Ignition upgrade

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anarchy0392

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Okay so I have a all stock 318 and my ignition box needed to be replaced . So I got a mopar orange box, and just wanted to ask what else should I get to put more pep in her step. Like what coil and dist could I get for kinda low buck?
 
Okay so for the coil i was thinking of getting this http://www.summitracing.com/parts/maa-29217/overview/year/1973/make/dodge/model/dart

Ant for a new dis would these work with that coil

1. http://www.summitracing.com/parts/dcc-3690430/overview/year/1973/make/dodge/model/dart

or 2. http://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-850027/overview/year/1973/make/dodge/model/dart

Now on my dart its all stock I have the orange box ignition and have the 4 Prong Ballast Resistor. Im not sure if I can use these parts with this setup or not. And I'm trying to build this up for upgrades in the future, so I wont have to replace these parts when I do upgrade. Also if I get these will I have to do anything with the carb? Its the 2bbl factory carb.


 
You could get the Skip White HEI and throw the Mopar ECU in the ditch.
 
So your saying no on all 3 items and even though my factory ecu went bad I should just through the orange box away cause I dont need it or cause it wont work? So how does any of that make sense?
 
i'd either use a mopar ecu / distrib / some decent coil

or do what rusty recommends

or get a complete MSD setup

but whatever you do AVOID the summit distributors i know someone with one and it runs like _ _ _ _ they are crap you fill in the blank
 
Well how about the msd red coil along with moose dist and the ecu? I know they full msd setup works great help a friend install it on a 88 mustang. Personally I'd like to keep a stock like look as much as possible.
 
With a little reading and a little work you could tweak what you have and get more from it. If you're blasting down the track performance ignition ( like that big not so purdy MSD ) is only one the many components required.
For street use only the parts you've have suggested spending over 200 on are just eye candy.
 
http://chucker54.stores.yahoo.net/maraprelcoki.html

ignitions dont really make horsepower though

that is a combination of head flow/camshaft/compressionratio/displacement/intake/carb or induction/

there are places that will claim "our spark plugs will gain you 15hp" yadi yadi yadi but in reality the high end ignition stuff gains you reliable spark at high rpms

like you are shifting at 8k rpms you need the ignition to handle that kind of rpm range and not get flakey. on a street car the MSD stuff is probably not necessary
 
That much I know it won't make much if an hp which is why I was asking what would be good for now butallow room for improvements later when I get stuf like a cam, heads, headers, dual exhaust, intake,carb, and the a 390 stroke. Of course most of that will have to wait till I find an 8 3/4 rear lol. So if I can get a bit better burn with the stock right now could you suggest some things or post a link to what someone else has done. About to go to work and mobile searching sucks. Thanks for the help so far guys.
 
anarchy0392 said:
Okay so I have a all stock 318 and my ignition box needed to be replaced . So I got a mopar orange box, and just wanted to ask what else should I get to put more pep in her step. Like what coil and dist could I get for kinda low buck?
Click to expand...

get a second box and stick it in the glove box for when (not if) the orange box fails..:)
 
anarchy0392 said:
That much I know it won't make much if an hp which is why I was asking what would be good for now butallow room for improvements later when I get stuf like a cam, heads, headers, dual exhaust, intake,carb, and the a 390 stroke. Of course most of that will have to wait till I find an 8 3/4 rear lol. So if I can get a bit better burn with the stock right now could you suggest some things or post a link to what someone else has done. About to go to work and mobile searching sucks. Thanks for the help so far guys.
Click to expand...

OK that tells me a lot. Keep in mind that every part you take from the box and install becomes a used part. After you spend a chunk to build a stroker, would you really want to put a used, carb, cam, ignition on it ?
I'll buy performance parts when the real good deals come along but... they stay in the boxes until I have everything needed.
 
If you feel the need to buy a new coil and distributor then just grab em from Rock Auto! Got my dizzy from RA for $40 range and it's great. But just swapping a dizzy and coil for new isn't gonna give ya more pep. Your just replacing parts that already function correctly. If you want an upgraded ignition that will give you more efficiency, better mileage etc then try PM'ing Greg (Trailbeast) and get his classic HEI ignition. It's a true HEI upgrade that ditches the oem stuff. It's what I bought. That being said, for a stock 318 and given the fact you already purchased the orange box, then just plug that in and enjoy!
 
The coil you linked says "for points only". It also has 1.4 ohm resistance which seems too much to use with the 0.5 ohm Mopar ballast. Perhaps it would work fine with electronic ignition if you bypass the ballast. Personally, I think HEI and no ballast is simpler and better, then run a hotter e-core coil. The Skip White distributor mentioned costs $45 (ebay) vs the $150 distributors you are considering.
 
BillGrissom said:
The coil you linked says "for points only". It also has 1.4 ohm resistance which seems too much to use with the 0.5 ohm Mopar ballast. Perhaps it would work fine with electronic ignition if you bypass the ballast. Personally, I think HEI and no ballast is simpler and better, then run a hotter e-core coil. The Skip White distributor mentioned costs $45 (ebay) vs the $150 distributors you are considering.
Click to expand...

I have to agree with this in more ways than one.
The Skip White unit is an "all in one" HEI ignition, so you have three great advantages there.
1. They are cheap enough that you could throw it, or give it away in a year and it isn't going to hurt.
2. While you have it you will have a good strong spark, that makes a notable difference for sure.
3. they are "all in one" meaning you have no extra wires like the Mopar unit.

I know people hear that HEI is "all that" all the time and probably think it's just like everything else advertised (that once you buy it, it's not anything special) but this is not the case.
Every single one of the people that swtched to HEI see's and feels the difference it makes over ANY mopar style box out there.
I sell the HEI kits to convert the OE ignitions to HEI, and I get a lot of feedback on them (All very positive)
 
Okay thank you all very much this is what u wanted I know very little about upgrading old school cars. This is the kind of things I'd like to and need to learn. What is HEI? What would I have to do to use your setup trailbeast? Like what parts do I remove or do I need to add to use your setup? And I got the orange box cause I needed a replacement one due to almost all the goo that's in the ignition boxes the factory one melted about half of the goo out and now some of the components are bare and exposed.
 
HEI = High Energy Ignition

To use trail beasts set up, just read the directions, simple stuff.
 
Well I sent a pm to tailed beast but I put the box in and its a world of difference and that's prilly cause of how bad the stock one was. I no longer have a mis, a lot more gas is being burnt, and it pulled a lot harder now. So I can't wait to start building my car up.
 
RedFish said:
Has anyone combined the Skip White distributer with the TrailBeast HEI ?
if so, happy with it ?
This page says must run others...
http://www.skipwhiteperformance.com/detail.aspx?Item=6613-R

I wonder how many people email them to ask, "What does CDI stand for ?"
Click to expand...

As far as I know no one has combined the two so far, although there is no reason at all that they wouldn't work just fine together.
The distributor is just the trigger device (just like most of us already run) and CDI is a suggestion, not a mandatory for that distributor.
"Multi spark" does have a slight advantage over HEI, but my HEI kits also have advantages over "multi spark" units.
Two big advantages are that a person can get replacement parts (in stock anywhere) if ever needed unlike having to order and wait for replacements from MSD and the others, and the quality of MSD seems to be dropping off because of the Chinese made units.
I can tell you that out of all the HEI kits I have sold there has not been ONE unit fail for any reason. (not that I have been notified of anyway) and you would think I would have heard about it if there were any that failed. :)
 
TrailBeast said:
As far as I know no one has combined the two so far, although there is no reason at all that they wouldn't work just fine together.
The distributor is just the trigger device (just like most of us already run) and CDI is a suggestion, not a mandatory for that distributor.
"Multi spark" does have a slight advantage over HEI, but my HEI kits also have advantages over "multi spark" units.
Two big advantages are that a person can get replacement parts (in stock anywhere) if ever needed unlike having to order and wait for replacements from MSD and the others, and the quality of MSD seems to be dropping off because of the Chinese made units.
I can tell you that out of all the HEI kits I have sold there has not been ONE unit fail for any reason. (not that I have been notified of anyway) and you would think I would have heard about it if there were any that failed. :)
Click to expand...

It will happen in time. I've got over 500 IVRs out there, 3 failures reported. Not bad considering the 7 year span. Good luck by the way, I know how the end users killed 2 of the 3.
 
RedFish said:
It will happen in time. I've got over 500 IVRs out there, 3 failures reported. Not bad considering the 7 year span. Good luck by the way, I know how the end users killed 2 of the 3.
Click to expand...

I have had people hook these up backwards, no good power to them, no good grounds, reversed at the distributor and when straghtened out they all survived just fine.
Gotta love that.
Thanks for the good luck wishes, and same to you.
 
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