Adding an Aftermarket Ignition Unit (Amplifier):

    OK, I felt I had better address this now. There are numerous ignition units available that say they give you "X" horsepower gain, or do this or that for your engine. In most cases the ignition unit will benefit your engine, but is it needed? To decide if adding an ignition unit to your vehicle is going to be worthwhile you need to ask yourself a few simple questions:

• Am I trying to get maximum spark energy, engine efficiency, lowered emissions, and power output from my engine?

• Am I modifying the engine (cams, head porting, exhaust system, larger carbs/injectors, compression, or any other assortment of aftermarket performance parts) so that cylinder pressures will be increased?

• Am I adding a serious power enhancer (Nitrous, Supercharger, Turbocharger, etc)?

• Am I planning on racing the vehicle?

• Am I increasing the RPM range of the engine?

    If you answered YES to even one of the questions above you could consider the addition of one of the available ignition units. If you answered YES to 2 or more of the above questions, you'd better install a quality ignition amplifier (Mallory Hyfire, Holley Annihilator, Crane Hi-6, MSD, etc).

    Of course there is going to be B.S, hype from many ignition manufacturers, and the facts surrounding what an ignition unit can really do.

    Some Facts: 

1. A small power increase and strides in efficiency will be seen in most cases. Note that if you are racing, not having a good ignition amplifier can cause serious power loss and engine damage if the air/fuel mixture is not ignited properly

2. Without the correct or adequate coil the ignition unit cannot do its job properly

3. Analog ignition units are slow and not as good as digital units

4. Opening up your plug gaps just because you have added an amplifier CAN SLOW YOU DOWN and cost your horsepower. (read below)

5. Not all ignition units are the same (Inductive amplifier and Capacitive Discharge amplifier, not to mention brands)

6. If it takes 10k volts to fire your spark plug, that is what you will get. Just because you have a bazillion volt system does not mean the box will give that to your plugs and combustion process. Don't believe that just because the ignition has the highest "millijoule" rating that it is the best.

7. Using the wrong coil can have serious implications (we have seen coils overheat, boil over, and catch the vehicle on fire because the coil could not handle what the box was telling it to do).

8. Not all ignition triggers are equal (breaker point, magnetic, magnetic breakerless, hall effect, photo optic, etc). Each can affect the efficiency of your ignition unit.

9. One of the main benefits of an ignition amplifier is the spark duration of 20° crank degrees per spark. (this is the B to C distance on the chart above under RFI)

    Some Hype:

1. "Guaranteed horsepower claims"

2. "Our amplifiers will help ALL vehicles"

3. "It will work with any coil" (this usually means that their unit does "squat"). Remember, the coil is the workhorse and the box is managing the coil.

4. "You can now increase the spark gap for better performance". This usually means again that their box does "squat". If you "have to" open the gaps up to get spark energy, the box is not supplying what they claim. Increasing plug gaps should be decided on an individual engine basis, not by the box.

5. The lowest plug wire resistance is not always the best either. A coil has to build energy (resistance) and then release it. This resistance is a combined part of the coil, plug wires, plugs, etc. The more efficient units can operate with slightly higher plug wire resistances to eliminate outside interferences. Weaker units require extremely low resistance plug wires and ignition coils, virtually just blowing the spark through the coil and wires to get to the plugs.

6. "All these controls will help you achieve more performance". Many of the available "gadget boxes" are just that. If you have a real need for timing controls, high speed retards, etc, then get a box that uses these features. Just because the box has these controls does not mean you will get more performance. Computer programmable ignitions (where you hook your laptop or PC to the ignition) are for dyno rooms. Once you have a setting that works for your specific engine, it probably never needs to be tweaked again. You can play with those settings for months and never get a single HP gain from them. When I see these on street cars and/or many bracket cars I have to laugh.

    Sure, we have our preference of what brand(s) of ignition units we like and those we don't. There are reasons for these decisions (reliability, factual claims, performance output, consistency). We have tested numerous ignition brands/styles and know what works for an individual's application. The term "Ignition System" fits. If you want your ignition to work correctly it needs to be a compatible system for your specific application.