I just bought a 1965 (titled as a 66) BRG/Biscuit Series 1 4.2L roadster at auction a few weeks ago.
After driving it a bit to get to know it, I am now going through everything to update it for reliability and drive-ability.
I would like to switch to an electronic ignition. It currently has a Mallory dual point disti, model 2767801A with a vacuum canister and a gold Lucas coil.
After searching on here, most of the topics are 10 or more years old on the topic of distributors.
What’s the latest recommendation of the group for this car for an electronic ignition distributor? I don’t mind replacing everything to have plug and play and get the reliability desired.
Hi Phil,
Congrats on your purchase, it really is a nice looking car.
I would suggest you do some research on the 123 dizzy from Holland. It is an electronic unit with 16 or so settings. They come in 3 variations, reset manually, reset by blue tooth and a plug and play through a laptop.
I am not 100% sure of the last two but the manual reset works great. They give you a recomended setting for your car which should work and you can still play with the settings if you wish.
I have one in my E as well as my Pagoda.
Search 123 on this forum
Regards
Chris
I’ve fitted a few 123 units to various LBCs in the last 5 years or so. The 123/tune is my favourite, particularly if the engine has been modified or needs a curve which isn’t covered by the pre-programmed 123 units.
They are quite easy to fit, only take a few minutes to program, and you can define two different profiles including vacuum and rpm advance, as well as a rev limit. By earthing a wire you can switch between the two curves, so you can easily switch performance between “Track” and “Economy”. I think having a rev limiter is worth fitting an electronic distributor - particularly if you ever lend your car out.
I’ve not had one fail yet, but some have reported problems. The problem is that if an electronic unit fails (any electronic unit) then they tend to become totally inanimate, so keep your original unit (with a new condensor and points fitted, and tested to work) as an insurance policy.
Otherwise, send your original to distributordoctor.com and have it rebuilt. The cars work reliably with the original setup - they were after all daily drivers back in the day.
Nothing, as far as I can tell. I went thru a number of dizzy changes and settled on the Mallory Unilite, pre-programmed for advance and fitted with the proper drive-dog, from one of the “usuals”.
Thanks, Chris! It’s a really solid car, and just a few things are needed to make it more original and bring it up. It was collector owned, and my experience is that collectors own really solid cars that get all the key maintenance items, but they are short on fettling.
I’ll definitely take a look at the 123. Hopefully it’s nicely contained unit that doesn’t need to have separate boxes wired into the cabin? I’d like to keep it simple and looking original.
I’ve had a Mallory electronic unit fail on me before, and it’s not fun. That was in the 80’s. Fortunately, it didn’t leave me stranded, but it taught me to carry an extra electronic module for quick replacement when it goes.
Thanks for the 123 recommendation also. I’ll be checking them out.
It’s a drop in unit. The body is alodised, and the cap/rotor are different (Bosch), but there are no external electronics, and only minimal wiring changes required.
It’s just that it’s a points disti. Otherwise, it looks pretty new and I believe it has very few miles on it. If I could convert it to electronic, I would probably be close to the price of a whole new disti after cap, rotor, and electronic unit. So that’s why I am thinking just to replace it. I am sure someone would want this unit, so I could ebay it and come out ahead on the cost of an electronic replacement.
As has already been suggested, I would advise you to keep your Mallory points dizzy as a backup in case of failure of your electronic unit. I’m a big fan of electronic ignition for all of the obvious reasons: quick reliable starting in all weather, precise ignition firing, no gradual deterioration of performance, etc. The only disadvantage of electronic is that there is usually no warning of failure. I’ve had Pertronix units in my Lucas distributors in my old Spitfire, and E type as well as a '72 Volvo. No problems what so ever with any of them, but I’ve heard too many stories of sudden failure of after market distributors or electronic modules. I’m currently running a 123 Ignition dizzy and absolutely love it. My only regret is that it is a replacement for the original Lucas that disintegrated on a startup one time. Something must have come loose inside and caught because the lower casing blew out a hole on one side, completely destroying the dizzy. Otherwise, I would keep it in the boot as a spare. It’s cheap insurance compared to what you would get for your used Mallory.
OTOH, if your Mallory is in good shape and doesn’t need an overhaul, you should be able to pick up a Pertronix module to fit inside for around $100. For Lucas distributors, you just replace the points and condenser with the Pertronix module and trigger, using your original cap and rotor. Nothing shows externally. I doubt that the Pertronix for a Mallory would be different. (If they make a unit for Mallory distributors). You could then carry your original points and condenser in case of electronic module failure; best of both worlds.
Install an electronic ignition module like the Petronix in your existing distributor.
Install an entirely new Petronix or other electronic distributor. I only mention Petronix here because that’s what I installed. I believe there are others.
If Ray Livingston is still making them, install one of his EDIS units. Beyond this I know nothing about them, but those who have installed them seem satisfied.
You can convert the Mallory from points to electronic for under $100.
I have a Mallory Unilite and coil. Vey happy, haven’t touched the ignition in years.
Hi Phil,
Off topic.
There is a thread re ‘E Type, favorite photos’ with about 170 odd replies.
I really think a photo of your E deserves to be placed there as well.
Regards
Chris
