Vain attempt: electronic ign. conversion

I tried to buy the mechanical parts to convert my inferior '69 Chrysler 318 Prestolite single point ignition system to electronic. Sorry. No such luck.

Starting backwards, the Bosch Platinum plugs are slightly longer than the previous Autolite plugs. And the primo new Accel plug wires have a much longer boot at the plug that holds the wire firmly against the manifold. No good.

The expensive Blue Streak cap doesn't fit right on the 1975 Plymouth Duster electronic distributor I bought. Not to worry. The shoulder of the dizzy is slightly different, such that it doesn't sit down into the hole at the same height. It doesn't go down in the block all the way. And so the Blue Streak cap doesn't very well with the new rotor that came with it as a matched set. My old dizzy has this on a tag on the side: "Chrysler 244983, IBM-4109A 278". That help match the new to the old?

Incidentally, the brand new Prestolite-style rotor was whacking the new Prestolite-style cap as it spun, shearing off little tiny shavings of metal, which are well-distributed under the cap. No wonder the boat got more sluggish as I ran it Sunday.

Back I go tomorrow to try again.

Anybody tell me what year, make, and model to tell the counter guy to look up to wind up with the right parts?

Thomas

If you say 1969 Dodge Coronet, you wind up with points-type ignition parts. And apparently marine Chrysler used Prestolite ignition components, not regular Mopar parts. So the cap and rotor and other things are different.

Last week I did change the cap and rotor before I decided to convert to electronic, and last night, after running the boat a couple of hours Sunday, I took off the cap. There are little shavings of metal all inside the cap where the rotor was whacking the cap pickups and shearing off the metal. Yikes! What is that? No wonder it didn't seem to be running as well the last 15 minutes.

Does the fact that this distributor will run backwards matter with the vacuum advance? My mechanic says we might have to modify the advance plate. The original has no vacuum advance. It's mechanical.

Also, I got a dizzy for a 1975 Plymouth Duster 318 and it didn't fit the same as the original 1969 dizzy. The '75 had an o-ring the original doesn't have, and the '75 didn't seem to sit down in the block as far because the inner shoulder is longer. So I'm not sure it's engaging properly. Is that a problem?

Does someone somewhere make a retrofit dizzy for this motor that's problem-free for fitting?

Thomas

Also if you are using a vaccum advance distributor it is completely wrong for this application. Also a distributor from a car will not work. First it is not marine approved and secondly it will not have the correct gear and rotation. Pay someone that knows what they are doing before you kill someone

www.vintageperformance.com will know

79 Nautique, I appreciate your concern, but you've jumped to a few unwarranted conclusions.

"Someone that knows what they are doing" doesn't exist in my neck of the woods. Local boat professionals don't have a clue what to do with a boat this old, much less an inboard with a Chrysler V8. I did consider paying a professional to do this work, but when the expertise isn't available, it can't be bought at any price. That's why I'm on this site. And I figure if I pass on my experiences, others can learn from them, even if they don't reflect that well on me.

I never did install the plug wires. The problem was not that the boots needed to be slid one direction or the other more. They were just too long, so the wire that protruded was pushed tight up against the manifold. Since they were obviously wrong for my motor, I took them back and got a set with shorter boots. It was one of those things that isn't real obvious at the store until you try to install it and then realize that little difference really is significant. By then, the parts store was closed. I had to hit up 4 more parts stores before I found a set of wires with shorter boots. Doesn't tenacity count as one of the necessary skills for doing this kind of stuff?

There was no indication the cap & rotor I got were interfering with each other when I put them on. The rotor fit down tight, and the cap also seated straight and tight. And since they were listed for my application, how was I to know? I still don't understand why they don't work, but they obviously don't. They actually didn't interfere by much. Just enough to make some shavings. There was no audible sound that they were contacting at all, and the boat ran OK. Not great, but OK. Only when I got back home and checked the cap to see how everything was could I see the problem. And I don't intend on going back to the water until that's fixed. I'm neither that stupid nor foolish. I picked up a new cap and rotor today.

I also never installed the '75 dizzy, since it was also obviously wrong. Instead I ordered the Pertronix Ignitor II electronic ignition conversion and a coil to match. So I get to keep my original dizzy, which is otherwise fine, and get a much better spark. The Pertronix came today and goes in tonight.

I rebuilt the carb last night, and it goes back in tonight, too.

Cheer up, '79. I'm still alive, and don't intend to kick off (or blow up) any time soon.

Thomas

J-I-H; Would be very boring here without your dry sense of humor also. Never leave us...jbear

tleed,

Have you tried calling discount inboard marine and talking to Vince?

You are going to have a hard time getting wires that are the correct length from an automotive parts store. The main reason is that the exhaust manifolds are different on the marine application and usually require longer leads and 90 degree boots. There are a couple of others on the site that have chrysler engines and maybe able to help you locate a parts supplier that has what you need if SKIDIM can't help but I bet they can. Vince is extremely knowledgable and more than willing to take the time and walk you through step by step anytime you call.

Since the cap and rotor came as a kit it shouldn't have hit, but if the cap wasn't seated correctly on the base or there was exesive play in the shaft then you could have issues. I wish you the best of luck getting the 318 running correctly. You are at a little disadvatage because of the engine but by no means is it a negitive, just it wasn't used on a lot of C.C. so the parts are harder to find. Just take your time and double check everything. I just hate to see someone waiste there money and miss out on a day on the water enjoy these great boats.

PerTronix Ignitor II went in last night with the new wires from NAPA. The wires fit fine. Newly rebuilt carb went on last night, too.

Fired up the motor with the water intakes hooked to a bucket. Vroom! Vroom! Nary a stumble! Can't wait to get it on the water.

Checked out the pitot tube. Back at the gas tank it's cut in two with clothespins on the ends. Do you suppose blowing it out with compressed air would correct that? Is this a dangerous condition? Am I going to go kablooey in the middle of the lake if one of the clothespins slips and sparks?

Jim: 1HP/ci? Tell me your secrets. I need to know.

Incidentally, I would like to know where to look for my tach hookup. It works infrequently, and it would be nice to have it back fulltime.

Thomas