Hello Bill,
Well here goes at least in my opinion..
Pertronix, cheap, easy to install, does not mind worn distributor shafts. Until
I
installed one on my car had to tinker with the points way to much. I did have a
failure but have the points and other bits in a box and just popped them back in
and away I went. If you use the Pertronix unit go ahead and buy their matching
coil.
Starter, I seem to remember someone saying that the reduction drive starter
uses
the same motor as the regular starter, not sure, but if that is true what is the
point of switching.
Rear ends and transmissions, there is something appealing about the toyota 5
speed
swap and a late ford rear with disc brakes, I figure I will do both next winter.
The howl from the rear end is incredible and I have heard the same from other
Alpine owners. My transmission has a bad syncro which is also common. Still both
continue to work just put on the ear protection for long trips.
1725, mine has an incredible amount of blow by and I have had to do a valve job
the strombergs gave me fits, until I learned how to adjust them. For an old worn
out motor it is pretty dependable, just keeps on going even when I do something
dumb due to lack of knowledge and or ignorance.
Having only owned an Alpine for a couple of years I am still new at this, but
what fun cars. My advice for what it is worth is, make it go. You will also want
to make it stop, do the brakes do not cut corners fix them right the first time
or
you will get to do it again. Then drive it locally until you know what you have,
how well it goes and what you can live with. You may decide that a ground up
restoration is what you want complete with a different drive train or the charm
[?] of your car and all its quirks may win. I love going to events and being one
of the few Alpine there, always out numbered by Tigers by at least 3 to 1. Then
there are the bragging rights.
I have surprised more than one Tiger owner on the mountain curves, and freeway
cruising, not sure it would feel the same with a V6 or some other make four
cylinder.
With a little TLC I think they are very dependable, I drove over 1500 miles one
week last summer with no problem, just kept an eye on the fluid levels. There
was
a lot of tinkering to get to that point but it is worth it. Think I will go take
the hard top off and go for a drive. Jim 66 SV
Barbara Blue wrote:
> The response to my Alpine Touring inquiry, while much appreciated, has raised
> questions in my mind. Here they are is no particular order.
>
> Starters. Does anyone know anything about the gear reduction starters listed
> by Victoria British? At $250 they are rather salty, but may be be worth the
> price if they solve the starter problem.
>
> Pertronix ignition. Why is it so popular? Is it wiring simplicity? It does
> not seem to be made (anymore) to fit the Lucas distributor, and seems to have
> a high failure rate. Electronic ignition failures are usually sudden and
> catastrophic, and not something that can be jerry rigged to limp home. This
> does not sound good. One thing about the old distributors, components are
> cheap and can be replaced in a few minutes, even if they require a lot of
> attention. How about the Crane Cams FireBall ignition. Is there a problem with
> it?
>
> Transmissions and rear axles. In driving about 750,000 miles with manual
> transmissions, and over a million miles total, I have lost one transmission
> front seal, one back seal, 3 or 4 throwout bearings and clutches and one slush
> box. Two axle bearings,one differential bearing (or so the mechanic said)
> and a few seals is my rear axle count. I usually buy a new car, and put over
> 150,000 miles on it before it goes to the crusher. My point is, on an old car
> redo, if the gearbox and rear axle are not making strange sounds and are
> behaving properly, why bother? I am especially leary of upsetting the
> established wear pattern of differential gears if there are no obvious
> problems. In my experience, they are extremely durable and when they do fail,
> it is a bearing that gives a good bit of notice that all is not well.. Do
> people go through them, replacing all bearings? What am I missing here?
>
> Current update: Right now I am leaning toward adding an OD and keeping the
> 1725, sans Lucas. However, if on teardown, a new block is indicated, out with
> the whole drive train!
>
> Thanks to All
> Bill
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