Date: Mon, 15 Nov 1999 06:57:31 -0500
Reply-To: Bulley <gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Bulley <gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM>
Subject: Re: major problem or minor faux pas?
David-
First off, to be honest, what you are describing sounds unlikely, if not
impossible. The type 4 motor can *conceivably* skip timing if the
distributor drive shaft isn't mated to the base of the distributor. And in
that case, it WOULD skip 180 degrees, as you first described. It couldn't
skip 90 degrees. .
Here is what you want to do/check. Remove the distributor, pre-load spring,
drive shaft, and special base washer (don't drop the washer into the case.
Check for weak/break. Align #1 cylinder on TDC, and re-install drive shaft
following Bentley or Haynes manual to get the shaft lined up correctly. I
recall the eccentric cut on the shaft should rest at 12 degrees of parallel
with the main case seam, but I don't recall if that means the eccentric cut
is CLOSER to the case seam, or FARTHER from the case seam.
Reinstall the spring, and finally, re-install the distributor until it
FULLY seats into the drive shaft. You sometimes have to rotate it 320
degrees to get the distributor's eccentric land to line up with the
eccentric groove in the shaft. Give the motor a static timing. Double check
that all your wires are correct (1-4-3-2) on the dist cap. Start your van.
Cheers,
G. Matthew Bulley
Director
Bulley-Hewlett & Associates
www.bulley-hewlett.com
Cary, NC USA
888.468.4880 tollfree
-----Original Message-----
From: Animal [SMTP:terrapin@HALIFAX.COM]
Sent: Sunday, November 14, 1999 8:20 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: major problem or minor faux pas?
Please help, or at least confirm that I'm screwed.
Yesterday I spent the majority of the day trying to get the new
engine in my 80 westy cranked.
It is a 2 liter air-cooled engine that I pulled down to the pistons,
put new rings and heads on it and reassembled. Nothing was done
inside the case and the engine was running when originally pulled for
poor compression.
The problem. It would turn over, spin, try to fire, then backfire and
blow all the vacuum hoses off.
When this would happen I would then put number one back at tdc and
find that the timing had shifted 180 degrees so number three was
firing in the number one spot.
So I pull out the distributor, turn the gear back, put it all back
together and try to crank again.
It spins, tries to fire, then once again blows off the hoses.
So, silly me, decides that if the engine really wants to have three
at on then who am I to argue.
I move all the wires, retime it for what would in theory be number
three but is now in actuality number one, spin it again.
It tries to crank, blows off the hoses and now has shifted 90 degrees.
I'm frustrated and not sure what is going on.
Do I have an expensive paperweight, or is there some way to correct
whatever is going one without having to disassemble the entire engine.
Onward thru the fog
David Conner
terrapin@halifax.com
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