123 Ignition problem
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- This topic has 12 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 6 years, 2 months ago by Peter Fereday.
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8th November 2017 at 9:31 pm #21357
Peter Fereday
ParticipantHi all
My 11B is currently with Andy Burnett having an engine overhaul and gearbox transplant. All is now back together but the 123 ignition appears to be dead. It has been working perfectly for more than 10 years without any problem, but now the red led does not light and no ‘distribution’ of spark is being performed. I think that there is a possiblity of it being repaired – presumably by replacing the electronics board – but does anyone know where? Is there somewhere in the UK that could have a look at it or does it have to go back to Holland? Any advice would be welcomed. When it was working it was so much better than the original SEV distributor.
Peter Fereday
9th November 2017 at 2:49 am #21359Chris
ParticipantHi Peter – I don’t think there is a repair house in the UK – this company is in Germany – not that far – http://www.123ignition.de/repair/123ignition-repair.aspx
I’m sure you’ve checked it’s wired the right way round and that it’s got a decent earth but I’m not sure what happens if the coil goes bad in some way or other.
It would be good to know how this develops as I think quite a few of us run 123 distributors. I have them on 2 cars without problem – so far!
Chris
9th November 2017 at 9:08 am #21362David Faulkner
ParticipantI’m sure you’ve checked it’s wired the right way round and that it’s got a decent earth but I’m not sure what happens if the coil goes bad in some way or other.
I had a ‘Powernition’ electronic dizzy fail on my car which left me stranded needing to get the car recovered home and there was no one who could repair it.
There is a 123 on the car now in it’s place, but in the boot I have a mechanical distributor as a spare so I can swop over in case the worst happens again.
I got the new (and complete) mechanical distributor from Renel, part number AR00366. it cost 65 euro + postage so well worth it for peace of mind….
Searching the site doesn’t bring it up, you need to view the catalogue if you want one: http://catalogue.renelauto.fr/index.php
11th November 2017 at 10:19 am #21396ParticipantThanks for the links. I sent Andy the old SEV distributor which he has rebuilt (same old Andy) and installed in the car and all now running. In the meantime he is on the trail of getting the 123 distributor looked at through some electronic experts he knows – in Scotland. Will report back when I know more. It would be useful to have UK based repairers for these electronic systems – there must be 1000’s in use now across many marques.
11th November 2017 at 3:16 pm #21398Participanthe is on the trail of getting the 123 distributor looked at through some electronic experts he knows – in Scotland
That would be helpful but looking at the 123 site that Chris linked to it appears that they give a 5 year guarantee, if that’s on repairs then it would be worth the hassle of sending the failed dizzy off plus there may be an issue getting parts in the UK but do let us know how you get on.
14th November 2017 at 5:54 pm #21449ParticipantPerhaps not surprisingly the electronic expert mates of Andy Burnett were unable to repair my 123 system. Apparently the fault was identified but the parts unobtainable, and, anyway, too difficult to fit, in what is a complex double sided board.
So have made initial enquiries elsewhere. The German site – http://www.123ignition.de say they don’t have the parts quote ‘unfortunately there is no electronic left for the repair of the old citroen distributor.’
But Leen in Holland at info@123ignitionshop.com says they can test the distributor for 25Euros and an overhaul, if possible, would be 96Euros plus shipping. Full contact details are
Leen APK at 123ignitionshop.com
Gouderaksedijk 1
2808NA Gouda
tel. +31(0)182678740When I get my distributor back from Andy I will probably get them to test it and report back.
Peter Fereday
15th November 2017 at 8:57 am #21455ParticipantApparently the fault was identified but the parts unobtainable, and, anyway, too difficult to fit, in what is a complex double sided board.
Not unexpected I’m afraid from my previous experience. The electronics are quite complex as the123 distributor is pre programmed with different advance curves to be used on a range of cars by a selectable switch on the underside. (I found the one in my DS had been left on the default Traction Perfo engine one when it wasn’t running well….)
If you can’t get yours repaired economically you could always get a points conversion kit for a manual distributor. Basically you set the distributor up, remove the points and condensor and fit a small electronic unit in it’s place aka the one from ‘Powerspark’ http://www.simonbbc.com/electronic-ignition-kits/citroen-traction-avant-11-ducellier-electronic-ignition
They have an advantage in that they are far cheaper than a 123 and if they fail, you can simply put the points and condensor back in place in a couple of minutes. A kit like that worked fine in my Morris Minor
16th November 2017 at 10:11 am #21481Dennis Hewitt
ParticipantEarlier this year I contacted Leen APK to have a 123 distributor repaired and they asked for the date that is on the side of it. Mine had no date, therefore an early one and their reply was that there are no parts available. Re the Powernition units-they are no longer being made. There is also a company in the Netherlands called CSI-ignition and their units look very similar to the Powernition one but they do not make Citroen units anymore.
16th November 2017 at 11:53 am #21482ParticipantThanks Den, this is not good news for anyone who has paid out for Powernition and 123 units which are sold on the basis of their ‘reliability’.
16th November 2017 at 12:08 pm #21483ParticipantThanks for info Den. My unit is 11 years old – just found the invoice. How old was yours? I will get Andy to check if mine has a date on the side. Can’t believed it failed when it was off the car……
Peter
19th November 2017 at 3:14 pm #21512ParticipantA further email to Leen in Holland confirms, as Den had predicted, that my 123 distributor is too old to be repaired as parts are not available. I will have a quick look at it when I get it back from Andy this week, but I suspect it is for the bin……….
19th November 2017 at 3:46 pm #21513ParticipantInterestingly I can’t find a 123 distributor on CTA website though Fransen and other sellers have them at between 300 – 360 euro so the question is, are these non repairable in the future as well should they fail?
12th March 2018 at 6:22 pm #22486ParticipantJust to add in here for completeness, as reported in Floating Power for March/April, I did in the end get my 123 ignition repaired by Leen in Holland after all. He replaced the circuit board and all is well now. The board cost €80 although with VAT shipping and PayPal the total cost was €118.
All a bit strange regarding availability of the boards as Leen himself in November said that boards were not available…….. but a lot cheaper than a new one which seem to start at around €280 depending where you look.
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