Solex carbs with CDI and 123 distributor

[718RSK]

I am wondering if there are people out there who have experience running a Solex equipped car with CDI or a 123 distributor or better yet a combination of the two. I am pretty obsessive when it comes to authenticity but as this car will be my wifes summer drive feel I can take some small liberties to possible improve drivability. I am at a stage in my restoration where I can still do a very stealth set-up.

I understand that CDI especially makes a positive difference on cars with combustion chambers/pistons with an extreme geometry. On the 4-cams the CDI makes for much smoother running engines with less sensitivity to jetting. The 356 crowd is very positive about the 123 distributors. You can have an original distributor modified to accept for their internals which makes for a very stock looking set-up.

Any experiences out there?

[uai]

I know a few people having trouble with the 123 as it gets filled with oil from the lubrication system. However that's on a different engine type.
I am a friend of a standard contact as it allows for easy troubleshooting in case of malfunction.
If I wanted to improve then I'd go full scale with either http://www.aki-electronic.de or https://www.classicretrofit.com both have a very good reputation. For me aki would be preferrable as you talk directly to the engineer if you have some issues. Their Ignition has so much power it fries your rotors if you have the resistor type. They can modify your distributor as well to have a free programmable CDI.

[John Straub]

I have a MSD on my '65 with Solex. Works well.

John

[718RSK]

Quick update. I discussed this with Aaron @ Burn Bros. and he highly recommends switching to CDI. I have ordered one of the Winterburn units and will be working to install this in a stealth way. Will report back here once doe. The 123 is still up for debate. Would be easier if I could locate a cast iron distributor housing core.

[frederik]

I thought the 123 replaces CDI completely since it contains its own electronic ignition. I have one in my Citroën DS where it works flawlessly. But in the 911, with CDI, you don’t need it as much because the contact points only pass a small current to trigger the CDI. The main advantage would be that you replace the possibly worn distributor advance mechanism and never have to worry about the dwell angle anymore.