I had almost exactly the same failure with the distributor in my chevelle! I bought a MSD ready to run distributor & blaster 3 coil. Full 12V to the coil. One hot day the car lost all power, would only rough idle & would not accept any accelerator input. (I thought the fuel had boiled). After disproving a fuel issue, I started checking the ignition. Narrowed it to the distributor, pulled it out & had a friend test it on his machine. The results were it was an electronic issue where it would dump 12 degrees of timing or add it randomly. The mechanical advance was working fine. This part had less than 100 miles on it! I got it warranted but at this moment I’m running an ugly stock HEI & the car runs fine. It seems like there is a BIG quality control issue in the aftermarket right now. I’m hesitant to put the replacement MSD in the car. Thank you for your video!
Yup, I totally get it. I want to run a modern distributor in the car for all the benefits they offer, but sadly I have lost all faith in their longevity. I will be swapping out my factory points distributor for a Summit store brand magnetic pickup distributor very soon, but the factory points distributor and coil will be in a box in the back of the car as a backup.
@@1967BlueBoat I was thinking of a similar option, upgrading an old gm points distributor to electronic. Best of luck. Let us all know what you end up doing! Thanks again!
Instance 1: 1.5ohm coils are normally used when there's a ballast resistor in the ignition system, do you have a 1.5 - 1.6 ohm resistor in place for normal running? (bypassed when cranking). If not, you need a 3 ohm coil, otherwise the coil will blow. What's the resistance of your old coil? 1.5 or 3 ohm? (just test across the two main outer terminals). Instance 2: The HT leads needs to be self-resistive to prevent unused current from the plugs bouncing back into the distributor and cooking the EI module. If low resistive copper-core ('sport') HT leads, that will cook the EI in no time. Another point, it's always worth using a silver finish coil - which will keep it cooler than a black body coil. BTW I've not used any Pertronix gear yet, but might be more wary now!
I get your point about the resistance of the coil. Pertronix do recommend 1.5 ohm coil with resistor bypassed if using it on an 8 cylinder, but like you I do question this.
Bring back the interim system that showed up in the 60s: Transistor Assisted Ignition. Everything is the same including the stock distributor, points, and coil. Take out the condenser and the points provide the trigger for the electronic circuit and the power transistor starts and stops the current to the coil instantaneously. The point contacts last forever and the rise time is more instantaneous giving a stronger spark with the same stuff. I found it to help a lot with cold starts or if the battery is a little low. Also solves the problem of crappy condensers these days. I’ve had several new condensers fail within 500 miles. I don’t know if anyone making them other than Velmann the electronic kit company.
My Pertonix is hooked up properly, but the spark is very week. The coil is an Accel Super Stock, but the ohms resistance is the same as the Pertronix coil at 1.4 ohms. Any ideas?
(Apologies in advance for the long post.) I just bought a '65 Mustang that came with an Ignitor with original coil. There is some yellowing on the Ignitor label, but the swap is probably more than 20 years old. (The Mustang hasn't seen more than 20k miles since the 90s from what I can tell.) Otherwise, there is nothing I can point to saying that the system needs attention. I really want to upgrade the ignition system, however every MODERN option has negative reviews as well as people who claim positive longterm experiences. From what I can tell, most of the reported problems are a combination of increased failure rates due to lower quality assurance standards (I've seen this apply to every country lately) combined with the expectation that the configurations are 'plug-and-play' with no modification, maintenance or monitoring needed. But this certainly does make the case to go back to and use the original ignition setup. I am keenly aware of the fragility of the pertronix but I have had experiences with distributor components and coils failing in all electronic ignition setups. (MoPar guys have long had to carry an extra ballast resistor in the glovebox.) I have been learning what specific conditions cause premature failures, and have been performing tests to see if my current setup may have a risk. But so far everything looks good. I do though think it is a good idea to carry backups on these old cars just as someone would have many years ago.
I ran the conversion on my '67 Bug for years, up until I built a new, bigger engine for it. It worked great. Ironically, I have had much better luck with their conversions than I have their complete distributors. That said, I always kept a set of points and a condenser in the car just in case.
Just had the same issue. 70 Mustang with 351w stock distributor with Pertronix ignitor I and 40011 coil. Car was fine before putting away for the winter (Scotland, UK) took it out started great, idled fine then the engine just shut down, I suspected the coil (after reading about failures being common), I have replaced the coil with another 40011, haven’t had a chance to try it out because winter is back (that’s Scotland for you). I have had the Pertronix fitted for nearly 4 years, this is the first issue I’ve had, but I’m not confident in reliability now, I will carry points and a coil in car from now on, seriously considering going back to points but will need to look at this my resistor wire was ‘toast’ so I have a bypass in and 12v to the coil, no idea how long points would last with this. Pertronix has a large following for these cars they should really focus on reliability because they are great systems when they work. I will be interested is any similar alternatives.
damn, that makes me sad.... i have had that happen with MSD stuff (a lot) but my pertronix has been good... i carry a spare coil and points dist in my emergency kit though cause if something can die it will...
Replaced points and coil in my 66 mustang 20 years ago with pertronix and their flame thrower coil. Over 100k miles. 289 2 barrel automatic. Never misses a beat. Added a Jacob's to it and the Jacob's quit on me after 1.5 years. Now have an MSD on top of the same old 20 year old pertronix and flame thrower. Works great!
Pertronix seems to have quite an active fanboy club. There’s no shortage of UA-cam videos with people showing how they’ve been let down, and the comments are usually full of testimonials to how great their experience has been, as if that somehow cancels out your experience. Pertronix are lucky they have such a vocal support group covering for their substandard product.
Yep, same issues. I bought a Pertronix distributor with Ignitor 1 and the Pertronix 1.5 ohm oil filled coil. The coil lasted about an hour and then the engine died. I had it mounted to the cylinder head. So, I changed to a MSD epoxy filled Blaster coil and added a .7 ohm resistor to make the 1.5 ohm circuit resistance. It runs with 10 volts at the coil.
After 10 years of a billet 2 flame thrower in my car I ended up taking off the cap and it is all rusted. Except the ignitor 2! I ended up trying to take some of the rusted parts off and working on them. The one thing that came to my attention was the lead ground. I basically just fell apart. I was having some starting problems and throttle problems. This was the the biggest problem I have seen with it. Check the lead ground connecting the ignitor to a base plate.
I'll bet you are using Factory Ford wiring which has 6-7 volts at the coil....YOU MUST HAVE 12 VOLTS AT THE COIL otherwise you will ruin these ignitor systems every time
My nova just started to sputter today and I’m think it’s the igniter II because I’ve had the same problem before. This would be my third pertronix install due to failures.
I too had a Pertronix ignition conversion failure. I have a 1960 Chrysler 300F with an original Autolite IBS 4011 cast iron dual point distributor with mechanical tach drive that I installed the correct Pertronix conversion kit in, including the correct Pertronix Flame Thrower coil. The module failed while on a controlled access toll freeway. I had the car towed back to my driveway where I reinstalled the original dual point plate assembly and hardware along with the original coil as well. Boom, fired right up. Nobody else that I’ve spoken with has experienced any failures with Pertronix, except you! I agree, I will not be using Pertronix again. As I only drive this car to shows, I’m happy with the factory dual point system. Very reliable. I also do appreciate keeping the car as close to original as possible. I’m glad I found somebody else with the same problem, not that I wish the inconvenience of an ignition failure on anyone!
@@chrisbusch1970 ah that would be no. According to the very clear included Pertronix instructions, the resistor is and was bypassed with full ignition voltage to the module. Therefore, that’s how I installed it. It failed, through no fault in installation.
@@1967BlueBoat that's a bummer to hear you've had bad luck with pertronix more than once... I just bought a coil and distributor... I guess I'll keep a spare coil and ignitor in my car...
I can't stand Pertronix products. Lost faith going back to the Ignitor 1 Had several customers want then installed in their boats. I think I ended up removing more than I installed!
What failed in the distributor? Wiring seems to be the culprit. When the vacuum advance is moving back and forth it has the propensity to pull the wires going to the module. With your skill level I'm sure you know this already, but thought I'd throw it out there. They are using a GM style mechanical weight system. I don't run vacuum advance on my Pontiac. So this would not be an issue for me. Did you run a full 12 volt source to the positive side of the coil ? Just a few questions, I like to give & receive information. Good luck.
I had almost exactly the same failure with the distributor in my chevelle! I bought a MSD ready to run distributor & blaster 3 coil. Full 12V to the coil.
One hot day the car lost all power, would only rough idle & would not accept any accelerator input.
(I thought the fuel had boiled). After disproving a fuel issue, I started checking the ignition. Narrowed it to the distributor, pulled it out & had a friend test it on his machine.
The results were it was an electronic issue where it would dump 12 degrees of timing or add it randomly. The mechanical advance was working fine.
This part had less than 100 miles on it!
I got it warranted but at this moment I’m running an ugly stock HEI & the car runs fine.
It seems like there is a BIG quality control issue in the aftermarket right now. I’m hesitant to put the replacement MSD in the car.
Thank you for your video!
Yup, I totally get it. I want to run a modern distributor in the car for all the benefits they offer, but sadly I have lost all faith in their longevity. I will be swapping out my factory points distributor for a Summit store brand magnetic pickup distributor very soon, but the factory points distributor and coil will be in a box in the back of the car as a backup.
@@1967BlueBoat
I was thinking of a similar option, upgrading an old gm points distributor to electronic.
Best of luck.
Let us all know what you end up doing!
Thanks again!
Instance 1:
1.5ohm coils are normally used when there's a ballast resistor in the ignition system, do you have a 1.5 - 1.6 ohm resistor in place for normal running? (bypassed when cranking). If not, you need a 3 ohm coil, otherwise the coil will blow. What's the resistance of your old coil? 1.5 or 3 ohm? (just test across the two main outer terminals).
Instance 2:
The HT leads needs to be self-resistive to prevent unused current from the plugs bouncing back into the distributor and cooking the EI module. If low resistive copper-core ('sport') HT leads, that will cook the EI in no time.
Another point, it's always worth using a silver finish coil - which will keep it cooler than a black body coil.
BTW I've not used any Pertronix gear yet, but might be more wary now!
I get your point about the resistance of the coil. Pertronix do recommend 1.5 ohm coil with resistor bypassed if using it on an 8 cylinder, but like you I do question this.
Bring back the interim system that showed up in the 60s: Transistor Assisted Ignition. Everything is the same including the stock distributor, points, and coil. Take out the condenser and the points provide the trigger for the electronic circuit and the power transistor starts and stops the current to the coil instantaneously. The point contacts last forever and the rise time is more instantaneous giving a stronger spark with the same stuff. I found it to help a lot with cold starts or if the battery is a little low. Also solves the problem of crappy condensers these days. I’ve had several new condensers fail within 500 miles. I don’t know if anyone making them other than Velmann the electronic kit company.
My Pertonix is hooked up properly, but the spark is very week. The coil is an Accel Super Stock, but the ohms resistance is the same as the Pertronix coil at 1.4 ohms. Any ideas?
(Apologies in advance for the long post.)
I just bought a '65 Mustang that came with an Ignitor with original coil. There is some yellowing on the Ignitor label, but the swap is probably more than 20 years old. (The Mustang hasn't seen more than 20k miles since the 90s from what I can tell.) Otherwise, there is nothing I can point to saying that the system needs attention.
I really want to upgrade the ignition system, however every MODERN option has negative reviews as well as people who claim positive longterm experiences. From what I can tell, most of the reported problems are a combination of increased failure rates due to lower quality assurance standards (I've seen this apply to every country lately) combined with the expectation that the configurations are 'plug-and-play' with no modification, maintenance or monitoring needed. But this certainly does make the case to go back to and use the original ignition setup.
I am keenly aware of the fragility of the pertronix but I have had experiences with distributor components and coils failing in all electronic ignition setups. (MoPar guys have long had to carry an extra ballast resistor in the glovebox.) I have been learning what specific conditions cause premature failures, and have been performing tests to see if my current setup may have a risk. But so far everything looks good. I do though think it is a good idea to carry backups on these old cars just as someone would have many years ago.
fun, fun, fun...when ya own an old car!
You just talked me out of a Per Tronix switchout on my '68 VW Ghia!
I ran the conversion on my '67 Bug for years, up until I built a new, bigger engine for it. It worked great. Ironically, I have had much better luck with their conversions than I have their complete distributors.
That said, I always kept a set of points and a condenser in the car just in case.
Thanks for the Pertronix info !
My new Pertronix distributor & Coil on my rebuilt 289 just left me stranded and I hope I can return this crap to Jegs.
Just had the same issue. 70 Mustang with 351w stock distributor with Pertronix ignitor I and 40011 coil. Car was fine before putting away for the winter (Scotland, UK) took it out started great, idled fine then the engine just shut down, I suspected the coil (after reading about failures being common), I have replaced the coil with another 40011, haven’t had a chance to try it out because winter is back (that’s Scotland for you).
I have had the Pertronix fitted for nearly 4 years, this is the first issue I’ve had, but I’m not confident in reliability now, I will carry points and a coil in car from now on, seriously considering going back to points but will need to look at this my resistor wire was ‘toast’ so I have a bypass in and 12v to the coil, no idea how long points would last with this.
Pertronix has a large following for these cars they should really focus on reliability because they are great systems when they work.
I will be interested is any similar alternatives.
damn, that makes me sad.... i have had that happen with MSD stuff (a lot) but my pertronix has been good... i carry a spare coil and points dist in my emergency kit though cause if something can die it will...
Safe to assume the truck now carries a "Rescue Kit" of stock Ford 360/390 ignition parts for when (er, IF) it fails!?!
Replaced points and coil in my 66 mustang 20 years ago with pertronix and their flame thrower coil.
Over 100k miles.
289 2 barrel automatic.
Never misses a beat.
Added a Jacob's to it and the Jacob's quit on me after 1.5 years. Now have an MSD on top of the same old 20 year old pertronix and flame thrower.
Works great!
Pertronix seems to have quite an active fanboy club. There’s no shortage of UA-cam videos with people showing how they’ve been let down, and the comments are usually full of testimonials to how great their experience has been, as if that somehow cancels out your experience. Pertronix are lucky they have such a vocal support group covering for their substandard product.
Yep, same issues. I bought a Pertronix distributor with Ignitor 1 and the Pertronix 1.5 ohm oil filled coil. The coil lasted about an hour and then the engine died. I had it mounted to the cylinder head. So, I changed to a MSD epoxy filled Blaster coil and added a .7 ohm resistor to make the 1.5 ohm circuit resistance. It runs with 10 volts at the coil.
you need a full 12v at the + side of modern ignition coils.
After 10 years of a billet 2 flame thrower in my car I ended up taking off the cap and it is all rusted. Except the ignitor 2! I ended up trying to take some of the rusted parts off and working on them. The one thing that came to my attention was the lead ground. I basically just fell apart. I was having some starting problems and throttle problems. This was the the biggest problem I have seen with it. Check the lead ground connecting the ignitor to a base plate.
I'll bet you are using Factory Ford wiring which has 6-7 volts at the coil....YOU MUST HAVE 12 VOLTS AT THE COIL otherwise you will ruin these ignitor systems every time
Have seen many failures with full 12volt sorry to say they're garbage out of the box
I find they last 3 weeks or forever.
Sure looks nice, but not when they brick.
My nova just started to sputter today and I’m think it’s the igniter II because I’ve had the same problem before. This would be my third pertronix install due to failures.
What B/S .. thanks for the video.
I too had a Pertronix ignition conversion failure. I have a 1960 Chrysler 300F with an original Autolite IBS 4011 cast iron dual point distributor with mechanical tach drive that I installed the correct Pertronix conversion kit in, including the correct Pertronix Flame Thrower coil. The module failed while on a controlled access toll freeway. I had the car towed back to my driveway where I reinstalled the original dual point plate assembly and hardware along with the original coil as well. Boom, fired right up. Nobody else that I’ve spoken with has experienced any failures with Pertronix, except you! I agree, I will not be using Pertronix again. As I only drive this car to shows, I’m happy with the factory dual point system. Very reliable. I also do appreciate keeping the car as close to original as possible. I’m glad I found somebody else with the same problem, not that I wish the inconvenience of an ignition failure on anyone!
let me guess... you are still using the resistor wire in your ignition system.
@@chrisbusch1970 ah that would be no. According to the very clear included Pertronix instructions, the resistor is and was bypassed with full ignition voltage to the module. Therefore, that’s how I installed it. It failed, through no fault in installation.
Are there any other electronic’s you would use in its place???
I have heard nothing but good stuff about MSD. The downside is MSD is very expensive.
Are you still running the factory resistor wire from the ignition?
Nope, I had a full 12V to the distributor.
@@1967BlueBoat that's a bummer to hear you've had bad luck with pertronix more than once... I just bought a coil and distributor... I guess I'll keep a spare coil and ignitor in my car...
Is it full 12v while running? You need to check it while the cars running. Thats when it will drop down.
I can't stand Pertronix products. Lost faith going back to the Ignitor 1 Had several customers want then installed in their boats. I think I ended up removing more than I installed!
Had the same issue on my 66 mustang. Just died on me after a few miles
I had 3 of their points replacement kits fail on me. Hours wasted waiting for tow trucks. Wife hates my hotrod now! Back to points! Pertronix suck!
What failed in the distributor? Wiring seems to be the culprit. When the vacuum advance is moving back and
forth it has the propensity to pull the wires going to the module. With your skill level I'm sure you know this already, but thought I'd throw it out there. They are using a GM style mechanical weight system.
I don't run vacuum advance on my Pontiac. So this would not be an issue for me. Did you run a full 12 volt source to the positive side of the coil ?
Just a few questions, I like to give & receive information.
Good luck.
Having the same issues .
Thanks for the Pertronix info !
My new Pertronix distributor & Coil on my rebuilt 289 just left me stranded and I hope I can return this crap to Jegs.