Electronic ignition for land rover series

Another little weekend project…  this time,  installing Electronic Ignition distributor to replace point breaker (we Indonesian call it “Platina” ) distributor which already 30 years old … I have few problem with current stock distributor is:  the vacuum is not working properly (blocked) and also the wires, contact point seems no longer in top shape, might as well replace with the electronic one. For those who want to read a longer explanation on ignition system, you can read it here : http://www.jetav8r.com/Vision/Ignition/CDI.html

You may ask why do we want electronic distributor..? Well, many reasons actually… some of them are the following:

1. Less moving  part hence minimal wear and tear hence better performance especially in high mileage car where wear tear affect timing and loss performance
2. In point distributor, sparking at the points burns the contacts and wastes energy, Electronic ignition systems allow most of the available energy to reach the spark plug and improve combustion
3. Better starting and smoother running
4. No need to check or adjust and clean contact breakers
5. No capacitor to fail or go weak
6. More water resistant

Having said that… the perfectly set up (if both new) electronic and breaker point distribution show no significant difference in terms of performance. The disadvantage however, unlike point distributor, if it is fail, you can not fix it, have to replace the unit. Just for peace of mind, you can bring the electronic  “gut” for spare that will solve the only disadvantage of electronic distributor.

here is the picture of typical point distributor:

This is the electronic distributor

The following video showing the conversion from point distributor to electronic (5 minutes video).

Do I see or feel any improvement using this set up..? I will say yes.. :)