dumb ignition question
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 1,126
Likes: 99
From: Nova Scotia
dumb ignition question
I was jsut reading a magazine arcticle on the difference between inductive ignitions and capacitive discharge ignitions. It made it sound like with a capacitive discharge ignition you don't need a distributor, but I always thought you did. So do you? and if so, can a capacitive discharge system be used with an hei system? thanks
Race Director
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 12,712
Likes: 2,264
Either a CD or inductive system can be designed with or without a distributor.
CD ignitions produce a short duration, high power spark, so they are very good at igniting very dense mixtures such as high boost engines running WOT.
Idle and lean cruise mixtures need long duration sparks because a lean or low density mixture has poorer ignitability than a rich dense mixture such such as what is typical on a naturally aspirated engine at WOT.
This is why modern OE ignition systems are high energy inductive type.
Duke
CD ignitions produce a short duration, high power spark, so they are very good at igniting very dense mixtures such as high boost engines running WOT.
Idle and lean cruise mixtures need long duration sparks because a lean or low density mixture has poorer ignitability than a rich dense mixture such such as what is typical on a naturally aspirated engine at WOT.
This is why modern OE ignition systems are high energy inductive type.
Duke
