Overhauled Engine and Won’t Start

Ask Andy › Category: Engine › Overhauled Engine and Won’t Start
0 Vote Up Vote Down
ryan.sipple90 asked 10 months ago

Hello,

I recently overhauled my bone stock engine. The parts I’ve installed include:

1.) Part # 6100PBK – Engle W-100 Camshaft with phosphate lifters

2.)  1600 Dual Port Performance AA 92 Bore Cylinder heads with 40 mm intake and 35.5 mm exhaust valves with dual high rev springs

3.) D8EA NGK Spark Plugs

4.) 92mm pistons with slip on cylinders

5.) Stock rocker arms and stock pushrods

5.) stock crankshaft and piston connecting rods

6.) 34-PICT 3 carb

7.) Pertronix Flamethrower Dist (already owned)

8.) 725 CCA battery and .3 ohm flamethrower coil

The engine turns over properly and I have it times to 8 degrees before TDC for ignition and static timed. It’s getting fuel, spark, and compression. But it doesn’t want to ignite. It just continues to turn over. Any idea of what could be wrong? Or any input would be great.

thank you!
Ryan Sipple

 

 

1 Answers
0 Vote Up Vote Down
Admin Staff answered 10 months ago

Hi Ryan,

I find it best to go back to the basics! Understand that a car needs spark, fuel, and air to run, but these must be introduced at the correct time.

Start with valve timing.

  1. Take the valve covers off, and rotate the motor to TDC (Top Dead Center). Turn the crank pulley a bit back and forth and watch cylinder #1 rockers.  At TDC, the rockers should not move.  If they do, check cylinder #3.  If #1 rockers are moving, #3 shouldn’t be.
  2. Once you determine what TDC you are on, pull the distributor cap and see where the rotor is pointing to in the cap.  If the crank pulley timing mark is at TDC on cylinder #1, see what contact the rotor is pointing at and trace that wire.  It must also be going to cylinder #1 spark plug.  If not, correct your spark plug wire locations.
  3. Make sure the firing order is correct in the cap, and trace each plug wire down to the plugs.
  4. Once this is confirmed, recheck your valve adjustment.  If you are running dual springs you SHOULD NOT be using the stock aluminum push rods.  These can flex and bend under the spring pressure.  With the steel pushrods you should be using, the valve adjustment should be set at .004, NOT .006.  Steel push rods don’t grow when they get hot, like aluminum.
  5. With this done, reinstall your valve covers.
  6. Crank the motor over to make sure the distributor rotor is turning around.  If yes, reinstall the distributor cap.  If no, investigate why.
  7. Now check to ensure you get 12 volts to the + side of the coil with the ignition key on.
  8. Disconnect the coil wire from the center of the distributor.  Safely hold the end of the coil wire about and 1/8” away from a bare piece of metal. Crank the motor over, you should get the spark to jump the gap.  If no spark, you have a failure in the ignition system. If yes, move on.
  9. Reinstall the coil wire.
  10. Pull a spark plug wire from the spark plug and do the same test, holding the wire 1/8” from the ground and crank the motor.  You should have spark.  No spark?  Defective cap or rotor.
  11. Once all of this has checked out, introduce fuel.  Make sure there is fuel in the carb.  Look down the throat of the carb, pump the throttle arm, you should see fuel squirting from the accelerator nozzle.
  12. If no fuel, pull the top of the carb off.  Be careful not to damage the gasket.  The float bowl should be full. If not, defective fuel pump or needle and seat at the carb’s top.

With all of this correct, the car should run.

Keep in mind that you must break in the cam and lifters.  Follow the guidelines on the paper that came with your Engle camshaft.  Failure to do this will damage the cam and lifters.  You don’t get a second chance.

/by