A fun day out.

My X1/9 was booked in for its MOT this afternoon, so this morning as I had had an ignition problem on Monday I took it for a drive to make sure it still ran the brakes were properly free.

Fine so far, it ran perfectly until around a mile from home it misfired and cut out on the approach to a roundabout.

Fortunately a cop car was its way back to the nick a couple of minutes later and he stopped and helped me push it onto the pavement and waited, and waited as the breakdown company argued the toss about whether it had stopped within a mile of home.

The arseholes were insistent that it was 100 metres within the mile so refused to come out unless I paid them £90 to take the car home.
I turned down their kind offer and will not be renewing that particular cover again.

Fortunately my son is in the motor trade and has a recovery truck, so a quick text later he said he would stop what he was doing and came out and took the car home.

By this time it was 12:30 and the test was booked at 3:15 so having unloaded it, it was down to work, Adam from above and me through the hatch in the bulkhead behind the driver's seat.

We sorted the problem, a combination of points, condenser and a peculiar electronics box which enables either conventional or electronic ignition.

So that was it running again, reinstall hatch, sound deadening, spare wheel and all was well.

Off to the MOT test - result - a pass with no advisories.

I later called in at the nick, to leave my thanks to the cop who had helped in the morning and was told by the duty Sergeant that the tale of a near 40 year old Fiat breaking down was the talk of the canteen.

It's good to be able to say something positive about the local police.

Does any body know of a reliable electronic ignition system that will fit the early 1500?

This hybrid one which still relies on the points is not proving to be much good.

I have used the Luminition opto chopper system. There are a couple of photos of the system in my member profile , go to "Our Members" tab. Not the cheapest system but very good in my experience.

I have had what sounds like this exact problem ever since I got my 1500 earlier in the year. Its driven me and several garages mad trying to sort it.

I bought an electronic ignition from Powerspark www.simonbbc.com/ for around £50 but could never get it working and neither could a couple of garages. It just seemed impossible to time within the space that the distributer turns.

Ive just bought the lumenition optronic kit from Merlin Motorsport (£200 with fitting kit urgh) and am going to attempt to fit it this weekend so I will update you on how it goes.

I'm not even totally convinced it'll solve the problem I have, but having tired virtually everything else its worth a go.

My 1500 had Luminition kit fitted when I bought it. Worked very well for me. It needs a fuse fitted on the live ignition feed though

It even worked when just after I got the car, water which had filled up the 'buttress void' sloshed all over it. "Check those drain holes"

I also met the police last Xmas when I broke down (flat battery). They were interested in the car and read the badge Bert-One... I was on the way home from the office Xmas party!

Then I found my breakdown cover only covered cars up to 15 years old! ha ha

Before I blunder into it all myself could I just ask you a bit more about that fuse on the feed Jeremy? Where and what did you do?

Aldon Automotive do a very good kit. I have used it a number of times on various cars with good success.

Hi Grant. The lumenition module needs a live when the ignition is on. The installer on mine connected it behind the fuse panel (not sure exactly where) but it must be before the fuses. I guess if it was done correctly it wouldn't be necessary to add another fuse.

I have used an in-line blade fuse holder from Halfords. This wire melted in a big way when part of the engine loom on my car rubbed against some metal in the engine bay.