troubleshooting advice

[RandyN]

My motor has 306 Deg .595" Lift Isky, with power from 4500 - 8500 rpm, redlining at 9300 rpm, this motor pulls the rpm like a GSX-R1000, with Crower Rods, Ross slugs, High volume Oil pump, Tilton 10 Lb Flywheel, Centerforce II Plate and a 4 puck disc..... MSD 6AL and a Programmeable Timing Comp. To finsh it off, a 150 HP Fogger shot of Nitrous Oxide, this does bring the dyno to 420 BHP

[sblake01]

What we were discussing is a lot more basic than all of that. You've been working on them for 12 years, I've been working on L series engines for almost 38 years. Doesn't mean much in this case. All he really needs to do is get his distributor drive spindle set properly and everything should be okay from there.

[RandyN]

sblake01 is correct, if you don't realign your dist drive shaft to the proper position you will runn out of adjustment, also the more base fuel you run into your cylinders, the more timing you'll be able to run. What spark plugs are you running in your motor? With the proper plug in there, it'll help you get up to the required race timing of 19 Deg BTDC, which is equivalent to 38 Deg of total timing.

[sblake01]

No race setup is involved here. He's just trying to get the car running right. It's been a week since he posted about this. He likely has it under control already.

[RandyN]

Good morning sblake01.... I've been researching on the restroking of these L motors, and I've found one company in particular that specializes in this feat. They have gotten normally aspired 365 BHP, 305 Lb Ft of torque, through 3 Mikunis, out of these blocks, but they were not at 2.8, 3.0 nor 3.1, they are at 3.350 L. What are your opinions on this? Thanks.....

[sblake01]

Well, that would be the start of another thread. But all I'll say on that is, reaearch is one thing, and first hand knowlege is another. I've never put together a 'race' engine though I've rebuilt many a L series 4 and six cylinder and well as other engines. Those kind of numbers are cool, I guess, but that's not the kind of thing I need in my cars. If I wanted something that pulls like a GSX-R1000, I'd probably buy a GSX-R1000. JMO and I'm done here.

[d240zx2]

It appears from the photos of the book and actual tang position that you're off a tooth clockwise. I'd reposition the shaft.

I had a similar experience with my L24 about 5 months ago.

Regards,

Frank

[xray]

No race setup is involved here. He's just trying to get the car running right. It's been a week since he posted about this. He likely has it under control already.

Thanks guys...No this is not a race setup. Check the link in my sig and you can see that this Z will not be on the track!

Actually, it's not under control yet, as I have had no time to work on the car what with work, kids, etc. Hopefully with a week off upcoming I'll have time to get this settled and the car on the road.

The "X" factor is that this head has a non-stock cam on it and the spec sheet has been lost. It doesn't appear to be very aggressive, so I assume that the timing will be OK when the spindle orientation is corrected. But, it could result in more "learning opportunities" if it doesn't.

I don't leave my threads dangling...if I can get this fixed, I'll post so that current and future members who may encounter this have some additional conclusive evidence to help them out.

...9300 rpm is pretty impressive though...

Steve

[sblake01]

...9300 rpm is pretty impressive though...

Well, the story is impressive anyway.

[xray]

Finally got some time to correct the distributor spindle tang. Turned ACW one tooth and it looks much better. In golf terms that would be a "right edge" putt with the upper screw hole the target and looks more like 10:30 o'clock than 11:25....but whatever.

Fired up with a little coaxing (overcorrected timing from the prior tang orientation) and once the timing was readjusted the engine ran very well. It settled into a mild loping idle from the non-stock cam with a pleasing rumble from MSA's new premium exhaust system. Vacuum advance mechanism works well, now just to synch up the carbs, install the windshield (er..have it installed:finger:) and I'll be driving the Z this week!

The pics below consolidate the situation...#1 is initial orientation, #2 is the book's depiction, #3 is the corrected position. #4 is there to show TDC at #1 cylinder.

Thanks for the help!

Steve

[Zs-ondabrain]

It's posts like this that make me happy.. Glad to hear ya figured it out and she's purring like a lion again.

I love the lopy cam sound. I have a 480/270 cam and when she's warmed up, she sounds like a small block chevy, minus the dual exhaust.

Congrats on the fix.

Dave.

[sblake01]

Glad to hear that you've got it under control. Your pic #3 looks just like the one I posted in post #9. The first L series I ever worked on was a 69 510. 4 cyl but the same premise. I must have moved that spindle 10 times before I was able to get everything in the right relationship. That was about 38 years ago so I've had a lot of practice. Nothing else seems to work right until that is properly set up. The '11:25' thing can be confusing. To me it's just a visusal thing. I know when it looks right and when it doesn't so I never run into that problem anymore.