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upgrade to electronic ignition 1989 2.3 L

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134rocks

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I have a 1989 Fourwinns 17ft. with a Ford 2.3L 4cyl. I would like to upgrade from a points ingition to electronic ignition. Does anyone know if that is possible? I am tired of dealing with the points.

Thank You,
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

Pertronix does NOT make a conversion for the 2.3. There's nothing wrong with a properly installed and set up set of points, what's the issue?
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

Other then sanding them once a year, whats the problem ? i'm on my sixth year, on this set, and i didn't even need to change the ones that were on the boat when i got it.
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

If the point cam is lubed properly, the condenser is good and you have proper charging voltage in your electrical system breaker points should last a long time.
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

I did find a pertronix kit #9MC-141 compatible with Mallory Distributor YS621CV for $91. A replacement electronic Mallory distributor not readily available. 6-8 weeks wait. My dist. is bad and if I can't get replacement I might be able to have it re bushed , then converted.
What would be a proper charging voltage ? I've been getting 14.8 at the battery when running. I thought that was too high , but my boat mechanic says it's not.
 
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Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

The "OLD" rule of thumb used to be 13.8 to14.2 volts. I agree with your mechanic as 14.8 is still okay. It's when you start getting into the 16 to 19 volt area you start to have problems. Burned points, cooked batterys ,screwing up your electronics on the boat and ect. One question, are you getting this voltage reading from a volt meter installed in the boat or with a good multi-meter hooked across the battery itself ?
 
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Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

I took the reading at the battery ,with a Fluke multimeter, with it running 15 volts at first, dropped to 14.8 and stayed around there. . The battery is sealed type can't open to check water levels. Well I'm off to search for a distributor. Any body know where 1 is available ?
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

I recently checked the voltage on a newly refurbished Motorola alternator:
14.2 VDC at idle (OMC 2.3L).
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

I personally wouldn't use a sealed type battery in my boat. Down here in FL with all the heat and ect you have to keep a good eye on the water level in the battery. In fact I have a vented battery in my vehical. Don't know what part of the country you're in but good luck.
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

mac'n89blckstng said:
Pertronix DOES make a conversion for the 2.3. Just gotta do the diode fix.
Click to expand...


I stand corrected, I can't speak about a Mallory dist but according to Pertronix if you have a Delco dist you can use PN 1146A or 91146A (Ignitor I or II), Also recommend changing the ESA to CDI/Rapair rather than the diode fix.
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

boatin_bob said:
Pertronix does NOT make a conversion for the 2.3. There's nothing wrong with a properly installed and set up set of points, what's the issue?[/QUOTE

The issue is that I put a new set of points in and the boat ran fine for about 5 minutes. Then it just started mis-firing and sputtering. I almost didn't make it back to the boat ramp.In the past, I've had to replace my points about every 2 years for it to run good for the boating season. What else could be the issue?
I was told the Mallory conversion kit #9-26900 would fit in my distributor.
Click to expand...
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

Do you replace the condenser with the points? Are they set up using a dwell meter? Is the resistance wire working, do you have a lower voltage at the coil while running than while starting? Are they the correct points?

Sorry for all the questions, just don't want to assume anything.
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

SunnysideUp said:
.............................. What would be a proper charging voltage ? I've been getting 14.8 at the battery when running. I thought that was too high , but my boat mechanic says it's not.
Click to expand...
This should actually be asked in a separate thread, but......
The 14.8 volts during heavy charge can be expected, but this should taper off as the charge reaches near completion.
I'd say that this is too high, unless you have a bad battery or two, or a malfunctioning voltage regulator.
Make sure that your VOM is accurate.

boatin_bob said:
Do you replace the condenser with the points? Are they set up using a dwell meter? Is the resistance wire working, do you have a lower voltage at the coil while running than while starting? Are they the correct points?
Click to expand...
These kits replace both contact points and external condenser.
The dwell is set by the design of the new components. Yes, there is still a dwell with electronic triggering.


Remember that the Pertronix is Hall Effect! Not as sophisticated as other systems.
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

RicardoMarine said:
These kits replace both contact points and external condenser.
The dwell is set by the design of the new components. Yes, there is still a dwell with electronic triggering.
Click to expand...

I realize that the kit provides the condenser but I specifically asked if it was changed because I have seen guys throw the new one out when they change points because they can't be bothered changing it figuring it never goes bad.
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

Bob, My bad!
I took your question as if asking if the condensor is to be abandoned during the electronic conversion installation. Sorry about that! :)

Yes, Condensors/Capacitors fail, just as with any other component.
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

Mine runs fine for 15-30 miutes , sputters and dies , and no restart. This has been going on for weeks. After 3 weeks in the shop and $660 it still does it. The shop wired in a ballast resistor and that did nothing. They changed.. my new coil to another NEW coil. my new points AND condensor to a NEW new set. I picked it up 3 times with them telling me it's fixed only to stall in the middle of the river and be towed back. They pulled the distributor and inspected it and found "nothing wrong with it". But he told me he couldn't get the dwell set below 40 it would just drop off?? The last straw with these guys was.. They wanted to order a $500 Mallory electronic dist. which I would have to wait 2-4 weeks for. Then of course there is the diode fix thing that I have read doesn't always work, requiring a new ESA module. After all that he admitted it would only be a guess. I can guess myself.
What I have found and I hope this might help somebody else, is when it starts to run rough if I lightly press down on one side of the distributor cap it will straighten out the idle instantly. If I pry the dist. base away from the side of the engine same thing. When I release it the engine goes to stall. Yesterday at WOT I saw 13.6v at the + side of coil. That made me think maybe bad regulator. I had alternator checked at 2 different places that rebuild alts and they said it's fine. Today I jumped out the ignition switch and the kill switch and even scraped the paint off the alt where it mounts to bracket.I cleaned every ground and opened up the engine wire harness and inspected it. All good. It still does the same thing. SOOOO tomorrow morning I will be ordering one of the last OEM distributors on the planet which is at a reasonable price. I will install it this weekend and update here. I spent 2 days last week searching for a dist. and I have found that the oem dist. Mallory YS621CV is absolutely not convertible to electronic. IF you have a newer replacement dist.YL621CV ...that is convertible. I spoke directl with Mallory and they told me it's 6-8 weeks for any of the 3 distributors they make. I agree with the Chief if my boat ran fine for 22 years on a points dist. why convert it? I will update this weekend after I install the dist. God I love boating !
 
Re: upgrade to electronic ignition

Again, this should probably be posted in a new thread, rather than Hi-Jacking an existing thread.... but again, since we're here........

SunnysideUp, I mean no disrespect here at all......, but why are you paying for work that is NOT correcting the problem?
Are you asking for a quote, followed by a descriptive work scope that will correct the problem??????
Or are you giving Cart Blanc permission to spend your money????

You are correct..... you can do the Guessing yourself....., and for dang near free!

That may sound gruff, but I can throw enough parts at dang near any issue, and eventually correct it, but it will be at the owner's expense!

Since the mechanic could not get a correct dwell, that should have been the first clue!
And your comment on pressing down on the distributor is another clue.
The mechanic should have gone no further without first discussing a new ignition distributor, and the ESA fix.
The Mallory YL621CV is for SBF, so I assume that you have the SBF.

While Chief may prefer contact points, the YLM (magnetic breaker-less "VR" ) series would be a much better choice, IMO.
The VR (variable reluctor) is nothing new! Chrysler has been using this for years!
It is a tried and proven triggering system, and is among the most trouble free.
You do this just once! And once done, you won't look back! You won't have to! :D

Yes, you'd have to install the ESA module fix, but this will be well worth the effort and expense...., again, IMO here.


For all of you guys who are trying to resurrect old ignition distributors, expecting that they will perform with worn shafts, worn bushings, worn advancing systems, worn this and that......, I'd suggest that you consider a full and real electronic VR replacement, and be done with it.
 
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ML is if you have the Mallory distributor ,check to see if you have that one ,there are kits for the other types as well ,contact pertronix, they will tell you what you need.If it is a Mallory for omc you will need to upgrade your shift assist module or do the diode modification many people have done on here .I upgraded the shift assist module ,91.00 on Amazon, cdi I think it's called or made by.
 
13 year old thread! I still have points in my 1988 4.3 V6. They last longer in the boat than in any of the cars I had with points. I get at least 5 seasons out of a set of points. I think it’s because we just don’t put the hrs on the boat, I recall the maintenance on points was 12,000 miles in our cars (1965 VW 1200 40 hp, 1970 Ford 302 V8, 1972 Chevy 350 V8). Only had one breakdown on the road with points (VW), fixed by the side of the road.
 
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