Installed a Crane XR 700 ignition in my '74 CS. Wondering what experiences others have had with long term reliability? I have seen feedback saying one should keep the unused points/capacitor handy in case of problems. True?
Bill
Bill
Crane XR 700 Ignition
- Thread starter bill
- Start date
steve in reno
Well-Known Member
Bill
I have had the crane 700 on my cs for over 10 years, and never had a problem.
The only problem I can think of would be if the light goes out, or the brain.
YMMV
steve
I have had the crane 700 on my cs for over 10 years, and never had a problem.
The only problem I can think of would be if the light goes out, or the brain.
YMMV
steve
texcarguy
Active Member
Bill
I had one fail on one side of my '72 V-12 Ferrari, and then tried to install another on my vintage Jag MK IX... never could get it to function correctly, and finally went back to the old tried and true points. Not to say yours might not last forever!
I think I'm going to try the everything-inside-the-distributor Pertronics unit on my E9, if for no other reason than to avoid mucking up the under-hood with non-stock stuff.
I had one fail on one side of my '72 V-12 Ferrari, and then tried to install another on my vintage Jag MK IX... never could get it to function correctly, and finally went back to the old tried and true points. Not to say yours might not last forever!
I think I'm going to try the everything-inside-the-distributor Pertronics unit on my E9, if for no other reason than to avoid mucking up the under-hood with non-stock stuff.
Steve: glad to hear you're getting 10 years out of it. That's good enough for me.But I have heard stories similar to Texcarguy, so I will carry the points around for a while until I get over my neuroses....
jhjacobs
Well-Known Member
I put mine Crane kit in about 2 years ago and no problems so far. While having a spare set of points, condenser, and ballast resistor would be a good idea I doubt you will need them. The best things about this system in my opinion are: 1) You don't need to set the timing unless the time chain stretches (bigger problem) and 2) it is relatively immune to shaft wobble so even an old tired distributor will work well. This can make a very big difference in obtaining a smooth idle and you get relatively miss-free operation. It will also help at the high end because the optical system will never bounce.
On the drive down to V@V I got 27mpg. I credit by carb tuning for some of the performance but I give most credit to the Crane system. So, enojy your unit and may you never have to dwell on you dwell again!
On a related note, has anyone here implemented an MSD ignition? Know of any MSD systems that could be used with the Crane kit?
Also, the crane system supports both vacuum and centrifugal advance in the stock distributor. I recall the it used to be possible to buy Bosch spring kits to diddle with the advance curve. Anyone here ave any experience in improving the advance curve?
On the drive down to V@V I got 27mpg. I credit by carb tuning for some of the performance but I give most credit to the Crane system. So, enojy your unit and may you never have to dwell on you dwell again!
On a related note, has anyone here implemented an MSD ignition? Know of any MSD systems that could be used with the Crane kit?
Also, the crane system supports both vacuum and centrifugal advance in the stock distributor. I recall the it used to be possible to buy Bosch spring kits to diddle with the advance curve. Anyone here ave any experience in improving the advance curve?
cpeavey
Well-Known Member
Bad Experience
I had a Crane in my coupe for a while but it started acting flaky. The electronics just failed for some unknown reason. I finally replaced it with a Pertronix which has been trouble-free.
Charlie Peavey
I had a Crane in my coupe for a while but it started acting flaky. The electronics just failed for some unknown reason. I finally replaced it with a Pertronix which has been trouble-free.
Charlie Peavey
I've been using the Crane (used to be Alison) ignitions for 20+ years in 2002s. Bavarias, and the current 3.0cs. Probably 100k+ miles over all vehicles. I've had one fail, and was promptly replaced by the mfg.
I used to but these thru JCWhitney, as they had the lowest price around.
I used to but these thru JCWhitney, as they had the lowest price around.
texcarguy
Active Member
MSD ignition
Jeff,
I'm pretty sure the MSD-6 is the standard for use with the Crane. The crane system merely provides the trigger signal to the coil and/or electronic ignition, so should be compatible with most any brand.
Jeff,
I'm pretty sure the MSD-6 is the standard for use with the Crane. The crane system merely provides the trigger signal to the coil and/or electronic ignition, so should be compatible with most any brand.