NOOB with flames coming out throttle body!...

...After a new camshaft? I thought timing was 180 off.. changes it and it still flames me. :flamemad: 1988 4.0 around 100K on it. It had a collapsed lifter thats why the new cam went in.


thanks

new here but not new to jeeps.

did you align the marks on the timing chain gears?

In the Jeep it doesn't have to be 180 out, it can be any number of drive gear teeth out though.
Put a compression gage on cylinder "1", rotate the motor till you get pressure. Line up the timing marks at the balancer. Start the gear teeth in a little (counter clockwise) before where you want to end up. You want to end up just before the number "1" pole on the distributor cap (most are marked with a "1" in the top). I usually mark the outside of the housing with a crayon. The shaft kind of goes in with a right hand twist, to match the cut of the gears. You also have to turn the oil pump slot so it aligns with the drive on the bottom of the distributor shaft.
The timing/hold down bolt should align with the slots, fixed timing adjustment, at the bottom of the shaft tube.
After the initial adjustment, you may need some additional adjustment. The motor may buck some: But often the initial setup is good enough.

I aligned the marks PERFECTLY, and i got a 15 pin count when I followed the manual. After we tried to start it and got flames I figured it was one-turn off. So I dissassembled it and rotated the crank one full turn clockwise until NO1 cylinder was again at TDC, Then re-assembled it with the marks perfectly aligned again and got the EXACT same results. So maybe that wasn't my problem to begin with? I will double check the ignition timing tonight after work.

One more thought, after I rotated crank one turn and put timing chain on.. I didn't count the pins as I did the first time, So maybe its 180 off NOW and was fine before and that wasn't even the problem from the start.

Degree your cam and you can set up your distributor at the same time. Both the exhaust and the intake have to be at the bottom (lowest point) of the cam lobe, when number "1" piston is at the top of the compression stroke. You can check with just the push rods if you have to.
If the motor is assembled you can watch the "1" rockers and when they are *both* as high on the valve end and as low on the pushrod end as they go (you can usually wiggle them a little with your fingers). you should be near TDC "1". You should be close to the timing mark and the piston should be nearly as high as it goes. You can rotate the crank and see the piston height and even use a curved piece of wire to feel the top of the piston and feel when it's topped out. While not exact it will get you near enough to compare everything.
A piston stop, degree wheel and dial gage will get you nearly exact, but probably not necessary.
Cams have been known to be ground wrong, not common, but not unheard of.
Sorry you said 180 out and I automatically assumed you were an old Chevy guy and where talking about initially distributor timing, my bad.
One reason I always mark the distributor housing, and most everything else before removal, it sure makes checking your reassembly a lot quicker (maybe next time). Quit a few guys have talked about an after market cam throwing the distributor timing off a fair amount.

mysticfirexj said:

I aligned the marks PERFECTLY, and i got a 15 pin count when I followed the manual. After we tried to start it and got flames I figured it was one-turn off. So I dissassembled it and rotated the crank one full turn clockwise until NO1 cylinder was again at TDC, Then re-assembled it with the marks perfectly aligned again and got the EXACT same results. So maybe that wasn't my problem to begin with? I will double check the ignition timing tonight after work.

One more thought, after I rotated crank one turn and put timing chain on.. I didn't count the pins as I did the first time, So maybe its 180 off NOW and was fine before and that wasn't even the problem from the start.

Click to expand...

See if any of this pertains to your problem. It's possible you might have to just turn (only) the camshaft 180 from the point where the two gear marks are. It sounds like you rotated the crank 180, then realigned the two timing marks which really didn't change anything. I know it's a pain pulling everything apart again, but I was fortunate enough to be able to see how everything moves as the engine goes through it rotation. The valves for cyl 1 would have been closing/opening at TDC which would have given me about the same situation as you have now. Luckily, I caught this while my engine was being assembled on the stand. Read on:
http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=925497

Well, its running after putting it together and tearing it apart about 4 times. I'm good at that part now, lol. The problem was with the distributor (one of the few parts my friend helped me with). It was 180 off. Thanks for all the help guys, I feel dumb but I also learned some new things about the XJ.

Thanks!