Although I can't speak for the Jacob's electrical systems (never used one
and probably won't because I don't like their advertising), or the MSD
(never used one
on a Dodge), I can speak on the Crane ignition products. I use the HI-6TR on
my supercharged 95, and the HI-6 on my 98. Both units are multiple spark
high
output units (fires the plugs for 20 crank degrees below 3,000 RPM). I use
the Crane PS-92 coil on both. I needed to run the HI-6TR on the 95 for the
ignition
boost retard feature. Both trucks have MSD 8.5MM wires and Autolite APP5224
plugs and have been dyno'ed both before and after installation. What we
found with
the ignition is about a 3 HP increase throughout the powerband (not much).
Under marginal ignition conditions (high RPM, high boost), these units
really shine by
reducing misfires. Two things worth mentioning that we noticed after install
(especially on the 98), the units tended to retard timing about 1/2 to 1
degree below
2,000 RPM. Above 2,000 the timing was right on (self correcting). Looking at
the exhaust before the Cat. hydrocarbons were reduced so you are getting
better
combustion. If you have problems with ignition under high RPM, or boost
conditions, I think the MSD or the Crane units are worth looking at.
Different subject,
if you are looking for a distributor cap and rotor, try Borg Warner (BWD),
they do have brass terminals.
Frank
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jon Steiger [SMTP:stei0302@cs.fredonia.edu]
> Sent: Tuesday, August 25, 1998 10:58 PM
> To: dakota-truck@buffnet.net
> Subject: Re: DML: any gains in electrical mods ?
>
> At 08:16 PM 8/25/98 -0700, you wrote:
> >OK, now its a fact that 92-96 daks are slower with ignition upgrades.
> >Now I ask you what are your facts based on and why is it that there
> >slower. Just because someone says its true doesnt mean its a fact. I
> >am about one paycheck from doing this and want to know whats the pros
> >and cons.
> >
>
> You're right; its generally not a good idea to just accept what someone
>
> says on blind faith. Especially so for that Bill guy. ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-)
> However, this problem has been noticed by several people, with both
> MSD's and Jacobs.
>
> It would be GREAT to be able to figure out once and for all why this
> is so, but for right now, all we've got is cause and effect. When the
> ignition goes in, you slow down. This is a repeatable phenomenon. For
> whatever reason, aftermarket ignitions slow down some vehicles. Its
> sort of like the joke where a guy tells the doctor his arm hurts
> "when I do this", so the doctor tells him "don't do that". So, that's
> exactly what we're (not) doing, until we can find the root of the problem.
>
> :-)
>
> A friend of mine read an article in a magazine about this once. It
> was a magazine about imports, but it might be the same thing. He had
> forgotten a lot of the article, and I forgot a lot of what he told me
> though. :-) I think it had something to do with plasma or some such
> thing;
> I dunno. I'll check with him to see if he has that article; if I find it,
> I'll let the list know what it says and what magazine and issue its
> printed
> in.
>
> Anyway, there's nothing stopping you from buying an ignition, but if
> you do you might want to get some timeslips before and after (or even
> a dyno run before and after). The aftermarket ignition probably WILL
> make the engine start better and feel smoother, but a smoother engine
> is not nescessarily a more powerful engine. Just driving it on the street
> and trying to compare the power difference could be deceiving. (For
> the same reason that a louder exhaust may make the truck feel more
> powerful when its actually no different, or even slowed down. We human
> beings are weird that way.) :-)
>
> It might be a good idea to check with wherever you want to buy
> the ignition to see if you can return it for a FULL refund if it doesn't
> give you the results you want. Jacobs' advertisements say that they have
> a
> money back guarantee, but ITS NOT TRUE! They charge a healthy restocking
> fee (even if you're returning it because it didn't live up to its
> claims) which can add up to some serious money. I believe one DML'er
> lost well over $100 because of this.
> While I'm ragging on Jacobs... ;-) I noticed something very
> interesting
> (well, to me anyway) in their standard ad that they run in a bunch of
> magazines (for the "Ultra Team", I think. Its the one where they promise
> your money back if it doesn't live up to all these claims they list. (I
> think it says "subject to X% restocking fee" in there somewhere too.
> Anyway, that's not the point. The point is that after reading the entire
> ad
> very carefully, it seemed to me like something was wrong, or missing. The
>
> way it was worded seemed un-natural, almost like "politician speak". The
> claims they mention sound like one thing, but could potentially be taken
> to
> mean different things. They never actually come out and say that the
> Jacobs
> will make more power or make you go faster than stock. Instead, they
> say "improved performance" or something like that. It sure SOUNDS
> like "more power" or "you'll go faster", but what is performance,
> really? It means different things to different people. Could be
> gas mileage. Could be engine efficiency or smoothness. The whole
> ad is like that. It seemed fishy to me at the time, like they were going
> out of their way to not make any specific power claims, and it could very
> well be that it was purposely worded like that because there are some
> vehicles where it just plain doesn't work. The Dakota appears to
> be one of those vehicles.
>
> IMHO, YMMV, etc... :-)
>
>
>
> -Jon-
>
> .--- stei0302@cs.fredonia.edu ------------------------------------.
> | Affiliations: DoD, EAA, MP Race Team, NMA, SPA, USUA. RP-SEL |
> | '96 Dodge Dakota v8 SLT CC (14.85@90.72), '96 Kolb FireFly 447 |
> `----------------------- http://www.cs.fredonia.edu/~stei0302/ ---'
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