Cardone 30-3817 Reman, an EXCELLENT $40 value!

Gerald Morris

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Just wanted to note that I dropped $40 on one of these at Vatozone, popped it in in about 5 minutes, checked my timing, which already was optimal, noted that my dwell angle jumped from about a feeble 12 degrees to a nice snappy 33, and that my 383 now purrs along with the smooth zip of a motor recently broke in. The old distributor had the part # 2642727, which is for a 1967 383, so I guess it was transplanted to this one at some time in the past hemi-century, likely more than 25 yrs ago judging from its condition.

For budget constrained drivers, I'd heartily recommend this deal. I'll know more about it in 6 months, to be sure, but such a modest expense for the splendid improvement in motor function I've experienced already made it worthwhile. Merely purchasing good points, condenser, cap, plugs and wires runs for more. I KNEW I needed to replace the dizzy after my second point purchase since March, noting how the rotor WOBBLED, explaining the issue of poor dwell angle.

I'll keep the old distributor, and maybe rebuild it some idle time, but it sure is nice seeing remnants worse off than this one fetching $50+ on eBay.

Mildly surprised by the excellent quality of my purchase, I have to recommend Vatozone for this item, given how the next lowest price at an auto-parts chain store, $62 at Oh-Really? is over 50% above "da Zone's." Since Mathilda is a family car, I've no desire for performance beyond OEM.
 
I did the same thing, all you have to do now is every tune up put a small drop of oil on the pad under the rotor to keep the advance mechanism lubed.
 
That is good to hear. My last few Cardone rebuilt items (power steering pumps) were poor quality rebuilds. No, make that very poor quality.
C
 
You said you were keeping the old one, what was the core cost?

Is this a points or electronic distributor?
Sounds like points to me, he mentioned the dwell moving around. A electronic module takes care of the dwell itself.
 
"Sorry, the requested quantity for this special order item is not available. Please adjust the quantity."

Looks like you grabbed it just in time...
 
Just wanted to note that I dropped $40 on one of these at Vatozone, popped it in in about 5 minutes, checked my timing, which already was optimal, noted that my dwell angle jumped from about a feeble 12 degrees to a nice snappy 33, and that my 383 now purrs along with the smooth zip of a motor recently broke in. The old distributor had the part # 2642727, which is for a 1967 383, so I guess it was transplanted to this one at some time in the past hemi-century, likely more than 25 yrs ago judging from its condition.

For budget constrained drivers, I'd heartily recommend this deal. I'll know more about it in 6 months, to be sure, but such a modest expense for the splendid improvement in motor function I've experienced already made it worthwhile. Merely purchasing good points, condenser, cap, plugs and wires runs for more. I KNEW I needed to replace the dizzy after my second point purchase since March, noting how the rotor WOBBLED, explaining the issue of poor dwell angle.

I'll keep the old distributor, and maybe rebuild it some idle time, but it sure is nice seeing remnants worse off than this one fetching $50+ on eBay.

Mildly surprised by the excellent quality of my purchase, I have to recommend Vatozone for this item, given how the next lowest price at an auto-parts chain store, $62 at Oh-Really? is over 50% above "da Zone's." Since Mathilda is a family car, I've no desire for performance beyond OEM.

I bought one too last year and it made a big difference. I want to give you one heads up. The condenser in the rebuild distributor crapped out in one month. If Mathilda starts running like ****, all of a sudden, that would be the first thing I would check. I had 2 bad brand new condensers in a row, my current condenser is at least 35 years old and has been fine. Hopefully you still have the old condenser in your old dizzy you may need it.
 
"Sorry, the requested quantity for this special order item is not available. Please adjust the quantity."

Looks like you grabbed it just in time...
Wha'chu talkin bout?

Screenshot_2016-12-04-14-17-28-318.jpeg
 
I did the same thing, all you have to do now is every tune up put a small drop of oil on the pad under the rotor to keep the advance mechanism lubed.

Yep! Easy peasy lemon squeezy. The folks in the particular maquiladora which does distributors know their job and do it well.
 
I bought one too last year and it made a big difference. I want to give you one heads up. The condenser in the rebuild distributor crapped out in one month. If Mathilda starts running like ****, all of a sudden, that would be the first thing I would check. I had 2 bad brand new condensers in a row, my current condenser is at least 35 years old and has been fine. Hopefully you still have the old condenser in your old dizzy you may need it.


Oh yes, I keep the old ones and even can check them to see if they're still in spec. The points and condenser in my old dizzy are still pretty fresh, no notable damage to the points, which are NOS I got off eBay. Rule of thumb, buy ONLY U.S.A. made, and pre-1980 when available. That's why I'm keeping the old one and will seek parts to rebuild it myself. The FSM is reasonably explicit on how its done too. God bless Chrysler!
 
Is this a points or electronic distributor?

Points! I don't do solid state. If an EMP, man-made or Act of God should roll through the troposphere in my turf, Mathilda will still fire up after! Also, old style breaker points usually* decay GRADUALLY, which gives drivers plenty warning of when they're due for replacement. 11 yrs ago, I drove a '66 New Yorker, which was what converted me to Mopar, but it had been fitted with a 100-A squareback alternator and an orange box MoPar electronic ignition + Accel coil on the 440 in it, and BOTH of those "upgrades" gave me non-stop conniptions. I can't complain, having given but $500 for the car, and getting a year's use out of it before the rear main seal blew and I collapsed with pneumonia the same day. Long ago I learned how to get maximum use from mechanical breaker points, and I've to this day not driven a pre-1970 car retro-fitted with electronic ignition which performed well enough to justify the aggravation which solid-state ignitions bring with them.

*cheap Asiatic trash excepted. Save your $ and get U.S.A. made stuff.
 
"Sorry, the requested quantity for this special order item is not available. Please adjust the quantity."

Looks like you grabbed it just in time...
Like I told Stan, down here the warehouse stays full of these. Plenty old vatos in Too-stoned and Baja Arizona who dig 'em.
 
That is good to hear. My last few Cardone rebuilt items (power steering pumps) were poor quality rebuilds. No, make that very poor quality.
C
Thanks for the warning on THAT! My next intended Cardone purchase was going to be a reman Federal pump, though after having just fitted a sound bracket on my old one, it's performance returned to a steady, strong one at low RPM, which is what makes Federal pumps desirable. Were you getting Saginaw, Federal or both varieties from Cardone?
 
Actually, one was for an old Pontiac. It lasted about 4 years.
Then the pump went out on my Dodge Dakota ('99). Day one, and pump one squealed like a banshee; day two and pump two didn't do anything, no assist, nothing; day three and pump three I got one that worked - for a year. The second go round the first pump leaked, the second one has now been on the truck about two years...
C
 
I changed out my worn out points dizzy and bought a Cardone 440 reman one. I too stayed with points and it runs good.
 
You couldn't be more WRONG if you tried, your battery will be toast too!

Yeah a Carrington Event magnitude EMP would likely boil my battery, or NOT, as folks who lived through it in Sept., 1859 reported of the mayhem that hit their telegraph stations and such. Be that as it may, I still have solid empirical data based on that event that once I got a new battery, Tilly would turn over and fire up w little further trouble. Now, an EFI system isn't so robust, is it? Or even a single power transistor electronic ignition module such as the ones from 1972. Any way you care to look at it, electro-mechanical breaker points, while crude, are effective, and systems so based easily repaired in situ.
 
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