When it came time to do my ignition upgrades, I wanted to go with as much stuff as I could from the same company.  And, more importantly, I wanted to go with high quality equipment.  After checking out what was available, I decided on MSD.  I was most impressed by what they had to offer, and I know that they are known for good quality.

So far, I have replaced everything in the ignition system except for the distributor.  I replaced the cap, rotor, plug wires, and coil.  I have also added an ignition box to improve spark output, I used a special wire loom kit to route the wires away from the headers and other equipment, and I went with a high performance spark plug.

Once I had just about every other part of my ignition system upgraded, I thought it was time to add an ignition control box.  I chose the MSD 6-AL.  The 6-AL uses MSD's "multiple spark discharge" technology, which means that it uses multiple sparks each time the spark plug fires instead of just one.  It actually is supposed to create stronger spark up to 20 degrees of crankshaft rotation.

It also has a built in rev limiter.  It is a "soft touch" rev limiter, which means that once it hits the desired rpm limit, it cuts the spark to the spark plugs, but a different plug every time it fires.  this prevents backfiring, by making sure that a ton of unburned fuel doesn't get dumped into one single cylinder. 

The following is a shot of the ignition box mounted in the car.  I don't have a blower motor, or air conditioning or anything, so I had the room to mount it right to the firewall.  This turns out to be a pretty good spot, because it is right in the open, so it gets plenty of air to help keep it cool.

MSD 6-AL Ignition Control
(click to enlarge)

To wire the box, I bought MSD's wiring harness, but I didn't use it.  It makes it a LOT easier to install, but I didn't like the way that it connected the wires together, so I hardwired it (using a soldering iron and a bunch of shrink tubing).  I also used a pretty big Weatherpack connector to connect the wiring of the box to the wiring harness of the car.  I will get a picture of it soon.

I wanted to add a shift light so I could know when to shift, without having to keep an eye on the tach.  It's a lot easier to just throw it in the higher gear when there is a huge red light going off right in front of you.

It wasn't until I hooked this bad boy up that I realized how INACCURATE the factory tach is in Thirdgens.  I could have a 5200 rpm module in the shift light, and it would not go off until the factory tach was reading like 6300 rpm.  That is a HUGE difference.  So, now I actually have an idea of how fast the engine is spinning.

The picture that you see here is a shot of the shift light installed in the car.  I mounted it in this location because there wasn't anywhere better to mount it, and it worked out pretty well because it is VERY visible from where I sit when I drive the car.

MSD LED Shift Light
(click to enlarge)

The installation was pretty straightforward.  There is a wire going to an ignition power source, and another going to the tach output of the 6-AL.

I use regular old AC Delco plugs in my car.  I don't think all those special plugs do a damn thing for the car...I just think it's all B.S.  I guess maybe on a newer, higher tech engine they may be better to use, but I don't know.  Besides, these bad boys are what GM Performance Parts says should go in my engine anyways.

The look of my engine is pretty important to me, so I needed a good way to route the plug wires safely, but at the same time, look good.  I tried a few different products, but I ended up using Made For You Products wire looms and mounting brackets. 

DEI Plug Boot Protectors
(click to enlarge)