TR Ignition Upgrade

For all AMC V-8's

This ignition upgrade was shown to me by Pat Quirk  

It will work with any AMC V-8 from 1978-1990. These engines used the same Motorcraft distributor for all variations.

There are three different levels for this upgrade.

1. Basic Upgrade. No modification required to any hard parts. No cutting of any wiring harness. Does not increase spark energy, just makes sure it gets where it's supposed to go and helps smooth out the idle.

2. Mild Performance Upgrade. A small amount of modification required. This upgrade builds on to the Basic Upgrade for faster response times, better starting, and much higher spark energies.

3. Extreme Performance Upgrade.   A fair amount of modification required. This is an upgrade that should only be done after the second upgrade has been done.

This upgrade uses as many stock, off the shelf parts, as possible, so they can be replaced at any parts store. I hate to be out in la-la ville and not being able to get parts.

1. BASIC UPGRADE

What gets replaced: Distributor Cap, Rotor, Plug Wires.

What to Replace these with:

1979 Ford F-350 Truck with a 460 CID engine.

    A. Distributor Cap Base

    B. Distributor Cap

    C. Rotor

    D. Spark Plug Wires

Make sure you get the good stuff. Get a distributor cap and rotor with brass terminals. Also a good spiral core spark plug wire, stay away from the house brands. I also like to get some "wire wrap", the black plastic wire loom that covers your wires in the engine bay. You can get this in different colors from most autoparts stores or a stereo shop. I get the size just large enough to go over the spark plug wires. I use this more for safety sakes, to keep the cross-firing down.

2. MILD PERFORMANCE UPGRADE

What gets replaced: Distributor Cap, Rotor, Plug Wires, Ignition Coil, Distributor Advance Springs

What to use for replacement:

1984 Ford F-350 Truck with a 460 CID engine with ECC.

    A. Distributor Cap Base

    B. Distributor Cap

    C. Rotor

    D. Spark Plug Wires

    E. Ignition Coil

Make sure you get the good stuff. Get a distributor cap and rotor with brass terminals. Also a good spiral core spark plug wire, stay away from the house brands.

If you ask for these components from a non-ecc engine you will get the round stock looking ignition coil. You DO NOT want that! So make sure the ignition coil you get is a small square looking piece of plastic with metal around it. This will be the TFI (Thick Film Integrated) ignition coil, also make sure the plug wires you get will attach to this coil. 

To use this TFI coil you will have to cut your stock coil connector out and attach the wires with some wire connectors (2 female type). You can mount this coil in any configuration, right side up, side ways, and even upside down. But try to keep it away from your engine as much as possible, I have found that it doesn't like large amounts of heat.

The TFI coil uses the full 12 volts, and doesn't use a resistor of any kind.

Distributor Centrifugal Advance Springs:

You can get these from aftermarket suppliers. Mr. Gasket P/N 925D (Approx. $4) and some local autoparts stores will carry these, or can order them for you.

These springs DO NOT have to be installed when the upgrade is done. It is just a way to get little more "zip" out of your engine.

3. EXTREME PERFORMANCE UPGRADE

Once the cap, rotor, plug wires, and ignition coil have been upgraded, then you can use some racing technology in the form of...

The next huge jump in ignition performance is the CAPACITIVE discharge Ignition (CDI).

All factory ignitions, and most aftermarket ignitions supposed to be upgrades for the Jeep are still inductive discharge ignitions (IDI), including the extremely expensive and temperamental D.U.I. ignitions and all Jacobs Ignitions.

Multiple Spark Discharge (a module upgrade, from Inductive to CDI) gives vastly superior ignition energy on all counts. Spark Duration, Spark Voltage, and Spark Amperage are all increased to the point were misfires are unheard of.

The MSD 6 Series units are the workhorse of the MSD product line, and there are several different versions of the 6 series available, depending on your intended application.

For using the MSD 6 Series you will need a Wiring Adapter P/N 8869 to connect the Motorcraft distributor connector to the MSD 6A and 6AL harness. (approx. $10) This adapter will keep you from cutting into your stock wires and the MSD wiring and it also keeps the polarity correct.

If you have a later model Jeep with a "computer", there are harnesses that will allow you to use it with your MSD, therefore keeping you 50 state legal.

MSD Tech line 1-915-855-7123

EXPLANATIONS

Distributor Cap Base: lifts up the distributor cap, and puts more physical distance between the high spark energies and the grounded internals of the distributor.  Helps prevent misfires.

Taller Rotor: serves the same purpose as the cap base.

Wider Distributor Cap: physically moves the high voltage terminals apart to help stop cross fires inside the cap.

TFI Coil: is a high output epoxy filled unit that can be mounted in any orientation, puts out about 2.5 times the useable spark of the typical can type coils (stock), and about 1.5 times of the GM HEI.

The CDI: throws about 400 volts at the ignition coil, compared to the puny 12 volts of the stock setup. The MSD module itself is capable of firing the ignition system reliable up to 15,000 rpms.