New motor and timing

[TulsaSpider]

Ok well I got everything buttoned up. I installed a new master cylinder bled the brakes and took it for a test drive. It doesn't seem to run very well. When I came back from a short drive I tried to start it again and it refused to start. I monkeyed around with it and finally got it to start again. I think it's a timing issue. If I time it by ear to where it runs good then when I shut it off it won't start again until I retard the timing again. I am wondering if this distributor I have, (vacuum-less) uses all the same parts, cap (I had to cut a small notch out of the bottom of the cap) I had for the other electronic distributor as the cap it had on it was ragged out. I switched the cap and rotor, the parts were basically new. So I have the aluminum crank pulley and I did not put on the timing cover so I will have to devise some way to time it with a light. I know I have the cam pulleys on correctly because reversed the exhaust one will rub! Intake has lip toward back of motor, exhaust has lip toward front of car. Any suggestions?

[manoa matt]

Yes, the Plex dizzy uses the same coil, control module, pickup,and rotor. Some have said the caps are different (the notch) I have one on my car now, but I don't remember a notch, I can check later today. See if you can install the cap 180 deg the other way, that could be the problem.

Another possibility is the crank is not at TDC, does the aluminum pulley have a TDC mark?

[TulsaSpider]

When the short block was assembled. I made a mark at TDC with a sharpie. I just re checked the pulley alignment. I am guessing the holes in the cam wheels serve the same purpose as timing marks. One question. I was looking at the 2L timing cover and there are no timing marks where there are on the 1800. I did notice on the left hand side of the crank pulley a pointer of some sort. These motors are not timed in the same way?

[manoa matt]

The TDC mark on the 1800 stock crank pully is at about 2:00 position and referenced to the marks on the yellow timing belt cover on the drivers side. The TDC mark on the 2000 stock crank pully is at about 10:00 and referenced to a metal pointer mounted to the front crank seal carrier on the passenger side

Do you have a 1.8 or 2.0 motor?

[TulsaSpider]

2L motor, aluminum crank pulley no references on it other than the mark I made at true tdc or as close as my eye could get it.
So I could get a piece of tape place it where the mark normally goes, might be a bit hard to determine...
On another note. I had it too lean so that helped out quite a bit. Still need to get it timed....

[manoa matt]

You are using that 32 deg (16deg stamped) Plex distributor? Beg, borrow, or steal a timing light and confirm what your initial timing and max advance values are. If you set the max advance at 38 deg, you should have 6 deg initial advance and that should be enough for starting.

The air gap between the distributor stator (4 pointed lobe) and the magnetic pickup should be 0.5mm-0.6mm

Is the distributor advance plate "snappy"? With the dizzy installed, remove the cap, twist the rotor and let it go. Does it snap back or sluggishly slowly return to the initial position?

[TulsaSpider]

I have a simple timing light but no marks besides the sharpie mark I made. Will check out the snappiness tomorrow but it seemed good when I was just checking it out.

[divace73]

You can always check TDC but removing I think No.4 sparkplug(others please correct if I am wrong) and with a long screwdriver in the spark plug hole (make sure nothing else falls in) turn the engine by hand til the compression strock the screw driver should be at it's highest point, the other markers on the cam pulleys should line up together and from memory the your dizzy should be firing on or very near to no.4. Other please chime in if this doesn't work, it's worked for me in the past....

[TulsaSpider]

Yes that is a good way to determine tdc roughly but I am trying to devise a way to time it with a light.

[majicwrench]

Screwdriver down the hole will only get you close. Not near accurate enough. Piston spends quite a few degrees of crank rotation virtually motionless at TDC
Take a spark plug remove all the pocelin (sp) so you just have a hollow hex with threads.
Get a 1/4 20 bolt and nut.
Insert bolt into plug housing so it sticks out of combusion chamber end of plug housing. You may have to play with it to get the distance it sticks out to work well with you engine.
Now secure with nut. YOu will likely need to round edges of nut to install your new "tool" into spark plug hole.
Run piston down in cylinder, install tool.
Now make some sort of permanent pointer. Or WHY NOT PUT THE TIMING COVER ON??
Now roll engine by hand til piston hits tool and stops. Make removable mark on balancer where pointer is.
Now roll engine other way by hand til piston stops. Make second mark.
Exactly half way between the two marks is TDC.

Timing "By ear" will not work. If you are too far advanced, youi get just what you describe, an engine that is near impossible to start hot.
Make marks. Do it right.

[chrisfiat]

lets use a little common sence here. put the old crank pully and cover back on and time your engine. then when you remove the old pulley line it up with the new one, (use your keyway as a reference) and marke it with a file re install it to be sure it properly lines up withthe cover. if you insist on removing the cover again make a stiff wore pointer and or mark the bloch for refference

[TulsaSpider]

Chris. Common sense, oh yea! I think I have been just so exhausted... yes I think this is the proper way to do it! Thanks!

[TulsaSpider]

Well that project done! drained radiator, again. I removed new pulley. matched it up to the old one and indexed it using a Dremel, then re-assembled. I actually had it really close, about 13 degrees btdc so I backed it up to 10. Tomorrow more test driving!