ignition timing
- Thread starter koogie
- Start date
stina
New Member
1St clean up the index markings on the crank pully and high light the markings with white paint ( -10 to +10 degrees )
Clip your live onto the washer bottle live , negitive onto the base unit some place , I use the coil mounting bolt through the inner wing . clip the sensor pick up onto no 1 HT lead . Get the motor up to temp , then with it ticking over at about 650 to 750 rpm look for a setting of 6 degrees BTDC by turning the dizzy Fine tuning can come later , and i cant advise the best setting for your engine , not knowing compression ratio , fuel grade etc . One of the tech experts will pick up from here soon i'm sure . This is what works with mine
Clip your live onto the washer bottle live , negitive onto the base unit some place , I use the coil mounting bolt through the inner wing . clip the sensor pick up onto no 1 HT lead . Get the motor up to temp , then with it ticking over at about 650 to 750 rpm look for a setting of 6 degrees BTDC by turning the dizzy Fine tuning can come later , and i cant advise the best setting for your engine , not knowing compression ratio , fuel grade etc . One of the tech experts will pick up from here soon i'm sure . This is what works with mine
koogie
Member
Thats great, thanks for the replies. I'm running a 3500 V8 10.5 to 1 CR on 99 octane unleaded with a dash of additive, I guess I should of put that in the ifrst place, oops. I have to admit I've never set the ignition timing before, the same with a lot of things on my p6 so what I lack in knoledge I suppose make up for in enthusiasm, making a forum like this one a goldmine. Any info appreciated!
stina
New Member
To clarify , Yeah your right Rich , don't think their is a difinitave setting , but if you have the option of a timing light it gives you a good base setting , something to go back to . mine is 9.25/1 think the high comp engines need closer to TDC . Sure one of the big guns will post soon . Stand by my discription of how to set up and use the timing light though :wink:
Optimum engine tuning will change according to waht fuel you are using. That's probably a main reason why it was possible to transform Lucky so much on the rolling road - there's a huge difference to the fuels available now and the fuels they were set up by the factory on.
Koogie is already on what I think is the best available fuel for the P6. So, as Harvey says, first check that the timing markers are correct. HAve a plug out and some careful work with a pencil or similar down the hole should rapidly establish exactly where top dead centre really is. Then you can compare it with what the factory timing marks think - they could well be a long way off! Only tip there is always to approach your selected TDC position the from the same direction that the engine does (Senior moment here, I can't remember whether it's clockwise or anti clockwise).
Then you can play with your new timing light. As Stina says, start with the factory settinds as she describes. But don't be afraid to have a play and see what effect moving from those settings has. Your preferred best setting from experiment always trumps the factory setting! (within reason)
While you're at it verify that the centrifugal advance and the vacuum advance are both working on your distributor. For the centrifugal, just verify that the plate on which the points are mounted can be rotated slightly and snaps back under spring action nice and smoothly. For the vacuum, take the vacuum pipe off the manifold and have a good suck on it ( ) and verify that the plate in the distributor moves in response.
Hope that helps
Chris
Koogie is already on what I think is the best available fuel for the P6. So, as Harvey says, first check that the timing markers are correct. HAve a plug out and some careful work with a pencil or similar down the hole should rapidly establish exactly where top dead centre really is. Then you can compare it with what the factory timing marks think - they could well be a long way off! Only tip there is always to approach your selected TDC position the from the same direction that the engine does (Senior moment here, I can't remember whether it's clockwise or anti clockwise).
Then you can play with your new timing light. As Stina says, start with the factory settinds as she describes. But don't be afraid to have a play and see what effect moving from those settings has. Your preferred best setting from experiment always trumps the factory setting! (within reason)
While you're at it verify that the centrifugal advance and the vacuum advance are both working on your distributor. For the centrifugal, just verify that the plate on which the points are mounted can be rotated slightly and snaps back under spring action nice and smoothly. For the vacuum, take the vacuum pipe off the manifold and have a good suck on it (
) and verify that the plate in the distributor moves in response.Hope that helps
Chris
Tom W
Active Member
On my 4cyl, I've always disconnected the vacuum advance when setting the timing, as per the workshop manual. Presumably leaving this connected could change the timing at tick-over from the static setting, giving a false set up from the book numbers. It won't matter if you're tuning it by ear to what runs best though. You'll need to plug the end of the tube going to the carb if you do disconnect it, or it won't run properly.
webmaster
New Member
In theory you're just looking for the maximum advance it will stand before it starts pinking under full load. That will give you the best power.
I believe what Tom says is correct, disconnect the vac advance whilst adjusting, otherwise it could be wandering around a bit on its own.
I believe what Tom says is correct, disconnect the vac advance whilst adjusting, otherwise it could be wandering around a bit on its own.
