1972 Chevrolet Nova Pertronix Ignitor III Install - Max Value

Aguilar took over and began to remove the older Pertronix HV coil from the firewall. Aguilar first unplugged the coil wire, including its ground and power wires. Then, using a Phillips screwdriver he removed the coil.

The Flame-Thrower HC coil is the perfect match for our Ignitor III rev limiter module. This setup provides a 36-60 percent quicker charge rate but also offers 60,000 volts. A faster charge rate means maximum spark energy is sustained longer and available at a higher engine rpm as well. It's made from a vacuum potted coil body for longer life and its shell is constructed of 6063 T5 aluminum with a black-anodized, corrosion resistant finish. For a more subtle approach to the engine bay, Pertronix also offers their full line of coils in a traditional "canister" design.

One ground (black) and one power (red) wire make up the wiring from the distributor to the coil. Aguilar stripped the ends of the wires, attached terminals (supplied) to each wire, and fastened them onto the coil. Next, he connected the coil wire from the distributor to the coil.

With the distributor back in the engine and the coil attached to the firewall, the students could now begin to set the rev limiter. All that's needed is a small Phillips screwdriver to access the small set screw on the Ignitor III module. We knew from past chassis dyno pulls, this particular setup would only rev to 5,200 rpm. Keep in mind, the valvetrain is very mundane.

Setting the rev limiter function is very straight forward. With the ignition key set to the "on" position, simply rotate the set screw clockwise until it stops. Next, rotate the set screw counter-clockwise until it stops. This triggers the module to begin allowing the user to set the rpm limit.

The rev limiter module in the Ignitor III has a built-in LED light. The rpm limits can be set in increments of 100 rpm. Every long red LED flash represents 1,000 rpm while each short flash represents 100 rpm. As the flashes appeared we counted the number of long flashes and short flashes. At one point we were spot on at 6,000 rpm (six long flashes). We kept turning the rev limiter set screw until we showed five long flashes with two short ones. This told us our rev limiter was set at 5,200 rpm.

Plug-And-Play Distributors
If a complete points-style replacement distributor with the Ignitor III module is what you are after, Pertronix also offers plug-and-play billet distributors (PN D100700). Cobalt magnets and Hall effect trigger stabilize timing for precise spark distribution and the tempered distributor shaft offers low torsion displacement for accurate timing and longer life. Upper ball bearings and extra-long oil impregnated bronze lower bushings work together to reduce friction and high-rpm vibration. All this comes in a CNC polished billet housing.

With the rev limiter set, the students reattached the cap and wires. Using the scribe marks, they then installed the hood and started it up; the results were obvious with less cranking effort to get our Nova fired up. While we weren't able to check out the rev limiter on school grounds, we later tested it at our El Toro test facility and it kicked in as expected.