1989 245 b230 to D24t build

[anders]

So I’m baffled! I can’t get this engine to run as it should. It’s hard starting, smoky, loud, slow throttle response, and has maybe 40% the power it should. The smoke out of the exhaust is unburnt fuel.

So this engine has roughly 10,000 miles on a fresh 1mm overbore and rebuilt head by cylinder head rebuilders in Portland. Ran great when I pulled it out of the car I had it in. What I did when getting it ready for this project; new timing belt, water pump and idler, checked and adjusted valves, and installed ARP head studs.

Before installing the rebuilt injectors I compression tested it, 400-430 psi on all, so compression is good.

I have rebuilt the injectors, all spray and pop correctly, I have checked the fuel lines and fittings several times for air intrusion and have adjusted the timing from anywhere from .60mm to 1.1mm, no change.

I have ran it without the intake, without the exhaust, with the turbo removed, ect, no change. I’m stumped.

I guess I will try a different injection pump.

[ngoma]

Wondering if when rebuilding the IP you could have reassembled it 180deg out? This came up recently on another thread. The inner end of the main shaft has those two prongs, they are not really keyed, can fit either way into slots in the distributor. There is a specific clocking orientation where you visually align the key slot in the main shaft with a pin in the distributor plate, but it will just as easily install 180 out and rotate freely and not bind.

Suggest before swapping the IP, retime it 180 deg. out.

[anders]

Well the pump was 180 off. So when I rotated the sprocket 180 I noticed another notch.. well it just so happens that the sprocket that I was using had a near perfect chip on the edge what looks to be nearly 180 from the factory notch. So when I assemble these I always mark the ‘0’ mark and the notch on the IP sprocket with a silver paint pen to make it easy to spot. Well I marked the non-factory chip/notch in the sprocket. I’m so surprised I didn’t notice it before! Well I threw that sprocket in my scrap pile as it cost me many many hours :-(

I’m surprised that the engine was able to start that easy 180 off. The engine took about 4 seconds of crank time to start, and it actually idled smooth! I have never had one start this easy 180 off or idle that well.

Timing is now correct and it’s running like it should! :-)
Thanks ngoma!

[v8volvo]

Originally Posted by anders

Well the pump was 180 off. So when I rotated the sprocket 180 I noticed another notch.. well it just so happens that the sprocket that I was using had a near perfect chip on the edge what looks to be nearly 180 from the factory notch. So when I assemble these I always mark the ‘0’ mark and the notch on the IP sprocket with a silver paint pen to make it easy to spot. Well I marked the non-factory chip/notch in the sprocket. I’m so surprised I didn’t notice it before! Well I threw that sprocket in my scrap pile as it cost me many many hours :-(

I’m surprised that the engine was able to start that easy 180 off. The engine took about 4 seconds of crank time to start, and it actually idled smooth! I have never had one start this easy 180 off or idle that well.

Timing is now correct and it’s running like it should! :-)
Thanks ngoma!

Amazing, and a good call from ngoma to check it.

Funny how when you are "sure" it's not one thing, you'll try a million other less likely things first before coming back to what should have been obvious all along. I hate getting bitten by that situation. One time I had one go 180 off like this, but due in that case to a mistake on my part, and I was so sure I couldn't have timed it 180 out that I think I started looking at glow plugs, fuel prime, etc, even though it was an engine that had just been running no problem before I took the belts off it. Sounds like the same kind of outcome here. But in your case even more crazy because that trick sprocket would have made it look exactly right even when it wasn't, what a trip!

At least you know it must have great compression if it started and ran that well with the timing 180 off. So what else is left on the swap now, must be pretty near done?

[anders]

I had to share the sprocket, the correct one is on the right.
I’m pretty sure the one on the left was modified because someone had built a pump with the cam plate 180 off., now I’m unsure if my leaking pump that I pulled is 180 off or not. I’m assuming it is as I usually keep the sprocket with the pump when I remove them from the engine.
If you look closely you can see the factory notch has a chip in it and the 180 notch looks factory, but it’s actually cut deeper now that you compare a factory sprocket with it side by side. Crazy! I don’t know how many needless hours I spent tracking non-issues because of that sprocket!

[ngoma]

Originally Posted by anders

...now I’m unsure if my leaking pump that I pulled is 180 off or not. I’m assuming it is as I usually keep the sprocket with the pump when I remove them from the engine.

I wonder if you can visually verify the pin/key slot mismatch when you have the cover off for the reseal? Might be too buried.

[v8volvo]

Originally Posted by anders

I had to share the sprocket, the correct one is on the right.
I’m pretty sure the one on the left was modified because someone had built a pump with the cam plate 180 off., now I’m unsure if my leaking pump that I pulled is 180 off or not. I’m assuming it is as I usually keep the sprocket with the pump when I remove them from the engine.
If you look closely you can see the factory notch has a chip in it and the 180 notch looks factory, but it’s actually cut deeper now that you compare a factory sprocket with it side by side. Crazy! I don’t know how many needless hours I spent tracking non-issues because of that sprocket!

Crazy. That is a nasty trick, and everybody would have fallen for it -- why would you ever have expected there to be a second notch, after the first pump timed up just fine using that non-factory notch??

Never going to get back the time that part stole from you, I'd be pretty mad at the thing.

However, if it makes it any better, thinking about it now, I bet whoever put that notch in that sprocket suffered for a long time too before they figured out they built the pump itself 180 off. There's a long chain of misery attached to that sprocket now, everyone will be better off when it is melted down for scrap.

[anders]

Originally Posted by v8volvo

However, if it makes it any better, thinking about it now, I bet whoever put that notch in that sprocket suffered for a long time too before they figured out they built the pump itself 180 off. There's a long chain of misery attached to that sprocket now, everyone will be better off when it is melted down for scrap.

Ha, I never even thought about how much time someone else spent and then finally just notching the sprocket 180*

Car is 99% done now though!