Frustrated for today, HELP!!!!

[zachmac]

Putting the 80 FI back together after timing belt and new pickup, vacuum advance, and rotor and cap on distributor. Had dist. out and initally back in 180 out. Got that turned around and with son cranking key got it to start and run pretty well tuning by ear. Ran it ofr a while and it idled smooth and revved strong. Shut it off and go eat lunch.

Come back, try cranking it up and won't start. Son cranking while I twist dist. and she no go? I decide what the hell. I'll line up the timing marks again, pulll it out and re-time to #4 firing and try it all again (no sane reason for doing so). Well when I went to put it back, the nut for the holddown plate was gone. Disappeared into thin air. Not where I had laid it the other dozen times and nowhere to be found. Like on of those magically dissappearing tools you just had in your hand a minute ago. I have search everywhere and re-traced my steps and it is nowhere.

Started to worry it could have fallen into the cam cover distributor hole. Stuck my finger down into the oily depths and no nut there. The way that cavity is shaped (a well open at the top only where the dist. drive gear engages the cam drive gear) I don't see any way it could have fallen into that well and NOT stayed in that well. Am I being paranoid or should I take the time and effort to pull the cam cover and make sure. The alternative is to just go get another nut and get back to trying to get it to run.

On that topic, the manual says all timing marks aligned insert the dist. so that #4 will be firing. That should put it close enough to get it to start by doing the old twist the dist. while someone cranks routine. HOWEVER, as the gears mesh as you insert the dist. it natrually causes the dist. shaft to turn. As a result, there are at least two positions where you could feasibly turn the dist. body on the shaft to align #4 with the rotor. The first puts the rotor pointing at about 10am on a clock where the front of the car is 12. The second mesh point puts the rotor pointing about 25 dergess further toward 12. Again, in either case you can rotate the dist. body far enough to get the #4 cap pickup over the rotor contact. My queustion is on a properly timed FI car, where is the distributor pointing? To make it easy, where is your coil wire connection pointing? Again, use front of car looking down from above as 12 reference please. I find with the dist. inserted such that the rotor is futher toward 12 when timed for #4 fire that I cannot get the dist, to turn far enough for timing before the vacuum advance interferes with the air intake plenum.

Finally, how criticla are the air gap (remeber it ran fine once) and the vacuum advance rod adjustment? Could either be keeping me from getting this going?

[zachmac]

Good news, a friend came over and asked if I had checked "inside" the engine mount housing hole and after giving him one of those duh looks (like of course I had) I got my magnet on a stick out of the toolbox and voila, there was the missing dist. holddown nut. That's the good news.

The bad is the car still won't time / start. I think there is something wrong IN the dist. It almost acts like something internal is slipping or briken so I pulled it back out and it is sitting on the bench for examination tomorrow.

I did find a very small loose washer inside the dist. and there is some sort of fiber looking material stickingout from under the lowesr most rotating palte that doesn't look kosher.

[rlux4]

We need more info. For instance, do you have spark at the plugs? Is the fuel pump running as soon as your starter turns the engine over? If the fuel pump is running, are you getting a good flow of gas?
Non start could be caused by so many things, it helps to know what is working, and what has been checked. As far as the ignition timing is concerned, you had it running, so if the dist. was not loose, it shouldn't move.
Ron

[Kevin1]

If you had the distributor cap off, make sure that one of the wires for the magnetic pickup isn't pinched. It is easy to catch one of those wires by mistake, and will keep the car from starting.

[zachmac]

We need more info. For instance, do you have spark at the plugs? Is the fuel pump running as soon as your starter turns the engine over? If the fuel pump is running, are you getting a good flow of gas?
Non start could be caused by so many things, it helps to know what is working, and what has been checked. As far as the ignition timing is concerned, you had it running, so if the dist. was not loose, it shouldn't move.
Ron

Lots o spark, lots o gas, just not spark and gas at right times together. It ran fine once. Now no matter what I try it trys to start (sputter / backfire) but won't catch and keep running. Like a really out of time engine even though I re-set it mechanically (firing #4 with all marks aligned). I am still thinking internal dizzy problem but I will wait until tomorrow to look everything over after a good night's sleep.

[tonyfromjersey]

I have to agree with your idea to get a good night's sleep and try again tomorrow. I've had some great frustrations with this car and other projects that a little time and distance seems to take care of many problems.

Beer works too.

[ga.spyder]

Hell Jeff...just take that AMG out for a spin.I know that would cure my frustration
Craig

[zachmac]

Hell Jeff...just take that AMG out for a spin.I know that would cure my frustration
Craig

Actually that does work wonders! A quick 80 to 140 blast always clears the mind and focuses the senses. I jsut dis a header and sport cat mod to it with the K3 level ECU tune and haven't been to the dyno yet but definitely feel the difference. I should be right at 540 to 550 RWHP and over 600 ft-lbs torque. The look on the camaro and vette guys faces is priceless.