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I have an 88 f350 w 460/5sp. My tfi module seems to be going bad Runs a little rough/jerky especially at low throttle position and just quits on me after driving it for a while(10miles ish). Won't restart until everything cools down. I purchased a Pertronix unit from summit that is listed as fitting my truck in hopes of maybe a slight performance boost. Figured out that it won't fit. Pertronix had three spare terminals that stuck up into the distributor while mine had none. My original tfi seems to have an 87 part number.
So questions:
Is there any performance to be had from an aftermarket tfi?
If so and it has to be the three spade type of dizzy/tfi then can I just swap in a newer dizzy/tfi combo?
Is there some other ignition upgrade path I should consider?
I have upgraded other parts on this truck including mad porter cam and intend to get a set of heads from him at some point so upgraded ignition is on my list as well.
Thank you all!
I will check for codes this afternoon Would adding an msd box or anything along those lines help in performs at all? I tow regularly with this truck so reliability is number one.
Is there any performance to be had from an aftermarket tfi?
Zero, these parts either work or they don't work and that goes for the distributor too. Your truck is suffering a well known heat related TFI breakdown and the best course of action is to replace the module with a new Motorcraft part.
Originally Posted by Seth Lingenfelter
Is there some other ignition upgrade path I should consider?
If you live in a hot climate consider doing a remote TFI conversion, this is what Ford did with all of these trucks after '92, and you may see some benefits from a high output coil, a little more plug gap and more base timing advance with the engine upgrades.
P,S, Forget the MSD box as well, there is more than enough ignition advance available to get everything from the motor, and this is computer controlled so inserting something else inline won't help.
Figured out that it won't fit. Pertronix had three spare terminals that stuck up into the distributor while mine had none. My original tfi seems to have an 87 part number.
You have what is called a remote mounted ICM (TIF module).
No your truck does not use the three pins that go up into the distributor.
I doubt that your ICM is bad as it is remote mounted for cooling. More than likely you have a fuel problem.
Bought a Motorcraft tfi from rockauto. Installed it in the factory location on the side of the dizzy(from what I gathered my truck runs the remote mount style tfi but it's mounted on the dizzy w just the 6pin connector). Truck ran better than it ever has for about 180miles. Then it just died and wouldn't fire again. So I bought an autozone brand one to get me through while I wait on the warranty replacement. It barely runs and the first AZ tfi died in 60 miles. Got a replacement from them and it barely runs(like the brakes are on all the time ).
Gonna mount the Motorcraft replacement on a cpu heatsink I bolted to the ac bracket. Does it need to be grounded or mounted on rubber for vibration protection? Is this thing ever going to be reliable again? Can I seek some aftermarket non-tfi ignition control that is reliable?
Something sounds wacked with this setup, with a remote mounted TFI the connector at the distributor is totally different because the PIP module inside it is totally different, there would be a round connector wire pigtail that comes out of the body of the distributor and goes into the main harness. The TFI modules themselves are different internally and the 6 pin connector on the end carries different signals depending upon the application so these are not interchangeable. Have you got any pics of this setup? Are you sure there isn't another module mounted in a heat sink over on an inner fender or the rad support somewhere?
Ok I just found something interesting on the interwebs.. seems you're not the first person to run into some confusion with this ignition system.
Here is a pic from somebody doing a 460 swap into an FSB. What we see here is a remote mount distributor with a TFI module on the side of it. That module serves no purpose here, the whole point of moving the TFI off the distributor is to get it away from that giant heat generator because these things suffer heat related failures, so it gets mounted in a finned heatsink away from the motor over on the fender or even better hanging off the rad support somewhere it will get some airflow over it. A remote mount TFI module does not have the 3 pins sticking up out of the body, it has a PIP signal input instead of a PIP output on the 6 pin connector, the timing pickup(hall effect sensor) module is inside the distributor and it too is different depending where the TFI is located. And these TFI modules also come in 2 colors that are not interchangeable, early motors used the grey module and later versions used a black module. Both colors are available in on-distributor and remote flavors too.
So the question is what combination of parts are you working with and is it all original or did the motor have some kind of home baked remote TFI conversion done?
Ok I just found something interesting on the interwebs.. seems you're not the first person to run into some confusion with this ignition system.
Here is a pic from somebody doing a 460 swap into an FSB. What we see here is a remote mount distributor with a TFI module on the side of it. That module serves no purpose here, the whole point of moving the TFI off the distributor is to get it away from that giant heat generator because these things suffer heat related failures, so it gets mounted in a finned heatsink away from the motor over on the fender or even better hanging off the rad support somewhere it will get some airflow over it. A remote mount TFI module does not have the 3 pins sticking up out of the body, it has a PIP signal input instead of a PIP output on the 6 pin connector, the timing pickup(hall effect sensor) module is inside the distributor and it too is different depending where the TFI is located. And these TFI modules also come in 2 colors that are not interchangeable, early motors used the grey module and later versions used a black module. Both colors are available in on-distributor and remote flavors too.
So the question is what combination of parts are you working with and is it all original or did the motor have some kind of home baked remote TFI conversion done?
Your pic is exactly what I'm working with. As far as I know it's all original. I did swap the motor out for a replacement from a 95, but used all the electrical stuff from the top of my 88 engine as the harness is different. Interesting to note though that the tfi part numbers for both years show up the same. I couldn't tell you if the tfi was actually remote mounted in a heat sink in the 95, but mine is right where it's always been on the side of the dizzy.
Suggestions on mounting options? I screwed a cpu heatsink to the ac bracket you can see in this pic so as to mount it there. The wires will reach that far and the fan blows on it. Thoughts about that? Do I have something else causing this truck to eat tfi modules? Are the new units these days just junk? Is there some aftermarket solution to completely replace this system that would be more reliable? I don't really understand ignition well so I'm not sure what I'm looking for as far as aftermarket.
Ford's documentation for the most part, have the part numbers/descriptions reversed for the actual application. The aftermarket copied their info, so most have the same issue. See below, it is correct and has been verified dozens of times, RLA2005, provided the part #'s for all years, (post #2) Do you have the right ICM? gray vs black ('93-'96) - Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums
Here is a pic from somebody doing a 460 swap into an FSB. What we see here is a remote mount distributor with a TFI module on the side of it.
What the heck is going on here!? Did someone drill and tap the mounting holes in a closed-bowl distributor so that the remote TFI could be mounted on the distributor??? That makes Zero.Point.Zero sense!
Your pic is exactly what I'm working with. As far as I know it's all original. I did swap the motor out for a replacement from a 95, but used all the electrical stuff from the top of my 88 engine as the harness is different. Interesting to note though that the tfi part numbers for both years show up the same. I couldn't tell you if the tfi was actually remote mounted in a heat sink in the 95, but mine is right where it's always been on the side of the dizzy.
OK that will function but you must use the grey TFI module without the 3 tab.. it's the second one Torq'ta 5.8 listed. If you have been using the modules with the tabs that would explain why they die, electrically they aren't compatible with your setup. If you can also mount the module somewhere off the motor that will help too, and be sure to use heatsink grease(not dielectric grease) between the module and heatsink.. you may have to source that separately.
Here it is. Original mount is right on the side of the closed bowl dizzy. It's a grey push start remote mount tfi. Mounted that little cpu heat sink on the ac bracket. Need to make some sort of proper hold down for the tfi. Have only tried to mount my latest Autozone tfi on the new heatsink. It didn't work right out of the box. New warranty replacement Motorcraft tfi pn dy1075 should be here from RockAuto tomorrow.
