August 10, 2015
What is Ignition Timing and Cam Timing
What is Ignition Timing and Cam Timing? Ignition timing is tough to understand,
but easy to adjust and set. Just for your edification, I'll go into the what's
what on timing on this page, but if you have zero interest in all of the
complexities of ignition timing, why it's important to how well your engine is
running, and why it can be disastrous if it's off, you should skip all of the
tech talk and simply get out your manual to make the adjustments. What is
Ignition Timing? Your engine is a complex symphony of rapidly moving parts --
pistons, rods, valves, pulleys, camshafts, a crankshaft -- all of these heavy,
strong pieces are moving with great velocity inside your engine. Your piston
moves up and down x431
v, the valves move in and out, the connecting rods push and pull, and the
crankshaft spins wildly at the center of it all. This symphony plays itself out
thousands of times every minute as you drive down the street. There are two
kinds of timing that take a seat at every engine event. The first is called cam
timing, the second is ignition timing. Cam timing has more to do with all of the
heavy stuff moving fast inside your engine. Remember the valves and pistons?
Both of these are moving, and the piston is moving with the explosive oomph
provided by the other cylinders in your engine. Your engine has a timing belt or
chain that does a lot more than take energy from the spinning crankshaft and
uses it to spin the camshaft or camshafts. It's job is to make sure the valves
are out of the way when that piston comes flying toward the engine's head. In
some engines, the piston can actually impact a valve at the top of its movement.
In these engines, called"interference"type engines, even a slight slip in cam
timing can be catastrophic and result in a complete engine overhaul -- thousand
of dollars. This is one reason it's so important to inspect your timing belt for
wear or damage. Luckily unless you've been doing some serious work on your car,
the cam timing is probably right on the money. If it wasn't, you'd know it
because your car would be running horribly, if at all. Your ignition timing, on
the other hand, can be thrown off by any number of little things. The good news
is it's just as easy to adjust and reset. A little history: The engine in your
car or truck has 4 cycles. Each one of these cycles is repeated in each
cylinder. First it sucks in air and fuel. Most new cars use direct injection so
the air gets sucked in through the intake valve while the fuel is blasted in by
a precise injector LAUNCH
X431 V. The second part, or stroke, in each cylinder is called
the"compression stroke."Now the air fuel mixture is literally compressed
tightly. This creates heat and volatility in the mixture. The third stroke is
the ignition or combustion stroke (now we're getting somewhere). At this point
the spark plug fires and ignites the air-fuel mixture, causing the piston to be
pushed back down to the bottom of the stroke. The final stroke is the exhaust
stroke. At this time the exhaust valve opens up and lets the old, burnt mixture
out so we can suck new stuff in and do it all again! The key to this whole
operation is making sure the timing of that spark is on cue. A fraction off and
you get an engine that is working against itself, which will cause a loss in
power and choppy idle. A little more off and you can get some serious fireworks
when you don't want them! No spark? Try testing your coil!
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Posted by: autlmycar at
07:36 AM
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