Hei ?

I know I read the article somewhere in here w/Sparky's answer to the distributor upgrade, but I can't find it. I just installed a whole new wiring harness, and a 1 wire Delco alternator. I still have the old prestolite distributor and want to know the best upgrade. If I put in the HEI, can I eliminate the coil and the ignition pack?
TIA

 

yes

 

THE best upgrade I have done on my 75 w/258 !!

If you don't want to go salvage yard diving you can pickup premade HEI's off of ebay or just go for the DUI setup.

This upgrade is definately money well spent !!

 

I agree with Springfever. It was an awesome improvement in idle with my Jeep. Like he said, there are auctions on Ebay for the distributor with the right gear already installed. That's the one I went with. I then put an Accel coil on the top and used 8mm wires. Really cleans things up under the hood.

High5

 

Thank you guys for all the input, I think it's definitely unanimous! anything particular I should look for in the DUI set up? It seems to be the simplest setup from what I've seen.
thanks again

 

The DUI is probably the best out there, but for a price.

Most of the units on e-bay are used distributors that have been bead blasted, thoroughly checked out and SOME components replaced. Below is a link to the fellow I got mine from. I was very happy with the purchase and the included HEI wires (expensive!) were like brand-new!
He has been doing these for a while and has great feedback.

You can save big bucks by getting one of these.........

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/JEEP...33690QQitemZ8039821341QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW

If you are concerned about it being used, a new DUI is a great option.

 

Here's a couple of other sources besides the junkyard:
http://www.driveajeep.com/html/jeep_amc_hei_s.html
http://www.zmjeeps.com/hei_6.php

 

i agree that the update is great.

i purchased my wires at autozone for 19.95 about 6 months ago. get them for an early '80's ford 300 I-6. done.

wally

 

I installed a DUI in my 80 CJ-5 258 and don't regret spending the money. Faster starts and improved throttle response. Installation was a breeze.

 

Are you guys seeing any mileage increase over the old points ignition?

 

Hey Guys, good news!
Turns out my dad had a distrubutor laying around in the garage of his chevy pick up. I brought it home cleaned it up and started the install.
Anything great pointers on the installation?
I supplied a couple of pics.

 

not here. about the same. sure runs better, though, especially at/near idle.

 

What about a pertronix ignition? I added one to my stock points system to eliminate the points, and it seems to work fine. Would the HEI swap be an improvement over the pertronix ignition?

 

sorry I didn't get the pic's up, I was too busy throwing tools around the garage because the HEI I got for free didn't work the shaft was too long. In the process, I took the original prestolite off and as I proceeded to clean it up to put back on, I broke the plastic peice connected to the two wires. I ordered the Mallory HEI off of summit tonight for 179.OO. Hopefully everything goes good. I'll let everybody know. In the meantime, I'm going to go pick my tools up

 

BTW. A little disappointed w/4Wheeldrive, they wanted $349.99 for the same HEI............

 

4WD HW. Can be quite pricey, good service though. It is always best to shop around to places like Walcks and Rigid Steel. They ususally have better prices.

 

Did you change the gear on the bottom??? Apparently you need to change that gear to make it work. This is why I just bought one off ebay with the right gear installed.

High5

 

High5, on the one that was given to me, I did change the gear. The problem was the length of the shaft. I'm assuming that the new one has the amc gear I need for my 304 already.
I did look on Walcks. But I have yet to go to Rigid Steel. I'll go and check it out thanks.