here's a real puzzler ... could use some help

I'm hoping someone might have an answer for me ..... I'm starting to pull my hair out.(and I don't have much to go)

on my 91 i6 xj .... I replaced the crank pos sensor and then the cam pos sensor. When I reinstalled the distributor I thought a might have missed by a tooth. However, rotating it either sets me too far advanced to start - too retarded to be drivable or ..... out of the range that the computer will compensate and it won't run at all
.... I'm starting to think that maybe there is something else going on.

this is what i got .....

engine is hard to start (like the timing is too far advanced)
has no power ..... barely gets out of its own way
getting really crappy mileage
Engine breaks up at 3500 rpm (again sounds like timing)
I'm now getting a code 15 but my speedometer is working fine.

I thought about a bad Cat or clogged fuel filter for the mileage and power, but that fact that I pulled the distributor leads me to believe that's where my problem lies .... (the whole occum's razor thing)

Any thoughts .... am I missing something stupid?

ps. the distributor went in without a hitch ... engine wasn't turned ... nothing like that..... I'm really lost here .....

Tom

Have you double checked that the distributor, isn't 180* out?

Rob

well, I dropped it back in without ever turning ove the motor .... so figured it has to be at least close within a few degrees .... am I missing something?

I just tried to find a timing mark .... don't see one .... I'm going to pull a plug and check TDC ..... but I have a feeling this is something else entirely and I'm going in circles

tom

so you had the problem before removing the dist or no??

On my 89 MJ I changed the distributor gasket back in the day. I thought that I could get away with marking the dist base, pulling it, changing seal, and putting it back in so that it lined up. Well, i buttoned it up, started it, and it fired up. I think it took a few extra turns, but it seemed to idle fine, so I thought that I did it correctly.

Next day, go to drive to school. Back down my long steep driveway into the road, still thinking jeep was running fine. Put it in drive and try to go...and it just lost power off idle and stalled out. I got back up the driveway by reving it just a hair past idle. Turns out I installed it one tooth off. It makes sense since the dist turns when you take it out (due to the way the gears are cut and how they mesh on the cam). So I found TDC, followed the steps in the manual and got it right.

Does your issue sound similar??

no problems before removing the distributor......

that was my first thought .... I was a tooth off , But, rotating the distributor around in either direction didn't help.

ok ... now i'm thinking the stator is mounted wrong ... is this possible?

sandandsurf said:

no problems before removing the distributor......

that was my first thought .... I was a tooth off , But, rotating the distributor around in either direction didn't help.

Click to expand...

Start from the beginning. It has to be the distributor. You have to put it in with the cap off...so you are sure that the rotor is in the correct position. Find TDC and follow the directions in a chiltons or whatever for getting it lined up properly.

ok .... i found tdc ..... distributor is right on

stator seems wrong though ...... should it be at the leading edge of the pulse ring at tdc? its off by about 3/4 of an inch...

Ehhh...I'd have to look at a chiltons or something, which I don't have with me here at work. This was probably 4-5 years ago that I R&Red the dist. My memory is fuzzy but I seem to recall that the rotor was supposed to point at a certain angle, as in other than 12,3,6 or 9 O'Clock. I really can't remember where it's supposed to point, someone with a chiltons could help!

The ring in the distributor is a real rough approximation and is use only to allow the computer to figure what stroke you are on so it does not fire 180 out. It will even start and run fine without it in most cases. If the computer does not see that signal, it simply picks a stroke and runs the ignition.

The way I check distributor indexing is to put the crank at approximately 15 degrees before top dead center on the compression stroke. Then pull the distributor cap. The rotor should pretty much be pointing right at the #1 plug contact. If not pull the distributor, rotate the rotor a few degrees in the right direction and reinsert the distributor. Now realize that if you rotate the rotor, you will need to take a long flat blade screwdriver and reach down and turn the oil pump so that when you insert the distributor, the shaft can mate with the oil pump.

Also, did you by chance disconnect any plug wires? If you screw up the firing order, you can get much the same symptoms. The firing order is cast into the intake manifold.

Good luck.

sandandsurf said:

- too retarded to be drivable or .....

Click to expand...

had a girlfriend like that once

i got the timing right on .... the rotor is right where it should be ... i think the stator is in the wrong place .... yes, it marks every other crank rotation , but it also triggers the fuel injectors doesn't it?

could someone with a 91 i6 do a quik check for me ..... where should the pulse ring be in the distributor when the engine is at #1 TDC. mY manual says nothing about it, but, I read somewhere that the leading edge of the ring should be just entering the stator field at #1 and the trailing edge just leaving at #6 .... does this look right? Mine is about 15 or 20 degrees off .... I'm starting to think I put the stator on the wrong side of the mounting screw.. ( i don't remember if it indexed .... I didn't think about it).
Otherwise tommorow I pull the distributor again ...... didn't want to waste the time if it is in the right place ..... and its COLD outside.

Thanks
Tom

Problem solved. See post http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=905159

Rob