Club 80-90 Forums

Hi everyone, having real trouble getting my van started after an engine rebuild on a 1988 DG and I'd be really grateful for any thoughts which might help me get back on the road asap! Before the rebuild the van was really jolting and holding back whenever the throttle was fully open and there were various oil leaks and other bits and pieces which led to the job. Now the engine is back in the van I just can't get it started. I've got a spark, the fuel pump works and there is a strong small of fuel. I'm pretty sure everything is in the right place, ie, timing marks, and I've played around with the dizzy position but to no avail. It sounds like it almost wants to go but never does. It feels like a timing issue but I can't think what else to adjust! When i put the rocker arms back on I adjusted the tappets as per the haynes manual but thought i might have got it wrong. I redid it when the engine was back in and reinterpreted the '2 turns of the adjusting screw' and it ended up being worse. Really getting a bit panicked as this is my only transport! ANY help or ideas would be amazing. Thanks in advance.
Nick

When you say rebuild how far did you go?

Did you remove the dizzy drive cog?
if you didnt fairly easy to get the dissy in 180 wrong, also easy to get the leads on wrong, easy to check
Remove plug from no1 cylinder ( rhs front vehicle as you look from rear) get engine to compression on that cylinder by placing your finger over the hole
the timing marks will be close now but move them so the larger U shape one it vertical, then insert the dizzy with the vac unit towards the front and the rotor arm pointing to the right, that position on the cap is no1 lead, the rest going clockwise are 4,3 and 2
you will need a timing gun to get it spot on

check your plugs, if they are wet or smell of petrol then the valves are working ok and drawing fuel in

WHS

Go back tk the start and make sure the dizzy drive is in the correct place.. I have had to adjust several engines becUse of this.. Ll ran rough Nd had been "set up" by garages..
check you have the leads in the right place..
fuel doesnt sound lime an issue.. but.. has the carb been at least cleaned and should have been rebiult..

Thanks so much for the swift replys. I took the whole thing apart for new rings, all bearings, oil seals, even put a new camshaft in as some of the teeth had gone on the old one! Yes the dizzy drive came out and I am aware it can go in the wrong way and have tried it in both ways. The only thing I have found is that when I stick my finger in number one spark plug I can't feel any air. I can hear a gentle puff so am taking that as compression but it did worry me slightly. Will check the plugs are wet after turning the engine. Carb was cleaned a few weeks before the rebuild but has not been rebuilt. It's a webber and I've not done a carb before so any idea if there are any instructions anywhere?! I have been a bit worried it might be the carb but only because I can't fathom anything else!

Thanks again

Also when you say leads, I guess you mean ht leads going to the spark plugs?!

Did you do anything with the lifters on rebuild?
Check compression with a guage will tell you if its valves
if you cant feel the engine give resistance when turning over with sparks in then you may have no compression

After what you just said id start with that then move on to ignition

Hi,

Have you checked you have a spark at all? I'd suspect plug leads on wrong, wrong connections on coil (if they have been off) or forgetting to put the little brown earth wire out the dizzy back onto its connection on the block (happened to me)!

Easy check, whip out a plug, put the plug lead back on, earth the plug and then turn the engine over by hand - you can then see when (or if) you get a spark. No good for fine tuning the timing, but great just to sense check its sparking and that the spark is happening near the top of the compression cycle....

Happy to discuss the weber if it comes to it, the standard advice is 'dispose of it' but I had one with some success for a few years until it broke (have some spares too!)

Cheers,

Alex

Right, today I'm going to start from the top. Recheck all timing marks, tic on cylinder one, dizzy position, tappet screw adjustment, etc... Then I'm going to check the sparks again, then do a compression test and see what happens. Does anyone know the definition for 'one turn of the screw'? To adjust the screws on the rocker arm the Haynes manual says two turns of the adjusting screws. Is this two lots of 360 or two lots of 180?

Thanks so much

Also forgot to say, apart from removing the tappets during rebuild, i have done nothing with them. they do not appear to be hydraulic but solid - not sure if this is possible! Anyway, the manual only said to pay them any attention if the could be depressed and mine couldn't so i just put them back in as they came out.

If you are not sure about the lifters have a read here:

http://www.ratwell.com/technical/HydraulicLifters.html

Its a cracking page, if you follow what it says your valve train will be spot on!

Cheers,

Alex

agnew1985 wrote:Does anyone know the definition for 'one turn of the screw'? To adjust the screws on the rocker arm the Haynes manual says two turns of the adjusting screws. Is this two lots of 360 or two lots of 180?

Two turns means 2 x rotations of a full 360 degrees.

Thats great, thanks ghost123uk. Ended up having my day taken away from me and now have to go away until saturday so probably wont get a chance to get down to work until next week

Managed to do a quick compression test which gave me no reading at all on any of the cylinders. Not sure if my tester is faulty - will check it on another car when I get back. If it is accurate I'm pretty worried!

Thanks so much for the responses so far and I'll let you know how I get on in a few days time.

agnew1985 wrote:
Managed to do a quick compression test which gave me no reading at all on any of the cylinders. Not sure if my tester is faulty - will check it on another car when I get back. If it is accurate I'm pretty worried!

.

No point worrying chances are its something simple

I have heard of one engine remanufacturer using solid lifters on the past, if you have solid lifters and you try to set preload they will never close and no compresion

i doubt your tester is faulty but no harm in proving it

so id pull the rocker shaft and remove push rods, look down the pushrod tubes with a torch and hopefully you will be able to see if there is a circlip on the top or not, look at a few incase the clip is hidden, it should be possable especially with fresh oil, look at the link above to see what you are looking for

another great example of why you should always photograph every stage of your work, you could have looked back at the photos now

itchyfeet wrote: I have heard of one engine re-manufacturer using solid lifters on the past, if you have solid lifters and you try to set preload they will never close and no compression

And

agnew1985 wrote:....apart from removing the tappets during rebuild. They do not appear to be hydraulic but solid

So my money is on Paul being correct

I would set them up as solid ones (@ 6 thou) and try it. No harm can come from having tappets a bit slack and if they are hydraulic, you will soon know because when it does fire up it will sound very "tappity". But I bet it fires up and sounds fine

Amazing! This has given me real hope! Wont get my hopes up too high just in case but this sounds right to me. Should be able to try this on sunday so I'll let you know. The lifters are definately solid and not hydraulic so fingers crossed. Only thing I would like to ask is should i screw the adjusting screws on the rocker arm until they are just touching or leave them quite loose? should I go around each cylinder on its compression stroke?

I can't tell you how grateful I am for all the advice.

Nick