Dizzy question

[GSpreeman]

I read directions, installed my dizzy. Local Porsche guru came over, said it was off by 180 degrees. I took it to a shop for R and R, they moved it back by 180 degrees. Car went from the garage to a body shop where it spent the last year. Got it home...it won't start. Local guru came over and moved it back by 180 degrees.

Here is what happens, I can start the car and idle it. I give it gas and it backfires through the carbs. Is it possibly the dizzy or should I be looking at the carbs?

Thanks all.

[mew911]

I'd focus on the carbs. Vacuum leak, accelerator pump. Definitely in the idle circuit so check your idle jets and readjust your idle screws. Wouldn't run if distributor was 180 degrees off.

[GSpreeman]

The carbs seem to be fine now. Blew them out. Have fuel dumping into the carbs. Now, I want to check my timing. I have a few books, can read, can't comprehend aparently. Here is how I am making out so far:

Turn pully to TDC (so it matches the line in the case halves). Rotor is pointing to a notch on the dizzy. From here it gets confusing. I hooked up a voltage meter to the coil and a ground. turn the dizzy so there is no juice, turn the dizzy counter clockwise, there is juice. I can't turn it any more counterclockwise because the condensor hits the oil line.

I try to start the car...no luck.

What do I do next? What am I doing wrong?

Thanks all,

Greg

[Benzito]

It could be that the distributor drive inside the case is not lining correctly with the bottom of the distributor itself. Ask me how I learned that the hard way.

If that is the case, the otherwise correct way of lining up the rotor with the notch to get to the correct cylinder may be off by 90 degrees, 180 degrees, or 270 degrees.

Would it make any sense to try removing the distributor and putting it back in so you can keep twisting w/o the condensor hitting anything?

Mike (in Portland)

[mew911]

shouldn't the distributor mark at TDC be somewhere around 4 O'clock? Or does it differ from different distributor models?

[mew911]

I found this from Mark Petry's pages. Cool stuff mark.


timing

[GSpreeman]

Hmmm, I was playing with the points gap and to check things I turned the pully to see when the points were closing...the dizzy doesn't turn. I tried to push it down with no luck. I remember reading somewhere that you can use a wood block and a hammer to tap in the dizzy? Am I remembering that correctly or did my gray matter just make it up?

[Benzito]

Is the distributor going all the way down into the drive hole or whatever you call it? There is a hilt on the shaft that allows it to slide down far enough so that it properly seats on the cam.

Just another idea . . . loosen the fuel pump (you have to get at it from the bottom, I think) and it should slide over to the left. Then try to reseat the distributor in the shaft until it slides all the way in. I wouldn't tap on it - it should just go right in.

[Benzito]

Originally posted by mew911
shouldn't the distributor mark at TDC be somewhere around 4 O'clock? Or does it differ from different distributor models?

I think that is correct, assuming everything works like it is supposed to (and was put back together like it was supposed to).