DIY: Z32 Ignitor Swap

[Admin]

Well done how to from Andy
Guys

I was suspecting that my igniter had a problem when I started developing a random miss on cylinder 4. I would get the miss sporadically and most of the time once the miss started, I could shut the car off, turn it back on and it would be gone. In adddition to that, the 6pin connector on my rb26 igniter was broken off, so the connection was a little 'loose'. I noticed when I played around with that connection my miss would sometimes go away.

I saw Carl H's post regarding swapping the J30 igniter so I knew it could be done, however he has mainly text documentation. I went through this process and took good thorough pictures with hopes of assisting others.

Through the years of working on Z32's I've acquired junk wiring harness and lots of spare parts. It just so happened that I had a good Z32 igniter (we call it a PTU) sitting around, as well as an old harness. I clipped the pigtails so I got good conditioned harnesses. Here is the assembly we'll be swapping in.

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_01.JPG

Since I wanted to ease installation, I chose to use the old clips, as it would be more simple to transfer the wires 1 by 1 over to the new harness instead of depinning them all on the rb harness and risk mixing them up (i know its not rocket science but im all about logistics!)

Start by removing the yellow retainer clip

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_02.JPG

Now that the clip is removed, you can begin de-pinning it. I used a pic tool (as shown below) to release the clips and then pull the wire out the backside

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_03.JPG

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_04.JPG

It should take literally 1 mintue to remove these safely

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_05.JPG

Now do the same to the other harness

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_06.JPG

Here we have both 6 and 7 pin harness clips and the Z32 igniter

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_07.JPG

Here is the schematic for the Z32 igniter.

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_08.JPG

Here is the stock RB configuration. Notice the 7 pin on the right, 6 pin on the left. The orientation is switched on the Z32 igniter. The 6 pin will be on the right and the 7 pin will be on the left.

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_09.JPG

Here's a good picture of what I just previously referenced

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_10.JPG

I started to work with the right side first, transitioning the wires from the 7-pin connector, to the new 6-pin connector. The first wire I removed was the ground. You can note which wire is ground by looking on the igniter itsself. It will be labeled "E". Notice coil wires 1 and 2 have already been moved from the 7pin to the 6pin connector

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_11.JPG

Pictured below the new 6pin connector is now complete. You should have one wire left over that is black, which is the ground wire. The old connector is on top.

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_12.JPG

Next you will need to extend that black ground wire to reach over to the other side of the igniter. About 6" will do. I soldered and shrink wrapped the connection

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_13.JPG

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_14.JPG

The first thing you can do now is take that ground wire and stick it in the new 7pin connector. It will go in the exact middle like below

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_15.JPG

Now we will begin depinning the old 6pin connector and transferring wires over to the new 7pin connector. Here is the stock rb configuration

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_16.JPG

In this next picture I have moved coil #1 wire over to the new harness. Do this with the remaining 5 coil wires. They stay in the same order (with the ground being the 4th from the left)

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_17.JPG

Here we have the completed configuration.

http://www.booztd3.com/Pictures/Tech/Z32_Igniter_Swap/Igniter_Swap_18.JPG

I am happy to report the car fired right up, but I havent yet tested to see if my miss is gone. The car will need to warm up and I'll need to take it for a spin.

Hope this helps some guys out, happy RB'ing!

[natetheguy]

just curious, what effect will the z32 ignitor have over the r32 ignitor?

[Allan74]

1) Cheaper when buying brand new.
2) Newer Design.
3) More readilly available for North Americans.

[natetheguy]

any better performance?

[Allan74]

any better performance?

Debatable I am sure, but equal to atleast and combined with the other reasons I gave above, a winner if you need it in a hurry and can't find one, or prefer a new one and want to save over 50% in either NEW or USED condition.

[mcfly]

They will both do the same job at the end of the day if they are working.

[Zacho]

This is handy info, z32 parts are all over N/A.

[dkwanabe]

god i wish i could do the swap but looks real confusin

[RB26Z32]

god i wish i could do the swap but looks real confusin

The swap really isn't that bad. The writeup is pretty detailed. Great job by Andy(Booztd 3) on the writeup. I've recently done the swap and it works great.