i bought my 91 jetta in great condition very minor mods, including an adjustable timing gear, the previous owner wasnt too bright. god only knows what he might have tried to do himself or had someone else do, but my car seems to bog below 3500rpm, and very strong after 4500… once i hit 5th gear i might as well just leave off cuz the car bogs and slows down… is it possible the timinging was played with, ive replaced thus far, new cat pipe and muffler, new msd coil accel 8mm wires, bosch plugs, cap, rotor, and new k&n intake cone…anyone have any ideas on how i should adjust, or even if i should please lemme know!..Thanks!!
yeah… have you played with the idler vacuum or the the dizzy at all? i’m assuming you mean a cam timing gear? this might be something that needs to be played wtih in person. where’s vandergrift?
yea i adjusted the idle because it was idling up around 2 grand. vandergrifts about 35mins from pitts, around apollo washinton township area if u kno where either of those are.
Try advancing the cam timing. Go to +3 or +4 and see if she shows any improvements. I suspect it will help but not eliminate the issue, cam timing can move the powe band higher or lower but doesn’t typically make a dramatic diff. Noticeable, but not huge.
And double check the ignition timing. And triple check for vacuum leaks, idling at 2000rpms sounds like there’s a leak. Spray around the intake hose clamps with starting fluid(careful you don’t blow yourself up), fuel injector cups, etc, basically anythin g that could leak air after the air meter. if the engine bogs or idle raises, you’ve got a vacuum leak.
So…check for vacuum leaks.
Triple check ignition timing.
Adjust idle
Mess with cam gear. Advancing the cam timing will bolster low end at the expense of high end and retarding the cam timing will do the opposite. Note that it’s not making more power, just moving around what’s already there.
And let us know…fortunatley, 8v VWs are pretty basic power plants, we can kick it’s ass even over the intraweb.
thanks i appreciate the info, im off to work, ill work on the vw tonight maybe.
and you’re def the m’f’er to talk to about 8v’s… i’ll take on the 20’s
i has a 89 gti that ran like that and it was off a tooth on the timing they used the wrong marks to time it …
well i would be workin on the timing right now but i remembered while at work ive got a 6 page research paper on the history of volkswagen due 2morrow that i have to finish typing, so pendin on time spent on that will i get to try things out. i wont be able to tell any difference right now anyways weather is shitty out ill just spin whenever i romp on it… it would be nice if i could get a few nice days on the days i dont work. :rant:
zero out the timing-- so put the cam gear back to zero before u do this shit.
there is a notch on the inside of the cam gear, it lines up w/ the level spot on the head toward the radiator. on the crank pulley, there is a notch that lines up at teh cover.
once you get that far, then advance timing to 12 degrees via turning distributor.
as for the adjustable cam gear, ligionera1 will tell u what teh trick is w./ it. as on a boosted 8v, it liked the cam set at 0. he fucked w/ the all motor aspect more.
i stick to the 16v’s.
First thing you need to check is cam timing. Sounds like the intermediate shaft or cam timing is off. Do you have a Bently Manual, and have you ever timed a camshaft?
Dot on the crank pulley lines up with the dot on the intermediate shaft.
And how’s the cam mark look while the crank and intermediate shaft are aligned? Cam to crank is the critical set up here. The intermediate shaft being out of alignment is not biggie as you can just turn the distributor to compensate if needed.
sorry guys ive been ill, there is no mark on the cam gear since the gear has been replaced with an aftermarket. :doh:
No i dont have a bentley manual, neither have i ever touched any timing. :eek4: the more details the better… Thanks
Gotta be something on there??? Otherwise you’d be guessing when doing a belt. What aftermarket gear is it? Mark might be on the inside to line up with the front edge of the head…
AutoTech, i think its not a brand ive heard of before.
First you’ve never heard of Autotech???
And from the Autotech site:
“All factory timing marks are on the gear, to ensure simple, accurate installation.”
So if you look on the side of the gear towards the head, there should be a dimple or a line or something on the outer edge. With the adjustable gear set to zero, this mark should be in line with the top of the front corner of the cylinder head when the other timing marks are set.
pull #1 spaark plug, insert long screw driver. screwdriver should be all the way up when #1 is at top dead center. when screw driver is all the way up,-- ur at tdc.
then make sure that teh crank is aligned to zero-- either look on timing cover, or look on flywgheel from the hole in tranny bell housing.
last, take distirbutor cap off, align the rotor until it matches the tiny notch on the distributor housing. once all that shit is “zero’d” out, ur car will run for sure unless ui dont have an ignition timing problem.
i lined up the notch in the bell housing, and the notch on my cam gear is almost exactly lined up with the front side of the oil fill hole. according to the cam gear, it is retarded. what do u guys recommend i should do?