? any suggestions for a good replacement? how's this thing.. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/New-FERRARI-Dino-246-GT-MODERN-Gear-Reduction-STARTER-/230610969175?pt=Vintage_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item35b17c2257
1) Are you certain that the Dinoplex is the culprit? Not unusual, but after 40 years I question why one would fail now. 2) Could it be a loose coil wire entering the distributor cap - easy to check and fix. 3) Could it be a bad condensor? 4) If you insist on placing blame on the Dinoplex (tongue in cheek), then easy replacement is an MSD 6A or the new version (smaller with rev limiter). The alternative, of course, is to have our helpful colleague on F-Chat provide a Dinoplex rebuilt, or a Dinoplex case with modern electronics. Jim S.
Regarding my previous post, I was referring to Adrian (alhbln) in Berlin. He is the world's expert on rebuilding and refurbishing Dinoplex units. Begin here: http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=276251
I put the superformance look alike unit in my car, worked like a charm. When Uro gets back from his self imposed exile you can ask him if it's still working like a charm. D
I can't believe an original Dinoplex lasted this long as most fried in a yr or two esp. if not driven much. I @ frying 2 units in the 70's left the fried one in place for looks and had the ignition etc converted to electronic ( your choice) so car ran and looked original for show. If I remember correctly failure had something to do with voltage surge. Docf
Dinoplex ignitions can last quite long if handled properly (e.g. no jump starts before switching to emergenza mode, removing the Dinoplex connectors before welding) and are much better than their reputation from my experience, i had some units for testing which were in quite good condition even after fourty years. The Dinoplex C (long box, up to '71) can be easily repaired, only if the transformer fails it gets a bit more expensive as a rebuild transformer is around $230 but then again you'll have at least another 10-20 years of service. Even when compared with current aftermarket items, the Dinoplex C is quite a good and robust ignition, keep in mind that it was used in F1 racing cars for years. The AEC103 (the small one with the blue label, from '71 o '74) is more problematic as it is fully potted, so a repair is not economic. I've repaired two of these and its quite a punishment. If you have a broken AEC103, a conversion to modern internals is a much better approach and there is a range of options, such as fitting a Crane XR3000 or my Bosch conversion into the AEC103 enclosure.
Quite interesting Adrian. In the " old days" lot of mystery as to Dinoplex failures. Preservation of units etc. was hardly in the vocabulary and repair here in the States wasn't part of the fix for the most part at least as I new it. It was relatively expensive and repeat failure almost a guarantee. My Dino was hardly a garage queen as when I sold it in the early 80's had about 45,000 miles on it. It was an interesting unit to be able to switch from electronic to points. I may be wrong ,but I don't remember Daytonas having as many failures as Dinos?? Thanks for the info. Docf
In 1973, I installed a Marelli electronic ignition, box and coil, on an Alfa GTV. It went bad after less than 1 year. The car just died. Oddly, the unit had a black button on the side, and guess what happened after pushing it? Yup, the car started, so Marelli was well aware of their shortcomings as they were with the Dinoplexes, etc. I have never seen a backup system in other electronic products. Regards, Alberto
Some history, the design of the Dinoplex took place in 1966-67, at that time Porsche introduced the Bosch HKZ in their 911S. Deploying an electronic solid state device in a car was quite unusual then so there was no experience yet how reliable these would be. Marelli thus added an Emergenza mode to the first two Dinoplex models as a safety net for the driver, which i think was a reasonable idea at that time. HKZ owners weren't that lucky, though.
He he, have mounted a MHKZ in my 67 Kreidler GT, and it revs smoothly over 10K/min. Fun to keep things alive, allthough time has proven other solutions to be better ! By the way Adrian, do You have a replacement trafo in stock for the 101 series ? Mine is probably due to replacement in short time, as it consumes +2A. And I´m in Berlin 6-8/5-11, so I could pick it up, if it´s convenient for You.
When I sold my Dino in 1994, it had the original Dinoplex still working away. 24 years of dependable service from vintage Italian electronics --- pretty good I thought!
Erik, i have two replacement trafos left from the last batch! You can have one, no problem. Give me a shout if you are here, if you bring your Dinoplex i'm happy to do a replace while-u-wait. Bdelp, well i guess there is a reason why Bosch and Marelli are still in business but Lucas had to be merged and then kind of vanished (btw, you guys bought them ).
Adrian, consider it sold ! And the timing is perfect, as the trafo just broke down 15 minutes ago on my way home. Had to switch to "emergenza" to get the last bit home... I´ll bring the Dinoplex with me, and if You could send me a text with Your contactinfo to my cellphone +45 60663933, it would be nice. I have all Friday and Saturday (6-7/5-11) in Berlin. Best Erik
Erik, sent you an SMS. 6th to 7th of May, correct? Lets have a phone call the next days, i am travelling but am in Berlin on the 6th late afternoon. cu, Adrian
