just cant get timing right

We may earn a small commission from affiliate links and paid advertisements. Terms

built b16a into a 90 DA... here the problem after i put on adjustable cam gears i can not get the timing right and its pissing me offf!! alight there hayme 20+ degree adjustable... i tried everything.. i make sure the #1 cyl. is at DTC by aligning the white mark on the crank shaft pully to the mark the the timing cover and then i took off the cam gears and put the stock ones on the make sure its all alinged right and put the adjust. ones back on set to zero and i can tell it way off for some reason.. i tried advancing the dizzy and gears but its still not right no matter how i do it i can here a valve tic i believe bcus somethings not right... i havent used a timing light yet.. i belive i doing something wrong i just cant figure it out any ideas?
 
now its running ok but there still a loud tick comming from the cams or valves... could does it hurt the motor to run in out of time? like cam ware of valve ware?
 
do you have aftermarket camshafts, like stage 2 or 3??? if you do, do you have the valve train to handle the high lifts on the camshafts??? Cause with stage 2 or 3 camshafts running on stock valvetrain will cause valve float and the valves will be hitting the pistons thus reducing the life of you engine and that may be were the sound is coming from.

Or... Are you idling high even when the car has warmed up?????If your hearing
valve tick your Ignition Timing timing might be off or even having it set to manufacturer specifications on a modify motor can cause problems, you will need to change the igition timing to meet the specs of your mods. Get a timing gun and check the timing by first losenng the dizzy and then attaching the gun to the #1 spark plug wire and the battery then point the gun at the crank pully and pull and hold the triggler, you will notice a pointer in the shape of a triangle on the block, colored marks on the crank pulley. Each mark designates a certain spark advance. The upper single white mark is 0BTC. You will also notice a cluster of three marks that are very close together. The center mark is 16 degrees BTC while the mark closest to the front of the car is 18 deg BTC and the other is 14 degrees BTC. Well now just tap on the dizzy ( you will notice the timing marks on the crank pully are moving, try to keep one of the marks lined up to the pointer on the block) now just time it to you fell the car is running good and idling at about 900-1000 rpm's. If this was the problem the ticking noise should be gone or not as loud as it was, its okay for a built motor to make noise, as long as its not something out of the ordinary. YOU SHOULD ALSO GET THE CAR TUNED EVEN IF ITS DRIVING GOOD AND IDLING GOOD TO YOU, THERE STILL MAY BE SOME TWEEKS THAT COULD DAMAGE YOUR ENGINE OR PARTS AND THUS REDUCING THE LIFE OF EVEN A FULLY BUILT ENGINE.
 
i totally agree with you but i dont want to spend the money on tuning when its about to be turbod bcuz then im gunna have to pay out of the ass for timing and yes i have skunk2 stage 3 but i also have dual sring and titiaum retainers on stock valves but the more i tweek with the timing i can here the tic changes from very loud to not as loud so i fgurewd when its timed right it will go away or close to and its idles about 7-800 to 1000 when warmed up about 1800 when cold it also seems like theres more TQ when its not warmed up bout when its warm and i have vtec there is no power until vtec... but im guessing i need a timing light but that will only solve ingnition timing im worried about cam timing being off... and i was correct with the white line being TDC... this is gunna sound retarded and i know it has to be right but i need it TDC on intake stroke right? cuz when its at TDC and then i turn the motor with a wreck to check for clearce i can here my intake which means the beginging of intake stroke and im pretty sure it cant be 180 off? but other then that any more tips?
 
you're going to need to scrap those skunk2 cams when you turbo it anyway. all that pressure will just blow right out the exhaust during the massive overlap. you'll probably make less power than you were N/A with those cams and a turbo. good luck anyhow, but unfortunately if your cam timing is off, and valves are in fact contacting pistons (which is likely the case with stage three cams and suspect cam timing) then your motor is not going to last long at all. all that pounding will work-harden the parts assuming the valves don't break first (which you will wish they had) the pistons will be the next in line to go. and when they go, your motor wont even be rebuildable.
 
valve lash is just the clearance between the cam follower and the cam lobe. if that is excessive, it will cause a tic noise. usually louder before engine gets up to temperature. the reason i didn't suggest that valve lash should be checked is because he said when he changes the cam timing the ticking goes from very loud to not as loud. Valve lash tic would tic the same all the time, no matter when the valve stared opening.
 
Back
Top