1978 conversion to electronic ignition???

[SUBARU3]

Hi:

 

I'm back again on this issue.

 

I'm trying to convert my 78 "standard" ignition to electronic ignition. I have replaced the all these parts with a 1979 Nipondenso "electronic" ignition components.

1. Distributor

2. Coil, module

 

The questions I have is that the wiring harness in the car is different than what my electronic ignition cars, of the same vintage have. The wiring diagram is confusing at best in the factory manual!

 

Basically, I have 4 wire connectors in the harness, on the standard ignition car. (2 to the resistor and 2 to the coil).

The electronic ignition car has only 3 wires in the harness, 2 to resistor and one to coil.

 

What do I do with the 4 wires in the harness? Are there other wiring changes I need to manke too?

 

Regards, Todd

[Adam N.D.J.]

Lets see if I can remember here, it's been a while since I've done one of these conversions. You should have a power wire going into the coil, you can find this with a test light, that will go on the positive side of the coil. Then you should have two wires from the dizzy, one of them goes to the positive, the other to the negative. Of all the cars I worked with, the wire to the negative side from the dizzy was marked in yellow, the other to the positive side. Does one of the cars have a tach in it while the other doesn't? (one a GL and the other a DL?)My 1980 Brat GL has 4 wires going to the coil, but the 82 DL only had 3 wires going to the coil, (least untill I added in a tach to it)

 

Here is how I've always hooked up my coils on my cars.

[SUBARU3]

Nope, both are DLs. I added a tach to one, but that wire I know. It's just the 4 wires in the original harness, and I only need 3. The distrib. has it's own wire that runs along the firewall and plugs into the distributor

 

Thanks for the drawing. It helps!

 

Todd

[SUBARU3]

Great drawing!

 

I need only 2 wires for the Hitachi system though, but I have 4 in the car's harness. What do I do with the 2 extra going to the resistor?

 

 

Thanks, Todd

[Adam N.D.J.]

Ohkay so the four wires is not counting the dizzy wires. Hmm. I must be getting old or sumpin cause I can't remember which is the nippo unit and which is the hitachi. The ones that I worked with had the magnetic pickups in it, not the ones with the little black boxes and the "do not remove" plastic cover, I hated working with them, half the time the controle module in them was bad anyways. It's been a while now, but I think I might be able to track down one or two of the cars I converted, and see how exactly I did it. It's funny, you get into computer controled distributors, and it's like the older information is moved out to make room for the new stuff. But anyways, I'll get it figured out on what I've done and get back to ya with it.

As for the resistor, the electronic doesn't need it, no need to drop the voltage, which is all it does, so the points don't burn up.

[Caboobaroo]

not too long ago, I changed my point disty to an electronic disty. I think its from a 2wd 82 wagon or something like that. I know that it is an EA81 2wd disty. It wasn't very hard, all I did was pull the old disty out, take the ballast resistor off and the transistor box thingy on top of the coil and drop the new disty in and hook the two wires to the coil and BAM, it ran fine:headbang:

[SUBARU3]

I going to play with the wires and figure this thing out!

 

I'll keep you all posted.

 

Todd