Date:         Wed, 20 Nov 2002 11:38:28 -0500
Reply-To:     Karl Wolz <wolzphoto@WORLDNET.ATT.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Karl Wolz <wolzphoto@WORLDNET.ATT.NET>
Subject:      Re: Timing adjustment procedure on Digifant system
Comments: To: Mark Keller <kelphoto@HIGHSPEEDPLUS.COM>

Mark & all,

When I was planning my trip to the Pacific NW, I asked this list for
suggestions for campsites, etc.  Mark Keller was kind enough to respond,
asking me to ring him up when we were in the 'hood.  I did so, and was
promptly invited to spend a night or two at their place up north of
Victoria.

Stephanie and I had a great time tooling around his area in his zippy van
(even with auto-tranny), and spent the night in the comfort of our own
Westy (on his property with a beautiful view of the Strait of Georgia).

Next morning, Mark asked if he could "take a look" at my FI setup (I had
just installed a 2.1 with Digifant in my '85).  He began "looking" by
resetting my timing (yes, I was a guinea pig for his timing dissertation).
We then started driving my van around with the O2 sensor connected to a
voltmeter, stopping every so often to reset the AFM spring tension, the
idle mixture, and/or the set point.  I had noted relatively low-power
earlier in the trip, and figured on sorting it out when I got home.

As he fiddled about, the van ran stronger and stronger, developing both
more hp and more torque (seat-of-the-pants measurement, of course).  He was
also endeavoring to adjust for hp vs. fuel economy (and emissions).  The
drive home was supposed to tell us just how succesful his adjustments
were.

Unfortunately, a couple events conspired to deny us the opportunity to
complete our road test.  A ways below Seattle, the distributor mount came
loose (we had noted that it was badly warped, but didn't have the time to
replace it).  I reset the timing by ear and drove home in that condition.
A short while later, the 2-4 exhaust pipe let loose with much great noise,
destroying any meaningful analysis of Mark's handywork.

My observations:  Mark and Sherry are wonderful hosts - look them up if
you're going to be on Vancouver Island.  Mark is pretty good at FI.  His
adjustments led to much better power with at least no loss in fuel
economy.

Karl Wolz