Ignition Wires

I recently learned from my mechanic that my ignition wires are some type of aftermarket type. He suggested replacing them with the a set of originals. Now, I haven't had any problems associate with iginition, so does this warrant the high cost of ignition wires...? What are the benefits, if any, of replacing them?

Matt
77 911S

I have finally assembled the parts needed to rebuild my existing wires. Tomight, my 8-year-old and myself will rebuild them. I will re-use only the Beru (spark plug) connectors. I'll use copper-core wire.

I'm guessing that there are aftermarket wire sets that are excellent for our cars. Ignition wires do wear out. I'll let you know whether I sense an improvement in power or smoothness.

By the way, I suspect they just quit putting crap in oru local gasoline. My mileage suddenly jumped at least 2mpg. Last week.

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'83 SC

Matt,

I strongly suggest that a set of '65-'73 OEM wires will work just fine, and that the braided sets are not needed. And, later, the Neoprene/Hypalon (not sure which it is) wire can later (or sooner, if you like) be replaced with silicone wire, for an extended lifetime! Just as a note ... the '89 Turbo used the very SAME COIL as the '69 911S CDI-system, and hence does not put out any higher Voltage, so nothing 'later and greater' is needed to fully meet the needs of your car's ignition system!
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Warren Hall
1973 911S Targa

[This message has been edited by Early_S_Man (edited 03-08-2001).]

By the way, there is no way I would have had the knowledge or guts to perform the rebuild I will do tonight had it not been for....you guessed it, Warren. Ignition systems still have plenty of mystery for me, but I am convinced that there is nothing particularly special about our very expensive factory ignition wires. Wires simply need to fit, have sufficient resistance and conduct high voltage signals without "leaking."

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'83 SC

So I am thinking about changing my ingnition wires...mine are frayed...

So should I buy into all these aftermarket wires that promise higher spark or just keep using OEM...

thanks

MJ

I would use OEM (for stock Porsches) or Magnecor (for cars with electronic management systems like Motec).

Randy W

On my 72 911, I installed Magnecore 10mm wires. I did this and found a immediately difference. This was without doing anything else, just a straight swap. Kind of overkill in the sense of 10mm, but what the heck.

Ran out of time last night. My 8-year-old is pretty busy and it's hard, even for Dad, to get on her schedule. Shooting for Saturday.

Last night I tried to practice screwing the exposed copper wire into the Beru, and was not satisfied with the connection this makes. I now think I may try to salvage the sire ends, and solder them onto the new wires, for a better connection. The distributor-end connection will be a snap, because I will use a very standard copper crimp connector and boot.

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'83 SC

Hey, how about Nology wires? Ive istalled a few on Turbo Talons, Hondas and VWs with good results, but has anyone installed them on a Porsche?

Mike
86 Carrera t

i've made up my own wires for years using belden or delco solid core bulk wire from the local parts store. hard to get solid core at a lot of stores these days but it's out there. use new beru or bosch connectors and US crimp style distributor ends. SC and later connectors use a special crimp tool to install a threaded tip on the wire that screws into the connector. porsche, mercedes, wurth and probably others supply this connector. wurth sells the tool. kind of expensive, so persuade a shop to crimp them for you. stock wires work fine for majority of applications.

It's a good coincidence that this post is here, because I just finished installing new plug wires an hour ago, and I am at a loss for words to describe the improvement. I need to share my excitement with someone, everyone I know is in bed!

It's a little after midnight, and I just came back from a ride after installing new wires, a cap, and rotor in my 78 SC. My God!!! What a difference!!! I definately had some arcing going on before, because the car has NEVER been as fast or smooth. I can acelerate HARD from 1500 rpm in any gear. No stuttering or hesitation. At stoplights, I can't even feel the engine running. I am not putting you guys on, this feels like a different car.

The old wires in my car might have been 1978 originals. Now I'm not saying that every car will benefit from this as much as mine did, but it's amazing what happens when you start replacing old, worn out parts.


Roger Shadel
78 911 SC

I'm hoping the Belden "marine" terminals are the proper connectors to crimp onto the spark plug ends, to mate with the Berus. I will find out by noon today. If not, it sounds like replacements are available (Porsche, Mercedes, etc). That is good news.

It is also good to hear of such a positive impact on performance. Of course, if your car needed a cap and rotor, then that alone could account for much of the performance increase, but I am anxious to get these wires changed as I am fairly confident they were installed in a place called Stuttgart. I think 18 years is enough service from one set of wires.

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'83 SC

Well, here's one for you, guys ... I believe just one bad Beru connector was the reason the previous owner sold his car to me! Of course, he waited until winter, so it wouldn't show up during a test drive! But, he commented that he hadn't been able to find anyone to tune the engine 'right' ... and I believe what he really meant was that he hadn't been able to find anyone that could find out what the HELL was wrong when it reached 85 degrees F and the engine started feeling like it was running on three cylinders! Just one bad wire and one fouled plug can make these engines feel really bad!

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Warren Hall
1973 911S Targa

I agree with John Walker, buy a roll of wire and make your own, Automotion and those guys witht the big name stuff just rip your ass off for dollars. My engine wizard uses the same as John. There are no wire set that are factory made for his custom distributors so he builds his own. Two choices, black or blue, can't tell you the Belden or the Delco but he says it's not nuclear, nothing fancy just spark.

Randy Jones
1971 911

Heh, funny thing. Was on my way to my nieces 10th B-day party Wednesday night when my car started missing. Thought it was a fouled plug. I was running late so I just kept driving hoping it would clear up. (My MSD ignition has unfouled my plugs in this manner before, cold plugs plus Webers=fouling) Anyway, I stopped to get gas and check the problem which had seemed to be getting worse. I started pulling wires to find the misfiring cylinder. Well, I found it. OUCH! Ever been bit by MSD? Holy *****!
Turned out to be a bad Beru connector. My factory wire set is only 9 mo. old. You really should buy a few extra Beru connectors and carry them along as spares. You just never know when they will fail.


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Tyson Schmidt
72 911 Cabriolet

Question please....
Just what fails in the Beru connector?
Is there a carbon resistor element inside, like the carbon cored ignition wires?


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Doug
'81 SC Coupe
Canada West Region PCA

oh yeah! that MSD is nasty! they thoroughly shock the crap out of you, right up to your shoulder. anyway, use an ohmmeter on the connectors. 3K-5K ohm resistance. the dist. cap ends, if so equipped are 1K. if you get a mA reading, or way higher, trash em. this should part of a good tuneup. if the wires are oil swollen or hard, same goes. if you crack open a plug connector, you'll see a stack of resistors and spacers. uusually a bad one will exhibit some black burnt area on a resistor. occas. a connector will actually have a pinhole where the spark burned thru. no more than a dot, but good enough for a fine miss.

john walker's workshop:
offhand, which Belden wire are you using? i can't find a supplier of the thick ignition wires. do you have a catalog number?

thanks!

obin

belden, delco-packard, malloroy, and others make a 7mm solid core wire, same as stock. 8mm won't fit OEM connectors. MSD equipped cars should not use solid core. it's in their directions. now, i've used it with no problem, but that's what they recommend. not sure of catalog # but shop around auto parts stores. i buy a 100ft roll for 35 bucks. it is getting a bit hard to find.

I am going to e-mail John Walker's Workshop on this, and another matter but "john," if that is your real name, can respond here for everyone's benefit on the ignition wire stuff.

First, I need to find the aforementioned screw connector things. The Belden "marine" connector has a stud and threads that are too large and coarse. My wire set has little caps that crimp onto the wire ends and screw into the female Beru connection. Help me find a box of these, John.

And what about the 1k connectors on the distributor ends. I'll bet that's what I have since the connector is a solid unit without a separate boot. I have straight old-fashioned crimp connectors and boots for the distributor ends, but these are non-resistor I believe. Where can I find suitable distributor end connectors with 1k resistance? Or do I need them? I have stock CDI.

I have the wire as well.

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'83 SC