Electronic Distributor

I notice that Red Triangle have a winter offer of a replacement distributor for £495+VAT. Has anyone any experience of these on the TA14? My car, which I've only owned since last autumn, has a worn manual advance/retard and the previous owner clamped it off, as he said it wandered all over the place. I suspect the innards of the distributor need some attention as well, as he said that would have been one of his next jobs. It strikes me that a replacement electronic one might be the answer.  As the best part of £600 is a lot of money, has anyone tried any alternatives to this sort of conversion?  Thanks in advance  Tony Posted by tonyl 22/02/2013 16:01:23

Hello Tony, I would think that unless you really have a badly worn out distributor, you would be better off to rebuild even if you need new bushings and etc.  Aside form my Alvis, I am also building a Chev S-10 pick up 2.5 engine (4 cylinder).  I do not want to run with a computer so I am going to use an early GM HEI (high energy ignition) in place of the factory computer system.  This same style HEI could very well be adaptable for use in our TA-14's.  I have not had the distributor out of my TA-14 so I can't speak for sure.  I also have an early 1930 Studebaker Pres. 8 engine to place in an Indy special.  I am going to modify a dual point distributor from a mid 60's Chev for that project.  If you have a good clear picture of a TA-14 distributor, please post or email and I will compare features with the HEI unit to see if it would save your money while giving you a modern HOT spark. Alan Posted by alsfarms 24/02/2013 20:46:06

Hello Tony, Take a look at US EBAY item # 370370994291.  This HEI distributor unit may have some potential for modification to run a TA-14. Alan Posted by alsfarms 26/02/2013 03:44:45

Thanks for the input. My car is in a nice dry place at the moment, so I don't have any photos. I was trying to anticipate the first job to be done in the warm weather, if it ever arrives! I may have a relatively small window before needing the car for a wedding in early May.  That distributor looks a bit larger physically than the TA14, though I may be wrong. I do have access to machining facilities, etc, at work so making a drive adapter would probably be possible. There are many 4 cylinder distributors available in the UK, which could be made to fit in the hole and turn with the engine. However, as far as I know, and I could be very wrong, the key thing with replacing the distributor on a vehicle is matching the centrifugal advance and, unless you are quite lucky, one from another model is unlikely to have the correct characteristics.  There's a great document about Lucas distributors at <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://campkahler.com/files/Lucas-400e-to-F68-ocr.pdf">http://campkahler.com/files/Lucas-400e-to-F68-ocr.pdf</a><!-- m --> which shows all the models and their characteristics. For the TA14 it says the Lucas Part No is 40071D/F, Model No DKY4A, Type BU36, Clockwise Rotation, ECM Curve 363, Advance 23 to 27 degrees. What isn't clear is what ECM Curve 363 represents, unfortunately. There are pictures of most of the parts as well, one of them showing that the drive is via a grooved connection. Amazing what you can find!  I take your point about electronics, especially in a car with basic voltage regulation and a dynamo. I think I will search around for a good refurbisher.  Tony Posted by tonyl 27/02/2013 19:39:05

Tony, Please let us know how you come out on the TA-14 Distributor problem.  We will all be in that same boat sooner or later. Alan Posted by alsfarms 28/02/2013 18:29:59