THE 1 -2-3 DIZZY IS THE GREATEST THING SINCE......

[gtjoey]

Sliced bread! I have now installed 10 of these wonderful pieces of kit .
They just transform the car!
I get mine from our local suppliers here in the states and to say there is a significant upgrade is an understatement.
Pair the dizzy with the magna core wires, 3.0 coil and the c type wire holder and away you go!
Im trying to reach 100,000 miles in my restored ETYPE coupe in the next 4 years or so, gone is the hammer studder, the flat spot, the bounce at idle.
I do not own a shop and do this for enthusiast enjoyment!
Setting the dizzy with the red and white wire at 9 oclock, your almost home within a couple of degress.
Once the timing is dead on, the rest falls into place.
Great piece of kit!
GTJOEY1314

[mgcjag]

Hi Joey.....what model 123 are you fitting......the one with the preprogramed switch selected options, the bleutooth or the tune version where you create your own map.....also have you fitted them to tripple SU models.....I ask as the 123 has caused a lot of problems with many forum members...with quiteva few reverting back to their points dizzg.....the switch option model in particular as there is no curve that comes close to the original distributor curve for a UK spec car.....Steve

[chrisfell]

I agree that the 123 is a nice piece of kit and mine is many tens of thousands of miles old. But I don’t understand why anyone would need ten of them. One is usually enough.

[Mich7920]

He certainly got a problem with the first nine ...

[gtjoey]

You guys are funny....
Three cars were mine, the rest were friends cars from Dtype lynx to Mark 2’s along with other E types!
I have had great success with the adjustable advance with the key settings not the blue tooth.
Over all number 2 seems to be the best overall curve for stock settings.
I’ve had them on triples and it soooo smooth
I’m trying one now on a DB4
Will report back
Gtjoey1314

[christopher storey]

Oh ! Based on my own experience , I thought the first nine would be the ones you had to throw away .....

[gtjoey]

Chris Im just curious , how long agao did you buy yours ,also what happened to it?
I heard at the begining there were some early build issues but that was years ago.
Did you use a matching coil and wires and all that?
Im going to put ALOT of miles on my ETYPE as a long term test bed.
So far ,its centuries ahead.
Thanks.....
gtjoey1314

[christopher storey]

I have never had a 123, but my experience of electronic ignition on 2 of my cars has been woeful, and as a sort of travelling mechanic to an informal touring club my experience of having to replace 123s on 3 occasions, and lend a traditional distributor to get them home , is very dispiriting. This was , it should be said, some 5 or more years ago . My experience has been both with 123 and others such as pertronix that if you get over the first 12 months without mishap, then you probably will have no trouble, but in the early period of use all the systems seem very unreliable compared with OEM ignition on current cars . Why this should be I do not know

[malcolm]

Joey, I recently went the 123 route on my series 2 E Type. Few things to note:
Like you, I have found it to be totally reliable (SO FAR!)
It ticks over very nicely and evenly
Car runs well

HOWEVER

I am disappointed that none of the selectable curves are remotely close to the reccommended curve for an E Type.

Like you, I use curve 2 and it seems to run well enough, but would be even better I'm sure with the correct advance curve. See my post regarding this: I measured virtually every curve on the dizzie with an advance strobe and here are the readings:

http://forum.etypeuk.com/viewtopic.php? ... 20#p132238

I find it disappointing that 123 ignition couldn't get a closer curve to the correct one, despite my dizzie being the one supposedly designed for the XK engine.

[Heuer]

I thought it was programable? If so the map we used on the EDIS/Megajolt could be added.

[malcolm]

No, the one I have, and the one Joey refers to, is not the 123 tune. It has about 16 pre-programmed curves you can choose from by turning a (hard to get at!) switch. But the curves are set

[mgcjag]

Hi David....there is a pre programed version which has a manual switch with 16 pre programed maps....this was the first type available and the one being discussed here ......there is now a 123 tune version which you can connect to a pc/phone and make up any map that you want.....Steve

[Heuer]

That (123 tune) would be the one to go for then for best performance!

[mgcjag]

..........The standard 123 with the selectable switch will get you up and running fairly well but the car will never run as good as it could and will always be a compromise becaus the available maps are not correct........The 123 tune will give you the exact curve that you need if you program it correctly....Steve

[malcolm]

That (123 tune) would be the one to go for then for best performance!

Absolutely, although there have been many issues listed on this site with people having problems with the tune version. I'm sure it's great once they're sorted! Just a bit complex for me.

[gtjoey]

There’s a lot going on......
When the dizzy is installed correctly and timed
It actually brings out the other warts
Fuel mixture
Bad Timing
Gap of plugs
Bad coil and so on
When it’s all dialed in it transforms the car
It does help if you can turn wrenches as not to rely on others
Gtjoey1314

[rossbraithwaite]

Has anyone done a back to back comparison of 123 / electronic ignition v. a freshly refurbished distributor? I had mine done by the Distributor Doctor and that transformed the car too. It seems unfair to replace a tired dizzy with brand new electronic version and say it transforms the car.
@Christopher S, As for why the electronic version can last well if they survive the initial 12 months; I suppose this is the bathtub curve in effect?

[Tony]

Don't know a lot about curves but mine has been going strong for 10+ years and never touched it.