MGB & GT Forum

Today we finally got the spare engine hooked up and started. The start up was a little bumpy at first (had to swing the dizzy around quite a bit to get the engine to fire), but it ran smooth....a little bit of lifter noise but not a problem. Oil pressure at start was a good 78 and never dropped below 68 when hot. Water temps were normal for this car.....between 160 and 170. Then we shut the engine off. Restart did not happen. Once again we had to swing the dizzy around to get the engine to fire. I'm thinking the distributor is the main culprit here. This engine was run many times on a test stand using a Pertronics Flame-Thrower distributor and never gave a single problem. Sooooo.....I'm thinking about pulling the CEI dizzy and dropping the Pertronics in to test my theory. My question is......Do I need to do anything to the ignition system when I pull the CEI?? I know the Pertronics will simply connect to the coil + and - terminals and should work properly



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2015-07-04 12:03 PM by Kats Bee.

Pertronix seem to be famous for tac signal problems and they flat won't respond to customers about this. MG or otherwise. I have used their igniters and coils many times with good results, but had a mechanical or VDO tach. Several on this forum suggest the dizzy is cheaply made. This time around, I am going Davis.

Look at the wiring diagram. The CIE has a lot of extra surrounding circuit you will not need.

You might contact Jeff to see if he can fix/tune, you original.

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Cogito ergo sum periculoso

Got out bright and early this morning to figure out this distributor problem. Went so far as to drop in the PerTronics Flame thrower I had used on the engine during testing. A lot of cranking on the starter until the engine FINALLY kicked over and started (must have taken about 3 minutes of cranking). So no difference between the PerTronics and the CEI, so put the CEI back in the car. Did some heavy thinking and figured I was getting ignition and fire, maybe the problem lies in the carbs (HS4's). Sure enough, the carbs were trying to run WAY too lean. Cranked the mixture nuts out a full 12 flats and damned if the engine didn't fire right up!! Warmed the engine up and started to do a complete tune-up. Set the valves first (.013in hot). Then the timing 15* BTC @ 1500 rpm. Then moved to the carbs. Used the Uni-syn, got them both synced, and set the idle at 900-1000 rpm. She now starts and runs like she is supposed to!! Need to bleed the clutch this afternoon and see how she will drive after that.

Clutch bled and she drives perfectly....well almost. On the first test drive we had a loud popping sound come from the right side of the engine after about 3/4 of a mile....turned around and headed back to the house. Turned out a blank off plug in the head where to air distribution manifold was had come out. Took a plug form the old engine and...no more popping. The only big problem came with the electrical (well duh). The horn, bright head lights, and the "flash-to-pass" aren't working...I'll work on that tomorrow. Kathy is happy her car is working again and wans to take a drive tomorrow afternoon.

Recheck timing. Try 12 BTDC at idle, vacuum line disconnected. That factory spec was only good on brand new engines.

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jeff@advanceddistributors.com