[T3] Engine Craziness (was Dwell Meter...)

[Tony Rongey]

It sure would have saved me a lot of aggravation if one of you guys would have 
just told me my distributor cap was cracked. 


Tony
'70 Fastback AT/FI




________________________________
From: Tony Rongey <trongey at sbcglobal.net>
To: Jim Adney <jadney at vwtype3.org>
Sent: Mon, February 27, 2012 7:17:49 PM
Subject: Re: [T3] Engine Craziness (was Dwell Meter...)


Well, I have a little new information.  Today was the first time I had driven on 
the expressway since replacing the distributor.

Everything was fine until I hit 50mph (previous trips had topped out around 
40).  It started backfiring through the muffler.  By the time I got to 60 is was 
backfiring constantly, and I couldn't go any faster.  I ended up exiting to 
slower streets to get to work, and the car was just fine going that way.
I tried going faster on the way home after the engine was fully warmed up, and 
had exactly the same backfiring.

Tony



________________________________
From: Jim Adney <jadney at vwtype3.org>
To: Tony Rongey <trongey at sbcglobal.net>
Sent: Mon, February 27, 2012 7:38:53 AM
Subject: Re: [T3] Engine Craziness (was Dwell Meter...)

On 26 Feb 2012 at 19:41, Tony Rongey wrote:

> I've been driving it almost daily for about three or four years.  "Got it 
> running again" meant I got it running after swapping in the rebuilt distributor 
>
> - the old one wouldn't seem to hold a steady advance.  When I stopped at an 
> intersection the engine acted like the ignition completely dropped out at 
>times. 
>
> That's why I sent you the spares to rebuild.  
> 
> I already replaced the overflow hose with one of your kits about a year ago.

So there's no water in your gas tank, and you were having trouble 
with the old distributor, too. In this case, I'm pretty stumped. Your 
symptoms don't bring anything in particular to mind.

There's one thing that I suggest you check: Look at the distributor 
clamp, and make sure that it sits right down flush against the top of 
the engine case when it's installed. The clamps sometimes get bent, 
and hold the distributor up above the case. When this happens, the 
distributor may not always make a good connection with the 
distributor drive gear. It can slip out and come out of time, and 
then slip back in and catch again.

An easy way to check for this would be to grab the rotor and twist it 
without pushing down. You should not be able to turn it more than the 
few degrees that the mechanical advance allows.

I don't see why this should be related to warmup, but I'm at a loss 
for any better ideas at this point.

-- 
*******************************
Jim Adney, jadney at vwtype3.org
Madison, Wisconsin, USA
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