Installing HEI Ignition on 3PG Carts

[Ron Man]

Hi, All:

I decided to put together a short summary of my HEI conversion on my 3PG gasser. I found it frustrating searching thru threads and pulling bits of information from several places, and not really knowing if what I assembled was correct. So, without further adieu, here's what I did:

HEI Conversion on 3PG Cart

- Purchase an ignition coil and matchiing ignitor from a 1977 Chevy
Nova 4.1L I6 I got mine from Advance Auto for about $60.
See pics #1 and #2 below.

- Remove the stock ignitor from the cart and mount the new ignitor in it's
place. Be sure to apply conduction grease supplied with ignotor on the
backside to improve cooling. The ignitor can get HOT!
See pic #3 below.

- Remove the stock coil from the cart.

- Mount new coil. I chose to mount it close enough to the engine so I could
still use my stock spark plug wire. You can mount the coil sideways like I
did since it is not oil filled. I just drilled two holes on the cross member and
used long bolts to secure it.
See pic #4 below.

- Go to NAPA and get a spark plug connector and boot for the blunt end of
your stock plug wire and install them so your plug wire will plug onto your
new coil.

- Refer to attached wiring diagram that I found on this site. Note, the wires
from the pulsar to the ignitor needed to be reversed on my cart, or it would
not run!!!! See pic #5 below.

- Connect the BLUE wire from the pulsar
to the "G" terminal on the ignitor.
- Connect the RED wire from the pulsar
to the "W" terminal on the ignitor
- Connect the B terminal on the ignitor
to the "YELLOW/RED" wire on the solenoid.
- Connect the C terminal on the ignitor
to the "- TERMINAL" on the coil.
- Connect the + TERMINAL on the coil
to the "GREEN" wire on the solenoid.

Your cart should now run like a champ!!!

[Ron Man]

One other thing, see pic below from 1989Marathon showing polarity on the coil. He figured it out and posted the pic.

Kudo's to 1989Marathon for coming up with the 1977 Chevy ignition retrofit and to whoever modified the factory wiring diagram for the HEI connections.

[Dave Box]

Very nicely done Ron, perhaps an Administrator could pick this up and dump it in the stickies section.

Dave

[Ron Man]

One other thing that I forgot. You need to trim two small "feet" from the backside of the new ignitor or it won't sit flat. This is important for heat transfer from the ignitor to the metal plate you're mounting it to. See pics below.

[Ron Man]

Originally Posted by Dave Box

Very nicely done Ron, perhaps an Administrator could pick this up and dump it in the stickies section.

Dave

Thanks Dave!!
Certainly not the level of your workmanship, but it works!!

I tried to post this in the stickies section but learned that I don't have write authority there.

[1lane66]

Great job Ron, you just saved me alot of time digging through the threads. Will get the parts tomorrow at work and hopefully get them on by this weekend and see what happens then. Donald Oh by the way $ on the carb ?

[bifferd]

Nice job that should work on the 244 cc too...might do this to my two carts a 88 and 82 ezgo

[bifferd]

What does 2pg mean vs 3 pg?

[Dave Box]

Bifferd, A short history of the PG engine, enjoy.

-In 1976 the so-called '2pg'--a 244cc, Fuji Heavy Industries/Robin Engine--with an internal starter generator (st/gen), became standard. Repair parts are still available except for the crankshaft assembly, the voltage regulator/starter relay and the internal st/gen stator & field.

-In 1980, an external, Hitachi brand starter generator was introduced and the engine was modified. The crank bearings, drive clutch, point set & condenser, voltage regulator and the engine frame all changed.

-1981 ushered in an electronic ignition system, which did away with the golf carts point set & condenser altogether, and the point activator lobe on the crankshaft soon went away too. Except for the addition of an oil injection system, this engine went virually unchanged until 1989 when the 3pg golf cart engine replaced it. Although the two engines are similar, many parts are very different.

-1983 was the oddball year for the 2pg engine. The muffler was placed behind the engine and it layed down instead of standing up. The '83 golf cart had a different engine frame, muffler & exhaust stack. It only lasted one year though...lots of problems.

In '84 the E-Z-GO golf cart went back to the old exhaust system & stand-up muffler on the driver side of the car.

1988 was the last full year of the 2pg engine. A larger golf cart carburetor and another change to the muffler & exhaust system were implemented trying to get more power for the car. The st/gen bracket also went through several changes as the increased power caused the original bracket to break apart.

In mid-year 1989, (early '89 models had the 2pg engine) E-Z-GO changed to the '3pg' engine, leaving the old 2pg to history. The '3pg' engine has the spark plug turned upward, and the whole engine is rotated such that both clutches face the driver side of the golf cart. This rotation allowed for the differential to be changed from a hypoid gearing to a more efficient helical gear design, a change that persists to this day. The lay-down style golf cart muffler for the '3pg' engine is in front of, and slightly above the engine. The piston is about the only part that works in either engine. The crankshaft & clutches, the exhaust system, the carburetor, air intake & control cables all changed.

1992 is the generally accepted date that the twin-cylider 4-cycle engine became the standard power plant but in fact the 3pg engine can be found in golf carts as late as 1994.

[onlyonmonday]

Can someone describe to me and maybe others what this comment Dave said.

The underlined is what I am more confused about.

EDIT:
What does the HEI stand for ??


In mid-year 1989, (early '89 models had the 2pg engine) E-Z-GO changed to the '3pg' engine, leaving the old 2pg to history. The '3pg' engine has the spark plug turned upward, and the whole engine is rotated such that both clutches face the driver side of the golf cart. This rotation allowed for the differential to be changed from a hypoid gearing to a more efficient helical gear design,