345 V8 diagnosis and engine tech

Don't waste time fit the Diesel!

Yep d23j's right - fit the diesel just like this guy who was an employee of VW and thought all good vehicles had the engine in the back.

Your compression figures are terribly low. You should be looking for about 140 psi or better. Do a cylinder leak down test and it will tell you where all the compression leakage is.

old school tip.
you can also use a tally ho cigarette paper to set the timing, set your points gap and then insert tally ho paper between points, turn engine over by hand and hold a little bit of tension on the the tally ho and just as in comes to the base ignition timing fire mark the tally ho should slide out of between the points without tearing. and the timing will be spot on ( new points only and ignition off)

how is the dizzy drive?
how is the mechanical advance in the dizzy, not seized is good. a couple of drops of oil down the top of the dizzy shaft on to the felt will keep it from seizing, if seized you will need to free it up.
how are the dizzy shaft bushes? if worn they can make for erratic running low power.
has it got the correct ponits capacitor installed?
how is the engine oil ? is it diluted by petrol and over full from over fueling.
has it got a ballast resistor or ballast wire? if the ballast not working you will have spark only when cranking.
have you tried aero start?

just some thoughts of mine
Hope you sort it.
Jason

AT4 353 wrote: old school tip.
you can also use a tally ho cigarette paper to set the timing, set your points gap and then insert tally ho paper between points, turn engine over by hand and hold a little bit of tension on the the tally ho and just as in comes to the base ignition timing fire mark the tally ho should slide out of between the points without tearing. and the timing will be spot on ( new points only and ignition off)

how is the dizzy drive? Erm......dunno :huh:
how is the mechanical advance in the dizzy, not seized is good. a couple of drops of oil down the top of the dizzy shaft on to the felt will keep it from seizing, if seized you will need to free it up. What the hell did you just say? Good god man speak english!!
how are the dizzy shaft bushes? if worn they can make for erratic running low power. Shaft feckin wotzes!!??
has it got the correct ponits capacitor installed? I think so. Looked very similar when i replaced it
how is the engine oil ? is it diluted by petrol and over full from over fueling. Ahh, i understood that one. All good!
has it got a ballast resistor or ballast wire? if the ballast not working you will have spark only when cranking.
have you tried aero start? I think it has a wire. I think.

just some thoughts of mine
Hope you sort it.
Jason

And this friends is why petrol engines are god dammned voodoo :blink: :blink: I reckon i understood about five words of that lot. Well maybe six but i reckon i can see why we went to injection and electronic ignition.

anyone want an engine? I may have a 345 for sale soon with 4 speed box. It sorta ran when i parked it

Check this IHC page out

oldihc.wordpress.com/2012/11/30/cylinder-compression/

Though I think I see part of the problem, computers is it.
My apprentices at work don't get no learnin about how to diagnose things proper like. The bus comes in and the first thing they wants to do is shove a laptop to it innards, will help fix it quicker I'm told. Dumb computer thingy tells em what cylinder has no fire in it but won't tell em why is it so. Have never seen so much swapping of expensive items, coils, spark plug leads and just about entire lecky system just to get 1 cylinder to spark. Only to find the camshaft has got no lobes on it to open the valve and let the air in or out of that cylinder.

Computers are buggering everything up, when was the last time ya saw a new truck with a lever in it to swap the cogs around? The lever has been replaced by a paddle or buttons, maybe drivers should now be called canoeists or boatswains and if its got buttons, a computer programmer, the pay would be better.