Crane Has Designed An All New HEI Distributor For Performance Engines

Crane Cams keeps upping its game when it comes to ultra high quality ignition systems for high performance and racing.

The company’s latest innovation may seem like old tech, but it has a really cool new twist. Yes, HEI ignitions have been around for decades, but they are still a popular option in many applications. OEM HEI ignitions are a poor choice for racing or performance engines because they typically run out of steam around 6,000 rpm, but Crane’s new HEI distributor has been engineered from the ground up for performance. A high performance coil maintains 8.5 amps, so this ignition should still be able to light off a high compression engine up to and above 8,000 rpm. But most interesting of all is the new circuitry that Crane has baked right into the unit. Most racing HEI distributors lock out the mechanical and vacuum advance systems–and this Crane unit is no different in that respect. But what Crane’s engineers have managed to do that no one else has is build in an electronic spark retard that uses no moving pieces. So when the engine is first cranked over, the unit provides 20 degrees of start retard until the engine hits 600 rpm. This will make using a high performance engine as a daily driver a lot easier.

For more, you can check out Crane Cams’ web page here.