Okay here goes; My car has had idle issues for a few months now. A couple of weeks ago I was replacing my valve cover gasket and decided to check my timing. The cam gear was sitting with the dowel pin a little past 12 o'clock and the dot was about even with the head. Curiosity got the best of me so I jumped the chain over 1 link so as to place the dowel pin at 12'oclock. I replaced the injectors with another set I picked up and had cleaned/flowed locally as well.
Not quite immediately, the idle seemed to level off. Still idled like crap, but at least the engine stayed on. A little tinkering with the tps and dist. and I managed a decent idle. The trade-off was slight bogging at tip in, engine ran incredibly rich 95% of the time, small but consistent backfiring at idle, and mpg went down from 23-25 to the high teens. I hit 20mpg once, but I think that was a fluke. Half my rear bumper was covered with soot after only a few days.
Today I replaced my injectors, (had the original set cleaned/flowed locally) because I had a bad feeling about the current injectors. Sure enough all the tips were cracked. I also jumped the timing back to my original setting with the dowel pin just past 12 and the dot flush with the head.
The idle is back to crap. The car will not stay on. BUT the power is back. She will spin the tires from a standstill, acceleration is better, the engine pulls in any gear (55mph to 75 without downshifting in a few seconds), and the backfiring is all but gone.
I have only a Chiltons manual to work with, but even the fsm's online don't show definitive alignment. They both state matching of colored links, but I am not ready to pull the front cover off. I am confident someone like d!ck would be more intimate with these engines, but anyone that can clarify this will be greatly rewarded. I'll send you some of my almost-world-famous barbecued chicken or beef fajitas. They are like butter.
Sorry for the long post. For the record, TPS is 3 months old, maf is about 6 months old both bought new. Plugs, wires, cap, and rotor are fresh. Walbro pump with pressure set @ 32psi at idle and fuel filter is replaced yearly in June.
KA-E cam timing verification please, I think I am wrong both ways..
Re: KA-E cam timing verification please, I think I am ... (gumby74)
I had my kae rebuilt with the head and block mated when I received it and the cam timing seemed to be nearly the same as yours a little passed 12 towards 1. That seems to be the correct location to me according to how the car runs. Have you tried fine tuning your distributor (loosening the two bolts and turning left or right with the engine running) as this may help eliminate some of the other problems you are having. The other thing may be your oil pump and distributor may be a tooth or so off. Not too hard to fix and some decent photos and instructions here as well. Basically at tdc the distributor should be pointing to #1 plug wire around 10-11 o'clock, so you can check before removing the oil pump to see just how close you are.
I actually checked the distributor timing in relation to the oil pump. It is set at just before 12'oclock. I can not really use the timing light as the car will not stay on. I have however pretty much mastered left foot braking.
Before I messed with the chain, I had tightened down the throttle cable to keep it open a bit. I am determined not to go this route again. I will be removing the iacv and that other thing behind the manifold this weekend and cleaning them out. Just waiting on the gaskets.
Plan B is to wire in my S-AFC and using the decel feature to see what I come up with.
Also both water temp. sensors are new and I have removed all emissions. All remaining nipples were soldered and capped with silicone plugs. That should eliminate the possibility of vacuum leaks. Thanks for the input. I will continue to go over the obvious and see where I end up.
Before I messed with the chain, I had tightened down the throttle cable to keep it open a bit. I am determined not to go this route again. I will be removing the iacv and that other thing behind the manifold this weekend and cleaning them out. Just waiting on the gaskets.
Plan B is to wire in my S-AFC and using the decel feature to see what I come up with.
Also both water temp. sensors are new and I have removed all emissions. All remaining nipples were soldered and capped with silicone plugs. That should eliminate the possibility of vacuum leaks. Thanks for the input. I will continue to go over the obvious and see where I end up.