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Lumenition ignition problem.

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Old Nov 25th, 2008, 17:08   #1
Moosejaw
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Default Lumenition ignition problem.

I've been having intermittent starting problems on my Amazon for a couple of weeks, sometimes it would, sometimes it wouldn't, but when it did the engine ran fine. Things came to a head today when I got the AA out to it and the guy eventually determined that the Lumenition electronic ignition was to blame. The coil's ok, and there's power going to the little silver box, but no spark at the HT lead.
The AA guy thought the problem was probably with the optical unit in the dizzy, but wasn't sure.
I guess my questions are should I try and get this fixed, or should I just uninstall the thing completely and go back to a points ignition, and if so what parts would I need to return the ignition system to standard? Is it just a case of refitting a set of points and a condenser, or is there more to it than that?
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Old Nov 25th, 2008, 18:49   #2
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I ran lumenition for 20 years i found that if the battery voltage dropped to 11 or so it would not start . They were very reliable in those days though , The later ones seem less so , and a new unit is very expensive for what it is , a 2n 3055 transitor and 4 other components .. The points and distributor on the B18 are very good quality .
You could use an Aldon Ignitor , reasonably priced and work well ..
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Old Nov 26th, 2008, 15:42   #3
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I think the battery's OK, the fault is either in the Lumenition kit itself, which I'm told is rare, or the wiring surrounding it, which I reckon is far more likely given the "amateur electrician" nature of most of the car's wiring.
A member on another forum I'm on works with Lumenition kits and has kindly offered to test mine if I send it down to him, which is handy, but in the meantime I'll probably have to revert to points ignition. I've heard terrible things about the quality of modern condensers and points recently, does anyone know if the ones sold by the Volvo specialists like AmazonCars and Brookhouse are any good?
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Old Dec 7th, 2008, 10:53   #4
Mike Arnold
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I don't think that you will have to do much else other than put the points and condensor in (plus setting them, of course).

I run mine with a Sparkright with retains the points but doesn't burn them. The advantage is that with the flick of a switch you can go back to conventional if the unit fails.

Of course, they don't make them any more but I have seen them on eBay.
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Old Dec 9th, 2008, 23:19   #5
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I think meantime I'll just fit points to it, pennies are a bit tight to go replacing a leccy ignition system just now, but I need to do something to it since the poor wee thing's not moved for about a month!
A daft question though, is it an easy enough job to do? I must admit I've never changed a set of points in my life, and in my Amazon the brake servo sits over the dizzy, making it a bit difficult to see what I'm doing. Also, are there any other incidental wee bits I'd need, like extra leads or clips etc?
If anyone had a pic or a link to how it should all look when it's fitted, I'd be most grateful.
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Old Dec 10th, 2008, 12:36   #6
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If you could get your hands on a cheap spare dizzy it would be a useful exercise to practise taking it all apart and putting it together till you're completely confident. That way you'll have no trouble changing points, rotor, checking the gaps etc if you ever need to do this. I find the Haynes pictures are not the best for working out what goes where.

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Old Dec 11th, 2008, 16:27   #7
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I phoned Amazon Cars today to get points & stuff, and Rob had a pretty good go at selling me their own customised 123 Distributor! I've heard pretty good things about these devices and I must say I was thinking about one anyway since the dizzy in mine must be the 40 year-old original, but they ain't cheap! Has anyone here got any experience of them in an Amazon?
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