![]() The wire must be connected to the base of the bulb (the live connection). It is possible to check the ignition timing using a wire and small 12-volt bulb, providing you have timing marks on the crankshaft pulley. In the case of air-cooled engines, the rotor arm inside the distributor spins around in a clockwise direction, so the 1, 4, 3, 2 arrangement also needs to be checked in a clockwise pattern. VW’s air-cooled engines have a firing order of 1, 4, 3, 2 when looking at the engine from the rear of the vehicle (assuming it’s rear-mounted), with number 1 being on the right side nearest the front, number 2 on the same side, and number 3 on the left side nearest the front with number 4 being on the rearmost left side.Ĭheck the arrangement of the HT leads connected to the distributor cap to ensure they are arranged in the firing order. If an engine is not only down on power but also sounds as though it is misfiring or not running as smoothly as it should, the firing order of the HT leads may be wrong. This can often eliminate a simple problem of a loose HT lead and consequently, an engine that isn’t firing on all of its spark plugs. Whilst this could be caused by fuelling issues, if you are confident there are no problems in this area, then there are some preliminary checks to conduct before you start checking the ignition timing and adjusting it.Īssuming your spark plugs are in good working order (see our blog on spark plugs here) it’s worthwhile checking all of the HT (high-tension) leads are connected between them and the distributor, along with the single lead between the coil and the distributor. When an engine’s ignition timing is incorrect, it often results in a lack of power. And their condition and specification help to determine how efficient the distributor can be. The aforementioned parts and several others, including bob weights and advance springs, all contribute towards the performance of the distributor. The charge from the coil is controlled by the points, which open and close, acting as a switch to deliver the power from the coil. The upper shaft also consists of a cam, which opens and closes the points. ![]() At the top of the shaft is a separate upper shaft and the rotor arm sits on top of this. This centre shaft is rotated by the engine using a drive gear on the bottom of it. In brief, when the high-voltage charge from the coil (around 20,000 volts) is delivered to the distributor, it travels down the main centre shaft and looks for an exit route through the rotor arm and the metal contacts on the inside of the distributor cap. The distributor is one of the essential components of an engine for ensuring a substantial spark provides sufficient combustion to force the pistons down the cylinders and rotate the crankshaft.
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