Bad fbo ignition system

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crugone

crugone

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dear all just for information i bought a set of the new fbo ignition system including coil distributor and box. it was easy and quick to instal but do not worked at all on my 416. the guy from fbo told me that they do have problems with the chinese supplier and therefore the kit is not working properly. but when i change the wire from the box to the distributor and also bring the distributor gap to the nearest point i will have success. ok the success was that my spark had the first time after installation some light fire but not enough to start the engine. i went back to my orange box and it start immediately. after that i remark my problem to them but not any respons about my quiry. i am searching now for a good solution but would introduce that issue to you.
best regards crugone:puke:
 
I am suprised that Don at FBO didn't offer to replace it or refund your money. They are stand up people. I'm sure they are working toward a permanant fix. I run their other system in my car and have nothing but good things to say about their products and support. Call Don back and see what they can do for you and your 416.
Leave the Hei's on Chevy's.
 
just a note on your note jefflock. i was dealing with don in a good way in the beginning. i returned the box to him ( i am from austria) and wait a couple of weeks for the replacment. after i received the box again i run a couple of tests and also cut the wires etc but didnt work again. i give him that feedback aswell see my mail oct 31. No reply on this email

Hallo don !

Last weekend I had the time to change wires and gap. I now had spark fire but it was not good enough to start the engine. I switched back to the orange box / with your distributor and immediately the engine start. This situation is not realy funny as you can hopefully understand. What is your recommendation?
Rgds
Martin
 
Crugone - The Mopar style ignition units earth through the body work.

It may be that the screws you are using to hold the ECU to the body work are not making effective contact with the ECU mounting holes.

I recommend you file the inside of the ECU mounting holes to remove any excess paint on the inside rim of the mounting holes.

Also make sure the mounting screws (or bolts) are making good contact with the holes they pass through. In other words, don't use screws or bolts that are too small as they will not earth the ECU to the body work.

If you still have a weak spark...I'd ditch the FBO stuff and run a Crane or MSD system...you'll get a lower running temperature, better fuel economy, more reliability and a bigger spark.
 
FBO and chineese supplier??? I think even if used chineese suppliers he wouldn't admit it. He bad mouthed chineese stuff up and down the time I talked to him.
 
Dear all now i had received an answer that he will change the box to his new unit which will be ready by early next year. He told me that the current box signal is not strong enough to trigger the distributor and so it do not work properly. Ok i will give another try and will find out the quality of the FBO staff early next year. also thanks for the grounding tip. crugone
 
crugone said:
Dear all now i had received an answer that he will change the box to his new unit which will be ready by early next year.
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Next year, eh? Grand if you want to wait til "someday" for an ignition system that might kinda sorta work almost better. :roll:

He told me that the current box signal is not strong enough to trigger the distributor and so it do not work properly.
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Which explains why he sold it to you as an "upgrade"?

This is the kind of bulk wrap that puts me off FBO completely. Well, that and the inconsistent stories he tells about why his stuff doesn't work. And the fact his stuff doesn't work well or at all. Other than that, it's terrific. There are so many better, less expensive, more reliable options.
 
Yep, lotta noise about American production...except for the parts made in Mexico...er...and the ones from China...erm...yeah.
 
he will change the box to his new unit
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Is that the one that is just an hei module hidden inside a billit box the slightly resembles a stock ecu?

personally if your Orange box works I would be running that
 
Ive used FBO with great sucess,but before they went chinese.

You need to ground the box properly. Run a wire directly to the neg post and then one of the box mounting screws.

Oh and dont be too quick to get a hate on for fbo because they switched to a chinese supplier. EVERYONE ELSE has done it. In fact,it's near impossible to shop around the made in china label.I try,but Id probably have to shop in china to find something made here.
 
I also used a old system from Don with excellent results. Poor Dan has no luck with his stuff he can not help but to bad mouth him to no end.
I like the Chrome box from MoPar. It is better than the orange box and has lasted me over 15 years so far.
 
I really liked the fbo system I had. Cold start (-15 celcius, without a choke) was possible.
 
crugone said:
just a note on your note jefflock. i was dealing with don in a good way in the beginning. i returned the box to him ( i am from austria) and wait a couple of weeks for the replacment. after i received the box again i run a couple of tests and also cut the wires etc but didnt work again. i give him that feedback aswell see my mail oct 31. No reply on this email

Hallo don !

Last weekend I had the time to change wires and gap. I now had spark fire but it was not good enough to start the engine. I switched back to the orange box / with your distributor and immediately the engine start. This situation is not realy funny as you can hopefully understand. What is your recommendation?
Rgds
Martin
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Martin, I'm sorry you are having trouble with Don's stuff. I've personally have never had a failure. It sounds like you have done everything possible to work it out. I commend you for that. Plus you have the patience to wait a few weeks for his new stuff. Since I last posted it looks you have gotten lots of advice. With your distance I can see why you are frustrated. I have a chrome box sitting around doing nothing. If you like, I will send it to you for shipping charges only. Let me know. Jeff
 
Hey, man, just go to your local BRAND name parts store and pick up a QUALITY 80s era 4 terminal GM HEI module. Four wires you are done. Works great, and I didn't have to ask Dan's permission, EITHER.
 
Is the new FBO system your referring the one that was released in July of this year 2011.The billet cover with HEI module inside.I bought one in July of this year.After running it for a while ,about a month started having issues with starting hot.Before I condemned the unit,I had a friend of mine hook up the billet box and coil on his Mopar.It started fine without any issues.I verified that the unit works.So I again hook up every on my car.Again problems.After thinking about I had to ask myself what was the difference between my friends electrical system and my electrical system.My friend does not run a tach and I do.Once I disconnected my tach wire the unit would work.Spoke to Don about the problem I was having.Didn't have a solution for problem.Removed the FBO unit,bought a blue module off Ebay.Starting issues solved ,tach works fine.I have used FBO services with no problems in the past.
​
 
67Dart273 said:
Hey, man, just go to your local BRAND name parts store and pick up a QUALITY 80s era 4 terminal GM HEI module. Four wires you are done. Works great, and I didn't have to ask Dan's permission, EITHER.
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No kidding, HEI is outstanding. I ran a pair on a 4 cyl kaw motorcycle, 1 on a tractor, 1 on a flame thrower and I will be running it on my 360 and 440.

Shi#t, you can even run (trigger) them with points and the points will last for ever. Super hot spark with points! Points will still skip at high rpm cause they are points.

Get a quality Napa module, heat sink and ground it properly.

It will rock and roll and shoot a spark to the moon. Easy as all heck to replace if ever fails on you. I have never ever had one fail on me. I ran 15 or so GM cars back when I was a kid. Best part on a GM is the HEI and distributor. My opinion is the only failure point on them is improper heat sinking.

:)
 
I like the simplicity of hei,which as you said makes it very reliable. It's very compatible with megasquirt also,and I'll look to use it on my 451 with megasquirt and fuel inj.
 
crugone, for future reference, I ran a 10 guage ground wire from my mopar ecu to a valve cover bolt and now I have a spark strong enouph to weld with ( kidding of course!) point is make sure you ground your ecu ...kingoftow
 
Well since others have taken this off topic I'll throw in my .02 on HEI. Stock HEI is fine if you don't ever want to spin your engine over 4500 rpm. I know that for fact cause when I was young I ran some Chevy's cause they were cheap. The first thing you had to do was upgrade to a aftermarket module if you wanted to turn any rpm's.

Oh yeah, I keep hearing the word simplicity used when talking about HEI. What makes it simpler than using a Mopar module? They both have 4 wires.
 
Stock HEI is fine if you don't ever want to spin your engine over 4500 rpm.
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this is the answer i have found on the net. seems like a pretty easy and cheap upgrade to be able to run at the higher rpm's
.
If you want to go faster rpm, then get the GM 990 performance module that is good to 9900 rpm for around $50.


What makes it simpler than using a Mopar module?
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when i was looking to put HEI in my dart ( bought the stuff just haven't done it yet) i found that not only does it eliminate the ballast and ecu but i could eliminate 6 wires under the hood. :) .
 
Rice Nuker said:
No kidding, HEI is outstanding. I ran a pair on a 4 cyl kaw motorcycle, 1 on a tractor, 1 on a flame thrower and I will be running it on my 360 and 440.

Shi#t, you can even run (trigger) them with points and the points will last for ever. Super hot spark with points! Points will still skip at high rpm cause they are points.

Get a quality Napa module, heat sink and ground it properly.

It will rock and roll and shoot a spark to the moon. Easy as all heck to replace if ever fails on you. I have never ever had one fail on me. I ran 15 or so GM cars back when I was a kid. Best part on a GM is the HEI and distributor. My opinion is the only failure point on them is improper heat sinking.

:)
Click to expand...

Got a schematic or link to show how you
hook this system up to points?
 
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