Electronic ignition worthwhile?

[RichardBarnes]

I suspect this topic has been discussed many times before, so forgive me, but I'm relearning the joy of driving a Morris. Anyway... is there any point in installing electronic ignition and fuel pump in a totally standard 1098cc Traveller which is driving fine. It's still +ve earth, so very standard. Asking because from memory of driving in the 70s/80s I was only let down by condensors, and SU fuel pumps. Thanks in anticipation. Richard

[KeithL]

Richard,

If the car is running fine then don't mess with it. However, it is worth keeping a few spares in the car just in case (e.g. points and condensor and possibly a spare fuel pump), but make sure you buy decent parts from the likes of Distributor Doctor (http://www.distributordoctor.com/) as there is a lot of rubbish out there.

The mechanical or electronic debate will never be resolved. I have both electronic ignition (Pertronix from Distributor Doctor) and fuel pump (SU) in my 1098 but these can fail as can the traditional ones so I always keep a spare set of points etc. in the car just in case. If you do go for an electronic fuel pump then make sure you get one for +ve earth.

I'd enjoy driving your car and not worry about it.

[geoberni]

My car came with an Accuspark Electronic ignition system fitted.
In the first few months after buying, we broke down twice on the A1 with a totally dead engine, resulting in getting towed home.
Both times the RAC guy confidently blamed the Electronic Points unit.
After the first time the car started after towing home and I could fault nothing, despite hours of playing with it.
After the 2nd incident, the car remained a non starter and I was able to fault find it to a break in the Coil Winding.

So it wasn't the electronic points, it was the Coil that had been fitted as part of the electronic system.

Had the electronics not already been fitted, I'd probably not have chosen to myself; although they never need adjusting once correctly set.

[RichardBarnes]

Thank you. As I thought, I will leave be and carry spare condenser, fuel pump and points, as I have always done.

[myoldjalopy]

Sensible decision, to which I would add - include a red rotor arm in amongst your spares. In the past I have had at least three rotor arm failures. Having said that, ever since I got all my ignition components from the Distributor Doctor, I have had zero ignition faults (last seven years approx.) It pays to get quality components whenever you can.....

[oliver90owner]

Sensible decision

I would not necessarily agree with the word ‘sensible’. Certainly the OP’s choice and we should respect that - he may not have adequate experience to make any other choice, but I do wonder if he has another car. A modern car, where he would think the Kettering system would be better?

But there are good, not-so-good and poor electronic systems. Virtually all new vehicles are fitted with electronic ignition systems. They do not often beak down - FACT.

They are reliable and do not require owners to carry spare parts in the vehicle.

Comments anyone else?

[Sleeper]

I'd swear by the old " add-on " Sparkrite systems , ( well I wouldn't swear by it , as it NEVER let me down ) , just clip onto the coil ( or fit elsewhere )...there was a three-way switch ( Off-Conventional-Electronic ) and a little lamp , which acts as a timing light.

Excellent bit of kit.

John ;-)

[ManyMinors]

I can only say that - although they are relatively few - EVERY problem and breakdown I have experienced on our modern vehicles has been related to electronics. I am also aware of a few Morris Minors which have broken down because the electronic ignition failed. Obviously these cars were not repairable at the roadside which they would have been if the original system had been retained. I have deliberately stuck with a standard SU petrol pump as well, because should it fail, I'll probably be able to get home with some fiddling about whilst an electronic one will be dead
Therefore, in my opinion, it isn't as simple as which is most likely to fail, as which is likely to be repairable if and when it does. One of the reasons I choose to still run a Morris Minor is that I can repair it simply and cheaply myself I enjoy and appreciate the simplicity of it.

[myoldjalopy]

Agreed, and the reason I said sensible is that the OP has a car which has survived on points for at last the last 40 years, and is driving a standard car which - according to him - is 'driving fine'. 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it' is the adage which comes to mind and it is much better to fix the points at the road than wait for a tow home if the electronic system fails - which they do, as evidenced by some of the stories on this forum

[James k]

Hi,

I fitted a Powerspark 45d electronic distributor to my Traveller in 2015. Since then, it's been used every day as my main car, including being driven from Hastings to Inverness and back. Unlike the points and condenser system it replaced, it hasn't given me any problems. I carry a spare distributor in the boot but I've never had to use it.

I get the argument that points and condenser can be fixed at the roadside (provided you have spares) and that electronic can't, but I think the reality is that electronic (At least the powerspark system I have) is very unlikely to go wrong. It is a very very simple system that has very little that can go wrong.

The one time I had to get recovered was due to the car getting vapour lock and then sucking dirt into the jet. Of the things that might go wrong and leave you stuck, I think electronic ignition is fairly low on the list. I'd happily drive around without a spare distributor. A spare head gasket on the other hand...

Thanks,
James

[les]

[quote= it isn't as simple as which is most likely to fail, as which is likely to be repairable if and when it does. One of the reasons I choose to still run a Morris Minor is that I can repair it simply and cheaply myself I enjoy and appreciate the simplicity of it.
[/quote]
I agree with that, the Minor is generally a reliable and maintainable car in standard form. That being the case I can’t see any point in these mods.

[JOWETTJAVELIN]

With top fuel dragsters one missed spark costs $80,000. They do not use ‘electronic ignition’.

[James k]

With top fuel dragsters one missed spark costs $80,000. They do not use ‘electronic ignition’.

I suspect they don't run with knock-off Lucas points and Intermotor condensers.

[myoldjalopy]

No, they get their parts from the Distributor Doctor!

[oliver90owner]

I have no qualms if fitting electronic ignition systems - I built my first electronic ignition from discrete components back in the early 1970s. Its performance was limited for my use (regular operation in the 5-6000rpm range) due to a power limitation of the inverter)) but it never ever broke down and was perfectly adequate for any ‘cooking’ engine operating to 4500rpm.

I used to have a sticker in the rear side window of my Landy which basically read “wear wool - 35 million sheep can’t be wrong”.

On that basis, there appears, so far this year to have been approx 420,000 new vehicle registered (with a petrol engine) up to the end of April. How many do you think were fitted with the Kettering ignition system? How many do you think have failed? The answers are None and not many, respectively.

No, I would have no qualms at all. But would I fit the cheapest offer on the market? Probably not. Probably not from epay either, where all sorts of quality issues can arise. Buy cheap, buy twice. But, set that against James k’s experience (no maintenance, retained timing accuracy, improved fuel economy, no breakdowns) the case for changing is very real (and if worried it would be cheaper to buy, and carry around, a tiny spare module than load up the car with heavy spares).

I rest my case and await replies from the true luddites among us. Machinery replaced manual labour, steam engines were replaced by the ICE and electric motors and now ICE cars are being replaced by BEVs. I certainly don’t like all of the computerised systems, but individual simple electronic modules present no worries for me.

[les]

I must be a luddite ; I run a Morris Minor.

[JOWETTJAVELIN]

The issue is that the Minor was produced with points based ignition and that is how the engineers meant it to be. Had what is commonly referred to as ‘electronic ignition’ been available at the time, it is likely that is what would have been fitted in the factory.

But, the original design still stands and it’s when people start altering it that problems can be introduced. This can be said for any part of the car that people ‘upgrade’.

I wonder if many of the points/electronic and dynamo/alternator queries are from folk with a system in poor condition hoping for a cure all. Certainly there are better things to spend money and effort on than ripping out the points.

[Bowie69]

EFI or go home :p

[Sleeper]

From what I've read EFI'ing an A series is not easy , as the four cylinders have two shared ports....yes BL did it in the end...just before production ceased but do you know of any after-markets kits for the A series?

John ;-)

[geoberni]

From what I've read EFI'ing an A series is not easy , as the four cylinders have two shared ports....yes BL did it in the end...just before production ceased but do you know of any after-markets kits for the A series?

John ;-)

I think this past topic from 10 years ago sums it up.
viewtopic.php?t=41475

But there's always this if you have a few £££ going spare.... I think it might just be an upgrade of the original BMC attempt at EFI though, and not for a Moggie A Series.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rL4seHvYS_c

https://www.specialist-components.co.uk ... ement.html