wasted spark and direct fire on leading plugs
Posted: Sun Apr 08, 2012 10:23 am
Just coping and pasting from oldschool forum what recent mods I have done with my Vivas ignition setup.. Most of the info needed for this conversion I have picked up from this thread here on ausrotary...
http://ausrotary.com/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=96724
Its been a bit hit and miss for me at first as I was using non bosch coils with possibly the wrong resistance etc. But now its all sorted I can definitely say that if you want great ignition for not much money this is a bloody great setup! Read on..
I had bought 3 Bosch Hec 715 coils to replace the non-branded coils I was trying last time round.
Now with 3 coils lined up together there was not room for the new ignitor housing cooler box I had in mind. This little box would house a little computer fan to keep the ignitors cool as last time round I noted how hot they get. Heat is usually the killer of them.
So first I thought I would build the box first and then see where it might fit. I took the car to work yesterday so I had use of the lathe, metal folder, plasma cutter etc. Made it much easier and neater than I have been used to over the last few years of dealing with what little I have in my shed thats for sure! Just things like boring a hole in 5mm plate with the lathe rather than drilling many holes in a circle and cutting between them!
Box...
I had to nick the fan from the housetruck where I had fitted it to cool the solar charger. When I looked at the local tip there were no old computers to raid one from. Next time maybe.
I have kept all the wiring intact for the old ignition system so with a bit of allen key spinning and terminal pushing it can be re-installed if this new setup plays up...
After having tried fitting the box in several different places in the engine bay I decided it was just too ugly and bulky so I fitted it under the dash on the parcel shelf. This will also keep it away from the engine bay heat. I painted it black so it sort of hides away.
The wiring inside box to the ignitors...
The new coils. I just had to remove the ugly yellow Bosch stickers!
After all this I was ready to plug the spark plug leads in place and I discovered that they aint long enough to reach- short by about 50mm. Typical
Oh well- I was gonna replace them as they are really old but now the start up will have to wait till monday when the shops open again.
I might just make a quick bracket to move the coils closer for now as I'm itching to see if it all works OK.
Next day:.......
Its always a happy moment when a car starts after some engine/ignition wiring has been done. This stuff I've just done is a piece of piss compared to fellas making and wiring in ecus and shit like that. But I'm still happy.
I turned the coils upside down and the wires still lined up fine. So I mounted it that way and the leads now reach. Cool.
Then I removed the old ignitors from the side of the dizzy and stashed them away in the boot with the old coils- emergency use...
I connected the 4 wires into the now exposed dizzy ignitor sockets, the wires I had put in place a few weeks ago in my first attempt at the setup.
Turned the key with a touch of choke and it fired up pronto. Took it for a drive. Sweeeeeet. Much much smoother all through the rev range- this on top of what was a pretty smooth engine. Where its most noticeable is cruising in a high gear just on the throttle. In say 4th or 5th at 50kph there used to be a bit of stumble, mild popping or snatch but thats all gone. Its smooth right down to say 1500 rpm where I can then pull away with no stumbles. There used to be a rumble/resonance from what I thought was the prop shaft when in a high gear going up a gentle gradient. But thats gone. I think the fuel at low down revs is being burnt that much better.
The response is loads better too- just smoother and sharper. Pulls better from low down.
The idle note is a touch louder and definitely smoother until the fuel starts pooling....
The car still idles way too rich and starts to splutter if I try to gently raise the revs after even 20 secs of idling. I cant set the carb jet any higher as it leans out everywhere else then so I will just have to make a new needle with a different profile. I can buy one with almost the profile I want but at $45 a needle I'd rather have a go making my own and get it dead right.
Oh and the rev counter now flutters away and reads 500 to high at idle. But as soon as I even breathe on the throttle pedal its goes still, drops back to 1000 ish and when driving its fine as. Odd!? I really don't know what is causing this? Its just a cheap Trisco item. That I paid $7 for... But it works fine with the stock setup.
Those ignitors do get hotter at idle for a while than when cruising along eh. The little fan box seems to work well. The little ignitors really do warm up the air coming out from the front of the box. I made the box from alloy too and used that heat paste between the heatsinks and the box. So the box gets warm too. I thought the fan was gonna be over kill- I was really building it this way as it was just fun to tinker and make the little box. But I'm glad I added the fan now seeing how hot the air gets in the box :mic
http://ausrotary.com/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=96724
Its been a bit hit and miss for me at first as I was using non bosch coils with possibly the wrong resistance etc. But now its all sorted I can definitely say that if you want great ignition for not much money this is a bloody great setup! Read on..
I had bought 3 Bosch Hec 715 coils to replace the non-branded coils I was trying last time round.
Now with 3 coils lined up together there was not room for the new ignitor housing cooler box I had in mind. This little box would house a little computer fan to keep the ignitors cool as last time round I noted how hot they get. Heat is usually the killer of them.
So first I thought I would build the box first and then see where it might fit. I took the car to work yesterday so I had use of the lathe, metal folder, plasma cutter etc. Made it much easier and neater than I have been used to over the last few years of dealing with what little I have in my shed thats for sure! Just things like boring a hole in 5mm plate with the lathe rather than drilling many holes in a circle and cutting between them!
Box...
I had to nick the fan from the housetruck where I had fitted it to cool the solar charger. When I looked at the local tip there were no old computers to raid one from. Next time maybe.
I have kept all the wiring intact for the old ignition system so with a bit of allen key spinning and terminal pushing it can be re-installed if this new setup plays up...
After having tried fitting the box in several different places in the engine bay I decided it was just too ugly and bulky so I fitted it under the dash on the parcel shelf. This will also keep it away from the engine bay heat. I painted it black so it sort of hides away.
The wiring inside box to the ignitors...
The new coils. I just had to remove the ugly yellow Bosch stickers!
After all this I was ready to plug the spark plug leads in place and I discovered that they aint long enough to reach- short by about 50mm. Typical
Oh well- I was gonna replace them as they are really old but now the start up will have to wait till monday when the shops open again.I might just make a quick bracket to move the coils closer for now as I'm itching to see if it all works OK.
Next day:.......
Its always a happy moment when a car starts after some engine/ignition wiring has been done. This stuff I've just done is a piece of piss compared to fellas making and wiring in ecus and shit like that. But I'm still happy.
I turned the coils upside down and the wires still lined up fine. So I mounted it that way and the leads now reach. Cool.
Then I removed the old ignitors from the side of the dizzy and stashed them away in the boot with the old coils- emergency use...
I connected the 4 wires into the now exposed dizzy ignitor sockets, the wires I had put in place a few weeks ago in my first attempt at the setup.
Turned the key with a touch of choke and it fired up pronto. Took it for a drive. Sweeeeeet. Much much smoother all through the rev range- this on top of what was a pretty smooth engine. Where its most noticeable is cruising in a high gear just on the throttle. In say 4th or 5th at 50kph there used to be a bit of stumble, mild popping or snatch but thats all gone. Its smooth right down to say 1500 rpm where I can then pull away with no stumbles. There used to be a rumble/resonance from what I thought was the prop shaft when in a high gear going up a gentle gradient. But thats gone. I think the fuel at low down revs is being burnt that much better.
The response is loads better too- just smoother and sharper. Pulls better from low down.
The idle note is a touch louder and definitely smoother until the fuel starts pooling....
The car still idles way too rich and starts to splutter if I try to gently raise the revs after even 20 secs of idling. I cant set the carb jet any higher as it leans out everywhere else then so I will just have to make a new needle with a different profile. I can buy one with almost the profile I want but at $45 a needle I'd rather have a go making my own and get it dead right.
Oh and the rev counter now flutters away and reads 500 to high at idle. But as soon as I even breathe on the throttle pedal its goes still, drops back to 1000 ish and when driving its fine as. Odd!? I really don't know what is causing this? Its just a cheap Trisco item. That I paid $7 for... But it works fine with the stock setup.
Those ignitors do get hotter at idle for a while than when cruising along eh. The little fan box seems to work well. The little ignitors really do warm up the air coming out from the front of the box. I made the box from alloy too and used that heat paste between the heatsinks and the box. So the box gets warm too. I thought the fan was gonna be over kill- I was really building it this way as it was just fun to tinker and make the little box. But I'm glad I added the fan now seeing how hot the air gets in the box :mic