The Triumph Dolomite Club - Discussion Forum

I currently have an AC Delco distributor in my 1973 1850 Auto. The problem with it is that if not used for a while, the points suffer from a mild corrosion or patina and she wont start. It is a real pain to strip out the rotor arms and the weights to access the points for cleaning.

It has a sort of after market electronic ignition that uses the points to switch it. A fully electronic one is too expensive for me, so I have thought about a Sprint distributor but they seem to command good money, also not really for me assuming I could find one.

Are there any other similar distributors that might fit with some modification? An Austin princess, Ital one looks close, although the shaft would not be long enough but they are available,

Thanks

Malcolm

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1942 Willys Jeep
1960 1385 Austin Mini
1975 Dolomite Sprint Automatic
1973 Dolomite 1850 Automatic
1976 Dolomite 1300 (aka Lucky)

I fitted a stealth unit to my distributer. About £40, and as simple as a set of points to fit. Been totally reliable.
Will be for sale as a complete unit in the near future.

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Clive Senior
Brighton

I agree, the Delco distributor is a pain in the derriere. On my 1850 HL I fitted a Powerspark kit from Simon BBC https://simonbbc.com/electronic-ignitio ... tributors/. Not expensive and has worked perfectly for a couple of years so far. That should ensure it fails!

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Mike
(1969 MGB GTV8, 1977 Dolomite 1850HL, 1971 MGB roadster now all three on the road)

I also have the Powerspark system on my 1850HL. And agree it’s not expensive, easy to fit and so far has been reliable

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1977 Dolomite 1850HL
1987 Opel Manta GTE
1987 Opel Manta 1800 Berlinetta.

+1 on the Powerspark from me too. On the 1850/TR7, you do have to remove and dismantle the dizzy to do the initial fit which is a bit of a PITA, but once done, no more points or timing setting.

I've fitted a number of Simon BBC products over recent years to all sorts of cars, not just Dolomites, or even Triumphs. I've not yet had an in "service" failure! The one or two minor problems I HAVE had, concerned installation or bits not quite fitting properly and were all dealt with promptly and free. The guy there is ALWAYS helpful and friendly and really knows what he's talking about. This good after sales service alone has been enough to keep me returning to him as a supplier over and over again.

The only other dizzy that fits an 1850 (besides the almost identical Delco from the TR7) is the Lucas 44D4 from a Sprint. This is unique to the Sprint, so not common, often very worn (they are all more than 40 years old) and also has a different advance curve to the 1850. I wouldn't bother!

A Powerspark is cheap, sub £30 ATM I think, if you want to spend a whole heap of money (and time) but get a superlative product that will last the car out and improve performance AND economy, look at the 123 programmable distributor. It's not cheap to start with and you will need a couple of bespoke bits to make it fit, but the benefits of exact control of timing throughout the rev range as well as contactless ignition are undeniable.

Steve

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'73 2 door Toledo with Vauxhall Carlton 2.0 8v engine (The Carledo)
'78 Sprint Auto with Vauxhall Omega 2.2 16v engine (The Dolomega)
'72 Triumph 1500FWD in Slate Grey, Now with RWD and Carledo powertrain!

Maverick Triumph, Servicing, Repairs, Electrical, Recomissioning, MOT prep, Trackerjack brake fitting service.
Apprentice served Triumph Specialist for 50 years. PM for more info or quotes.

Thank your for your comments and suggestions.

As the 1850 failed to start again only 3 weeks after cleaning the points I have bought the Simon BBC unit for the AC Delco D300 Distributor.

I have half a Distributor on the bench and I can now see from Steve's comments that I need to remove the distributor and remove the drive gear and push the whole assembly out to fit the magnetic ring.

I did have an Accuspark on my 1300 Dolomite but that gave up after a year or two, but the reviews on the Simon BBC reliability look very good.

Current price is £39.99 including free delivery.

Malcolm

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1942 Willys Jeep
1960 1385 Austin Mini
1975 Dolomite Sprint Automatic
1973 Dolomite 1850 Automatic
1976 Dolomite 1300 (aka Lucky)