spec'd systems rarely fail in my experience.

You'll like how the car starts and runs with an electronic ignition.

Not a stupid question at all, always good to ask if you aren't sure.

In general the advantages are;
-fewer parts to deal with
-not impacted by distributor wear the same way
-less maintenance
-some systems like the 123 are highly configurable via cell phone
-you can build a system that creates a hotter / more powerful spark as desired or helpful

I don't think a 2046 needs more spark than a healthy Pertronix provides but this is close to "what tires" or "best motor oil" territory.

Get other opinion and experiences by searching past discussions here.

The biggest drawback to these units is that they tend to be very sensitive to wiring faults and jolts. Also, they may require you to run spiral wound plug leads, or resistor leads (I know the Mallory units did - cant say for the others).

I had to replace a Mallory optical module once due to a spark putting leads on the battery. Somehow that damaged the unit. The Pertonics are known for being very intolerant of wiring faults during setup.

That said, when an electronic unit is running, it will tend to keep running trouble free for years with no further adjustment. And for backup its pretty simple to buy a spare pickup and replace that in the dizzy if you do have a failure.

For many people, these quirks are worth the maintenance free nature of these units over standard distributors. If the curves are the same, you are not going to get better performance (over a well tuned stock dizzy). The benefit comes from the fact that the electronic unit is always tuned, where the mechanical stock unit requires regular adjustments to keep it in spec. But you can get better performance out of units with tunable spark tables like the 123 (though with a stock engine, we are talking about single digit improvements that you might see on the dyno, but never feel driving.)

Zach

We have run a pertronix in Betty's 914 for over 25 years. No issues with reliability.

I will say that I had to replace the unit about 10 years ago. I accidentally hooked it up backwards and fried it. Not the fault of the unit, but the fault of the mechanic.

100% recommend pertronix.

I have used compufire https://compufire.com/volkswagen.html on a 75 1.8 and a 123 on the 2.0 (75) both without issues and both have better spark and ez starting....Also a Malory Unilite that failed one time on a used unit with unknown history...replacement unit is still running strong

Best
-Robert

Back when I was still fixing cars, and we were a little strapped for cash, I used the pickup coil and ignitor from a Toyota 22R motor. When one would come into the ship with a failed ignition, we replaced both the pickup coil and ignitor for warranty purposes. So I kept all the good pickup coils and ignitors.

I carefully bent the base on the pickup coil so it would fit in the distributor, and used the lobes on the point cam to trigger it. The ignitor was mounted to a standard Toyota coil. I had to take about a 1/4 inch off the bottom of the rotor to clear the pickup coil, but it worked great.

THANKS TO ALL WHO REPLIED................it seems the crane fireball 700 someone said they have luck with it and a few said the petronix was working well too. Auto Atlanta has both on page 131, crane is $159..........and the petronix is $98. I probably will get one of them sometime coming up (don't know when) OPINIONS PLEASE ....WHICH ONE SHOULD I GET?

Just start with a 123 distributor so you can plug in a solution and eliminate all the nonsense. The TPS and all the other BS is just... poof... gone. Dwell? poof! At some point you realize what is better. Don't make it harder.

Rand thanks, but I know LESS about all of this than EVERYONE here so yes I will be more confused than all the others that make reply's. I ask for patience for non mechanics here, I am not a mechanic and own 2 honda's so have not had to work on cars for decades, very little use for any tools BUT I have a little interest in this and learning to work on my 914 so I can do lots of little things as they come up to save money.

Pertronix would most likely be the simplest option

I run the Pertronix I...trouble free for about 4 years.

Price wise you can get them on Amazon for ~$75. Normally I make all my 914 purchases via our vendors but in this case it was just too easy to get it through Amazon.

Tried the Petronix (II, I think) and fiddled with it for 3-4 months; never ran quite right which, I've heard, is not uncommon for the /74 1.8L (reinstalled points/condenser), though several (Big Len, others) have had no problem. Might be something with the stages Porsche fiddled with the FI system the first half of 74 - every few weeks there were a few changes.

I am a total idiot, that cannot even set the timing with a strobe light.
Total confusion sets in when I stick my head above this raging engine, trying to peek down this little hole. I cannot see Jack-sh.t, while yelling at my son to keep the revs up to 3,000.

But all this doesn’t matter anymore. I bought the 1-2-3 distributor with Bluetooth option. During install I just rotated it until the green light came on. Then put in the curve with an iPhone and DONE.

The problem I had with the Petronics (occasional misfire at 3,000 rpm) was gone.

The 1-2-3 unit is not cheap, but for an idiot like me totally worth it.
It has some additional perks, like temperature check, RPM display, disable ignition (against theft) etc.

But never having to stick my head above this screaming engine again..... PRICELESS.

Anyone else’s 123 Ignition get crazy hot to the touch after running the engine for a brief amount of time?
So far mine is working great, but did notice the unit gets way too hot to touch which has me concerned a bit given the electronics inside.

............................................Rand...........tell me more, sorry for a dumb question do I have to buy a 123 distributor BEFORE I buy the crane fireball 700?

My luck with Pertronix is not good, so I can't recommend them. I know others have had good service life, but I guess I'm the exception. If you are dead set on a electronic ignition and have deep pockets then get Ignition 123, next choice would be the XR700.

Another way to go is to use the stock points to trigger a CDI Box (like a 914-6 or 911) but unless you have the CDI and correct ignition transformer (coil) it's expensive. In this set up the points are just a trigger for the ignition and carries no high voltage, so points hold up much longer.

Thanks, who sells the 123 ignition? I did not see it in auto atlanta, did I miss it?

Google is helpful here,

https://123ignitionusa.com

With an electronic ignition, a more powerful coil can be accommodated. The greater the spark occurring at the spark plugs, the greater is the spark occurring across the points. causing them to pit more. Hotter coils have always worked, but manufactures stayed away from them because point life was lessened.

Since electronic ignition has no points to pit, hotter coils can be easily used.