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Topic: MSD ignition box......now no tach.... (Read 2208 times) previous topic - next topic

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

First, I'm using the factory Sport tach in my car. Not aftermarket.

I hooked up an MSD Street Fire ignition kit. It has a gray wire that states it goes to the tach. I didn't hook it up, and now I have no tach. (1988 SPORT).

Which wire is the tach wire under the hood so I can hook it up?
'88 Sport--T-5,MGW shifter,Trick Flow R intake,Ed Curtis cam,Trick Flow heads,Scorpion rockers,75mm Accufab t-body,3G,mini starter,Taurus fan,BBK long tube headers,O/R H-Pipe, Flowamaster Super 44's, deep and deeper Cobra R wheels, Mass Air and 24's,8.8 with 3.73's,140 mph speedo,Mach 1 chin spoiler,SN-95 springs,CHE control arms,aluminum drive shaft and a lot more..

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #1 –
OK....I'm told it's the green wire to the coil......but there are two green wires. Does it matter which one?
'88 Sport--T-5,MGW shifter,Trick Flow R intake,Ed Curtis cam,Trick Flow heads,Scorpion rockers,75mm Accufab t-body,3G,mini starter,Taurus fan,BBK long tube headers,O/R H-Pipe, Flowamaster Super 44's, deep and deeper Cobra R wheels, Mass Air and 24's,8.8 with 3.73's,140 mph speedo,Mach 1 chin spoiler,SN-95 springs,CHE control arms,aluminum drive shaft and a lot more..

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #2 –
OK....I tried touching the MSD wire to both green wires to the coil....one at a time. either way...no start, no run.
'88 Sport--T-5,MGW shifter,Trick Flow R intake,Ed Curtis cam,Trick Flow heads,Scorpion rockers,75mm Accufab t-body,3G,mini starter,Taurus fan,BBK long tube headers,O/R H-Pipe, Flowamaster Super 44's, deep and deeper Cobra R wheels, Mass Air and 24's,8.8 with 3.73's,140 mph speedo,Mach 1 chin spoiler,SN-95 springs,CHE control arms,aluminum drive shaft and a lot more..

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #3 –
Nevermind....I pulled it. It needs a tach adapter to work the tach and I'm not in the mood to mess with that. SO, it is brand new and on the bench.
'88 Sport--T-5,MGW shifter,Trick Flow R intake,Ed Curtis cam,Trick Flow heads,Scorpion rockers,75mm Accufab t-body,3G,mini starter,Taurus fan,BBK long tube headers,O/R H-Pipe, Flowamaster Super 44's, deep and deeper Cobra R wheels, Mass Air and 24's,8.8 with 3.73's,140 mph speedo,Mach 1 chin spoiler,SN-95 springs,CHE control arms,aluminum drive shaft and a lot more..

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #4 –
I don't know if you've looked at the D.U.I. distributors, but they are great. It is basically a GM high output distributor modified to work with Ford, or any other brands. I used one on my race car for a lot of years with no problems. Much less hassle to hook up as well. You've got a hot wire and a tach wire and that's it.

http://performancedistributors.com/

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #5 –
Not worth replacing the distributor. Mine has literally 100 miles on it. I pulled the ignition box and harness back off the car and stuck it on the work bench.
'88 Sport--T-5,MGW shifter,Trick Flow R intake,Ed Curtis cam,Trick Flow heads,Scorpion rockers,75mm Accufab t-body,3G,mini starter,Taurus fan,BBK long tube headers,O/R H-Pipe, Flowamaster Super 44's, deep and deeper Cobra R wheels, Mass Air and 24's,8.8 with 3.73's,140 mph speedo,Mach 1 chin spoiler,SN-95 springs,CHE control arms,aluminum drive shaft and a lot more..

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #6 –
Yeah, all the stock Ford Fox tachs needed this adapter for the MSD ignition.  I am pretty sure the other Ford cars of this era did too but I do not have any experience with them.  Have you looked out on http://www.okdhm.com to see if anyone has one of these laying around for $20 they want to get rid of?

83 351W TKO'd T-Bird on the bottle


93 331 Mustang Coupe - 368 rwhp

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #7 –
I have decided to let the box be bench decor at this time. I appreciate the replies.
'88 Sport--T-5,MGW shifter,Trick Flow R intake,Ed Curtis cam,Trick Flow heads,Scorpion rockers,75mm Accufab t-body,3G,mini starter,Taurus fan,BBK long tube headers,O/R H-Pipe, Flowamaster Super 44's, deep and deeper Cobra R wheels, Mass Air and 24's,8.8 with 3.73's,140 mph speedo,Mach 1 chin spoiler,SN-95 springs,CHE control arms,aluminum drive shaft and a lot more..

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #8 –
sorry i missed this,,, ive been piddling all morning here and could have chimed in earlier if i had noticed... hope all is ok

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #9 –
Why the MSD box Vinnie? We have similar setups and stock Motorcraft stuff works great for me.
88 Thunderbird LX: 306, Edelbrock Performer heads, Comp 266HR cam, Edelbrock Performer RPM intake, bunch of other stuff.

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #10 –
I was going to try it. I got the whole MSD kit in a trade from a local car friend. Distributor, coil, Street Fire box, harness and wires. No loss if I don't use it. It'll be fine on the bench at this point.
'88 Sport--T-5,MGW shifter,Trick Flow R intake,Ed Curtis cam,Trick Flow heads,Scorpion rockers,75mm Accufab t-body,3G,mini starter,Taurus fan,BBK long tube headers,O/R H-Pipe, Flowamaster Super 44's, deep and deeper Cobra R wheels, Mass Air and 24's,8.8 with 3.73's,140 mph speedo,Mach 1 chin spoiler,SN-95 springs,CHE control arms,aluminum drive shaft and a lot more..

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #11 –
Quote from: jcassity;465626
sorry i missed this,,, ive been piddling all morning here and could have chimed in earlier if i had noticed... hope all is ok

All is good. I was hoping the gray wire from the box didn't need a tach adapter, but apparently it does. I'm not investing any money into it.
'88 Sport--T-5,MGW shifter,Trick Flow R intake,Ed Curtis cam,Trick Flow heads,Scorpion rockers,75mm Accufab t-body,3G,mini starter,Taurus fan,BBK long tube headers,O/R H-Pipe, Flowamaster Super 44's, deep and deeper Cobra R wheels, Mass Air and 24's,8.8 with 3.73's,140 mph speedo,Mach 1 chin spoiler,SN-95 springs,CHE control arms,aluminum drive shaft and a lot more..

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #12 –
Quote from: vinnietbird;465654
I was going to try it. I got the whole MSD kit in a trade from a local car friend. Distributor, coil, Street Fire box, harness and wires. No loss if I don't use it. It'll be fine on the bench at this point.

I don't think you'll notice any improvement vs. stock Motorcraft components. The stock stuff is actually quite overbuilt and can handle a bunch more than either of our cars have.
88 Thunderbird LX: 306, Edelbrock Performer heads, Comp 266HR cam, Edelbrock Performer RPM intake, bunch of other stuff.

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #13 –
I am using an aftermarket distributor. My factory piece gave out a long time ago. I'd like to have an NOS distributor, not rebuilt, but in the meantime, I have what I have, an MSD Street Fire distributor. I also have a brand new billet DUI hot forged distributor on the shelf. It came with two TFI modules, one for an auto, one for a 5 speed. I may swap it in just because I have it.
'88 Sport--T-5,MGW shifter,Trick Flow R intake,Ed Curtis cam,Trick Flow heads,Scorpion rockers,75mm Accufab t-body,3G,mini starter,Taurus fan,BBK long tube headers,O/R H-Pipe, Flowamaster Super 44's, deep and deeper Cobra R wheels, Mass Air and 24's,8.8 with 3.73's,140 mph speedo,Mach 1 chin spoiler,SN-95 springs,CHE control arms,aluminum drive shaft and a lot more..

MSD ignition box......now no tach....

Reply #14 –
This is an interesting thread.  I was just wondering if anyone had installed a fully electronic ignition in our birds.  Rip out the dizzy and plug the hole?  It would be sweet to just dial in timing on the fly.  Not sure if there are other advantages worth the money i.e. performance.
'88 Bird 5.0, TW 170s, HO cam, Scorpion rockers, Explorer intake 70mm TB/EGR, MAF conversion, 24# injectors, 8.8 3.73 disc rear end swap, console swap, leather seats, 11" front discs, 15-1 rack, TC springs all around, x-pipe, BBK headers,  welded sub-frame, unlocked digital speedo.