which way do i turn my dizzy to get better FE?

[meangreen]

i got a civic ex.

which way do i turn the distributer to get a little better gas mileage? I got a timing light so yes... which way and how much? what are the risks of turning it too many degrees off?

[GasSavers_RoadWarrior]

It's probably set on the conservative side, so you can probably advance it another 2 degrees or so for improvements in power and economy.

Too much base timing will have it pinging under load (Climbing hills accelerating with 4 people in) .. wayyyy too much base timing will have it pinging in normal driving...

It's also advisable to stick to one gas brand/station if at all possible because if you tune the ignition timing in on one gas, then you get a crappy tank of something else, it could run even worse than it would have before, straining valves, rings, wrist pins, bearings etc if it's pinging a lot. Good idea to keep a bottle of 91-99% isopropyl alcohol in the trunk as "emergency gas fixer". Also different gas blends seem to have slightly different burning characteristics anyway, and tuning on one may make it suck on others that are perfectly okay.

While trying to set the timing, remember that timing marks are hard to see and hitting them with white paint or correction fluid beforehand helps a lot. Also remember that you need to dump the car into open loop mode, or the ECU will be playing with the timing while you're trying to set it. Typically this is done by disconnecting the coolant temperature sensor.

[meangreen]

so would that be counter clockwise or clockwise (facing the dizzy side not the engine side) ??

It is not in the factory set position as the engine has been worked on many times since 1996.

[GasSavers_RoadWarrior]

Sorry, not totally sure which way your motor spins, look at the plug wiring, if it goes 1-3-4-2 clockwise, it spins clockwise and advancing the timing means moving it anticlockwise.

[meangreen]

ok so to advance it you basicly turn it the opp. direction its spinning to make it fire sooner for better FE?

[GasSavers_RoadWarrior]

yup, but don't try for too much at once, try a degree or two, then if it's not pinging under high load, try another.

[kamesama980]

in my experience 1-2 degrees isn't noticeable. you might notice 5 degrees. my cressida is advanced 8-10 degrees (tho it's got a knock sensor and moderately aggressive advance curve built into the ECU) my trucks advanced 12-15 degrees (hard to tell... it's 1/2" past the plate with the timing marks) with no knock sensor, a retard of an ECU, and 8.5:1 compression. That being said, this is on a mid-high performance toyota engine and a POS chevy 4-banger engine NOT a honda gas-sipping engine

as far as which way to turn it.... put the engine into diagnostics mode or whtaever you guys do on your hondas and turn the distributor one direction. if the rpms go down, you just retarded the timing. if the rpms go up, that's advancing it.

[meangreen]

Originally Posted by kamesama980

in my experience 1-2 degrees isn't noticeable. you might notice 5 degrees. my cressida is advanced 8-10 degrees (tho it's got a knock sensor and moderately aggressive advance curve built into the ECU) my trucks advanced 12-15 degrees (hard to tell... it's 1/2" past the plate with the timing marks) with no knock sensor, a retard of an ECU, and 8.5:1 compression. That being said, this is on a mid-high performance toyota engine and a POS chevy 4-banger engine NOT a honda gas-sipping engine

as far as which way to turn it.... put the engine into diagnostics mode or whtaever you guys do on your hondas and turn the distributor one direction. if the rpms go down, you just retarded the timing. if the rpms go up, that's advancing it.

so for better FE i need to retard it not advance or visa versa?

[mikehallbackhoe]

Originally Posted by meangreen

so for better FE i need to retard it not advance or visa versa?

it depends, generally you would advance it for better mileage unless it is pinging, then retarding it would be the way to go. be careful , you don't have to turn it very much to change the timing a lot. start with small changes of 2 or 3 degrees and see if it pings. if it pings, retard it a couple of degrees

[kamesama980]

typically, advancing to just before it starts pinging yields the best power and economy.