Breakerless ignition bad?
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 1,787
Likes: 261
From: Blue Bell PA
2018 C3 of Year Finalist
Breakerless ignition bad?
On my way to the first car show this year all of a sudden the car started to
lidle very rough and low. I turned around and came home to have a look.
I pulled each wire off the cap and found out I only had spark on 5 plugs
5,3,6, had no spark. I guess the 10 year old petronics unit must be bad.
how long do these things last and which one is the right on to buy
thanks for your help. 69 427/400 . It was running great earlier today.
lidle very rough and low. I turned around and came home to have a look.
I pulled each wire off the cap and found out I only had spark on 5 plugs
5,3,6, had no spark. I guess the 10 year old petronics unit must be bad.
how long do these things last and which one is the right on to buy
thanks for your help. 69 427/400 . It was running great earlier today.
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 1,787
Likes: 261
From: Blue Bell PA
2018 C3 of Year Finalist
Could be but the cap and rotor are only a couple of months old. With copper contacts. I put the old ones
back on and had the same 3 dead towers. The petronics unit was new in 2011.
back on and had the same 3 dead towers. The petronics unit was new in 2011.
Tech Contributor
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 20,905
Likes: 962
From: I tend to be leery of any guy who doesn't own a chainsaw or a handgun.
On my way to the first car show this year all of a sudden the car started to
lidle very rough and low. I turned around and came home to have a look.
I pulled each wire off the cap and found out I only had spark on 5 plugs
5,3,6, had no spark. I guess the 10 year old petronics unit must be bad.
how long do these things last and which one is the right on to buy
thanks for your help. 69 427/400 . It was running great earlier today.
lidle very rough and low. I turned around and came home to have a look.
I pulled each wire off the cap and found out I only had spark on 5 plugs
5,3,6, had no spark. I guess the 10 year old petronics unit must be bad.
how long do these things last and which one is the right on to buy
thanks for your help. 69 427/400 . It was running great earlier today.
Team Owner
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 37,637
Likes: 3,118
From: Crossville TN
I have seen dist caps that were mis-machined and the contact surfaces were not "circular" ...or at least, off-center. Some contacts would make connection, some would not. Another possibility is some bad bushing wear in the distributor shaft. Rotor contact and locator pins mis-positioned??
Last edited by 7T1vette; May 15, 2021 at 10:59 PM.
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Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 1,787
Likes: 261
From: Blue Bell PA
2018 C3 of Year Finalist
I was thinking about that but the resistor wire has been cut down underneath in the harness.a
and I pulled the wires at the cap. Not down at the plug. Thanks again for your suggestions.
maybe I will order another new cap and rotor and try that. I just don’t know how they would all
of a sudden go bad. There only 6 months old.
and I pulled the wires at the cap. Not down at the plug. Thanks again for your suggestions.
maybe I will order another new cap and rotor and try that. I just don’t know how they would all
of a sudden go bad. There only 6 months old.
Last edited by JBrooke825; May 16, 2021 at 07:00 AM.
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 5,025
Likes: 1,120
From: North tonawanda NY
Those pertronix modules would fail all the time in the VW forum.. Its possible.
Last edited by augiedoggy; May 16, 2021 at 07:10 AM.
Safety Car
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 4,057
Likes: 421
From: BC
On the Pertronix II the only thing that holds those magnets in place is that circular piece of clear tape. When the tape fails the magnets start to drop out. I use a Pertronix III on my 69 as it no longer has this trigger system or the failures because of it. I had one fail after 6 months of use when the tape started to come off and release the magnets which just fall out the bottom.
Race Director
Joined: Oct 2019
Posts: 10,735
Likes: 63
From: Deep in the Pisgah National Forest
I never liked that Pertronix stuff, and I only went as far as using one of their ignition modules (it failed).
For my 81 I have a Duralast Gold (Autozone) HEI but replaced the module with a GM unit, and keep the Duralast module in the my emergency kit along with two screwdrivers to replace it while on the road.
For my 81 I have a Duralast Gold (Autozone) HEI but replaced the module with a GM unit, and keep the Duralast module in the my emergency kit along with two screwdrivers to replace it while on the road.
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 5,025
Likes: 1,120
From: North tonawanda NY
I never liked that Pertronix stuff, and I only went as far as using one of their ignition modules (it failed).
For my 81 I have a Duralast Gold (Autozone) HEI but replaced the module with a GM unit, and keep the Duralast module in the my emergency kit along with two screwdrivers to replace it while on the road.
For my 81 I have a Duralast Gold (Autozone) HEI but replaced the module with a GM unit, and keep the Duralast module in the my emergency kit along with two screwdrivers to replace it while on the road.
I used to keep a set of points in my old vw kit car too because I didnt trust that pertronix module but it never failed on me. Used to read of failures on the samba forum all the time though. My stock 74 distributor had a very old looking functioning pertronix in it but I replaced the distributor with an hei when I replaced the engine after driving it home.