Hi All,

My son and I purchased an '82 spider with a blown 2nd gear and a burnt valve as a project to work on together. We tore into it with great gusto, and as time when on, other distractions limited the time available to complete it. Well its now 10 years later, the son is grown and moved on, and the father is determined to get this car running for the summer. I'm mechanically inclined but definitely not a mechanic, so I would be grateful to any and all who could offer advice.

The engine is solid and all the usual items were check'd and/or replaced (idler pulley, timing belt, rings/piston, bore are within spec.) and reinstalled. So there are just a few things left to finish. I have to reinstall the distributor, intake manifold, reconnect the wiring harness/hoses etc. , repair the brown wire that goes to the alternator as it looks like it had a factory connector splice , or two ring terminals broken off? Also, I need to helicoil a stripped mounting bolt for the coolant T and fill the car it with new oil, lube, coolant and fuel (tank was purged when project was started 10 years ago).

My questions is is there anything wrong with just cranking it over given all the time its been sitting?

The engine was hand cranked after the timing belt was replaced about 5 years ago and although its not quite on TDC (I think it moved a bit when putting the trans back on) I will set it to TDC and put the distributor in and set it accordingly.

I figure the biggest potential problem would be the Bosch Fuel Injectors (they haven't been fired in 10 years). So do I risk causing bigger problems if I try firing up the car without touched the injectors? Or should I just give it a go, with full knowledge that if it actuallyfired up there would likely be an investigation by Rome?

Thanks,
Kevin,
p.s. The car has been stored in a garage the entire time.

I would pour a bit of Magic Mystery oil into each cylinder through the spark plug holes and let it sit for a few days.

I would also look at having the injectors rebuilt/cleaned/balanced for flow to ensure they work and are not blocked.

The injectors will either work or they won't. If they work they may be a bit wonky. It can't hurt to try to start it the way it is now, I would worry about running it without getting them cleaned so it doesn't run lean on some cylinders.

Karl

would crank it with no plugs to get things oiled without a load. I wouldnt worry about the injectors unless you cant get the thing to start. I had injectors that measured 100,77,0,0, and the car still started and ran.

I would pour motor oil in the cam towers till to the normal level these are well lubed this would require you
removing one of the valve covers since there isn't an easy way to pour oil on that side . Cranking with the
spark plugs out is a good ideal and make sure all the timing belt pulleys are in the right places which i'm sure
your aware of them needing to be timed along with the auxshaft . The injectors will be fine if they have been
safely kept in the engine you might experience a sticky injector maybe not starting it up to find out isn't going
to change the condition of a injector .