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I have an small mid 80's motorhome based on the Chevy Van 30 body. The engine blew a piston last year while ~1000 miles from home. Long story short, it's been fixed and put back in.
Unfortunately there is NO power at all. I can't even get it up the ~3 foot incline of my drive way. Since I live and camp in some pretty hilly country, this is just a slight problem.
I believe the engine is the small block 350, but don't know for sure. Even more unfortunately, the one competent mechanic (not auto tech,) in the area retired right about the same time so I can't take it to him any more.
Before the engine blew, I was able to get it up to speed pretty quickly. It wasn't exactly fast, but I could at least get to 55 without too much trouble and merge into freeway traffic. Now it's 0-60 speed is in the minutes range.
I'm told that it's most likely the timing, but that is more like a SWAG. Before I take it down to the Chevy Dealer to take a look at, I wanted to get a few more opinions on what the problem could be. The Chevy dealership has ripped me off for repairs before, but they're the only one's locally who'll even consider looking at it. Heck, I'm pretty sure the entire thing is older then most of the guys they have working in the shop.
If it is otherwise starting reasonably and running smoothly ...
then the problem will be relatively simple, not a major mechanical problem.
Start with the simple stuff ... like ignition timing way off, most likely retarded.
All it takes is somebody to have put the front damper on in the wrong orientation so that the distributor was not timed in relationship to the correct TDC location. Wouldn't be the first time somebody made this mistake ....
All it takes is somebody to have put the front damper on in the wrong orientation so that the distributor was not timed in relationship to the correct TDC location.
Which is interesting as there is a woodruff key that sits on the end of the crank which prevents this from happening. If someone didn't put the key back on, then they should not be let near another engine.
It does indeed sound like seriously retarded ignition timing. Probably timed somewhere well after 0 degrees TDC. OP do you have any "dieseling" or "engine run-on" problems when you shut off the ignition?
Sounds like timing; distributor advance not working, ign timing off, cam timing off, or exhaust restriction.
this is my assessment also. i would start with ignition timing, and advance it until you get the highest vacuum reading at idle you can get. if you get detonation(sounds like rocks being rattled around in a tin can) under a load, then back the timing off a couple of degrees at a time until it stops.
Which is interesting as there is a woodruff key that sits on the end of the crank which prevents this from happening. If someone didn't put the key back on, then they should not be let near another engine.
It does indeed sound like seriously retarded ignition timing. Probably timed somewhere well after 0 degrees TDC. OP do you have any "dieseling" or "engine run-on" problems when you shut off the ignition?
Wouldn't be the first time that somebody didn't pay attention to that little key detail and simply slid the harmonic balancer onto the crank and pulled it into place with the center bolt.
I've seen the "techs" at an engine exchange shop next to mine use a rattle wrench to expedite assembling the engines ... "torque wrench"? what's a torque wrench? I've seen them strip more than one crankshaft by this timesaver use of an impact ....
If the rebuild reused the same basic components, I would suspect timing. If distributor timing is correct and the advance is working properly, I would suspect cam to crank timing, or valve adjustment. If cam has been replaced, it could be of the wrong profile for your application as well.
Does the engine sound flat? Does it sound normal but laboring? Do you hear a gurgle from the intake under accel? Is it shifting properly? Does the vehicle cost normally? Does it sound normal at idle and idle smoothly?
All these questions could help
Does the engine sound flat? Does it sound normal but laboring? Do you hear a gurgle from the intake under accel? Is it shifting properly? Does the vehicle cost normally? Does it sound normal at idle and idle smoothly?
All these questions could help
The engine sounds normal at regular idle, when I hit the accelerator it feels like the RPM's go up, but it takes a while to start moving. I assume you asked if it coasts' normally, it feels like it does although I can't say for 100%.
The engine sounds normal at regular idle, when I hit the accelerator it feels like the RPM's go up, but it takes a while to start moving. I assume you asked if it coasts' normally, it feels like it does although I can't say for 100%.
Sorry, yes coast.
Ok, I'm assuming it's an automatic. Sometimes when engines are removed shift linkages can get out of adjustment. Are you sure you are starting off in first?
What are the selections on the indicator? Is it RND21 or RN(D)321
Does it seem to have normal power at speed? Does it downshift and accel at hiway speeds like it use to? If you drive it, can you feel and count the shifts?
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