My 62 with a 1600 tp is running like a swiss watch at the moment, The throttle shaft leak as gone away for some reason, anyway i was thinking of installing an electronic ignition, a pertronix dizzy leads and coil, I can get them from the states for 360 bucks landed. I thnk they are about a million dollars here if you can even find them. So apart from never having to change or adjust points again does it make the car run any better?
Not really. Just saves you changing points.
It's an interesting topic.
Whether it's the placebo effect or not, I am not sure.
When I used to own a specialised workshop I experimented many times with different ignition systems. Using a Sun diagnostic tuning equipment along
with chassis dyno, I could never detect any improvement, however the electronic ignition for some reason "felt' smoother.
The first thing I did after purchasing our Std. beetle was to fit electronic ignition. Go figure?
The benefit is no longer having points that gradually wear out and change the dwell angle, which changes the timing.
As for the more expensive brands out there? No, not really worth the extra money over some of the more cheaper one's available.
I purchased a brand called "Hot Spark"through the Samba site, has worked without missing a beat and the advance curve appears to be correct thus
far. (12 months)
Ken
It's an interesting topic.
Whether it's the placebo effect or not, I am not sure.
When I used to own a specialised workshop I experimented many times with different ignition systems. Using a Sun diagnostic tuning equipment along
with chassis dyno, I could never detect any improvement, however the electronic ignition for some reason "felt' smoother.
The first thing I did after purchasing our Std. beetle was to fit electronic ignition. Go figure?
The benefit is no longer having points that gradually wear out and change the dwell angle, which changes the timing.
As for the more expensive brands out there? No, not really worth the extra money over some of the more cheaper one's available.
I purchased a brand called "Hot Spark"through the Samba site, has worked without missing a beat and the advance curve appears to be correct thus
far. (12 months)
Ken
Stick with a quality unit like pertronix or compufire and you will be right, the cheap ones have a high failure rate but keep points and condenser in
the glove box and youll be back on the road quick if that happens.
I've fitted a few kits over the years, you may notice easier starting but a stock engine you won't feel any performance difference.
but in saying that with the strobe on all points scatter is gone and a dead smooth advance curve which has to be better for the engine.
Advance curve is still dealt with by the dizzys vac and mech parts but electronic points gets rid of points bounce and slight changes in dwell, time
period in which the coil fires. So the engine will drive and accelerate more smoothly.
You may also notice a slight increase in fuel economy due to the smoother running but it is normally negligible.
As Buggin says stick to the decent brands that he stated 
I bought one of these ,2 years now no problems
http://www.hot-spark.com/
Used a Pertronix kit in my FB Holden, can't explain why, but car always started more easily (less cranking), never had to fiddle with points gaps and
engine just seemed smoother over all. Well as smooth a a grey motor can be.
like others have said you probably won't notice much (if any) difference in fuel economy or power, but certainly feels smoother than points and
there's no maintenance except for oiling the felt pad under the rotor. i found start up quicker than points.
if i was buying now id get a Pertonix 2 (i bought about 5 years ago and it was significantly more) which has auto dwell control - ie even better
startup and more complete burn at highway speeds
im not fitting another one after being left on the side of the road by one. mine was a dis x version.
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