66 BJ8 - can't handle steep hills

[thecarnut]

My 1966 BJ8 does not have the power to handle steep hills. It is so bad I had to bring the car up my driveway on reverse! As you may know reverse has a higher ratio than even first gear.

Something is just not right. This is what I've done so far:

1. Compression test: all cylinders between 165 and 170 psi
2. New SU electric fuel pump
3. Carbs were recently rebuilt (by previous owner). I have not checked float adjustment but I have synch'ed the carbs and used a color tune to set mixture. Seems to idle fine and does not have too much problem starting cold. Starts right up when hot.
4. Timing is set at about 8 degrees at idle (800 rpm)
5. Dwell is at about 37 degrees
6. Ignition advance curve seems to be correct

I have not checked valve clearances and probably need to make sure there are no vacuum leaks (for example a faulty brake booster).

I get the feeling the car is in second gear when I try to go up a steep hill on first gear. I am not familiar with the overdrive unit .. can this be causing problems? I've read it only affects the top two gears ... but it does not hurt to ask. My instint tells me I have an ignition or engine timing problem ..... but I am not really experienced on Healeys.

 

[Healey 100]

The BJ8 should be pretty lively in first gear, so the behavior you describe is not normal. Indeed, the first gear acts kind of like a stump puller.

You say the carbs are rebuilt, but is there oil in the dampers? Lack of oil there causes them to open too quickly and ruins the throttle response. But they work ok at constant throttle settings.

Could be that the timing is retarded. My Healey acted like this when the centrifugal advance in the distributor froze. You say the ignition advance curve is OK, I guess that means you can see the timing advance significantly when you blip the throttle. If not, I would check to see if the rotor can move easily fore and aft with the distributor stopped. It should be able to. Timing marks could be off too, I have heard of that.

I doubt if it's the overdrive unit. If it were stuck on OD, you couldn't back up the car!

Finally, if you take off the valve cover, check the valve lift against specs in the manual. Seems to me the BJ8 and some other Healeys did have problems with excessive camshaft wear. That could produce a sluggish engine. But personally, I'll bet it's something simpler than that, check the easier stuff first...

Good luck!
Bill

 

[thecarnut]

Thank you Bill. I will check that the timing mark is indeed TDC by measuring the piston travel ... not sure how it could not be TDC unless the factory stamped it incorrectly.

I agree it is most likely something simple. BTW: I also checked that the spark plug wires are in the correct firing order

Tomorrow it is off with the cam cover to check clearances.

Ivan

 

[John Loftus]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by thecarnut:
4. Timing is set at about 8 degrees at idle (800 rpm) <hr></blockquote>

It should be set to 15 degress BTDC at 600 rpm and at full advance it should be 35 degrees BTDC.

Cheers,
John

[ 03-01-2004: Message edited by: John Loftus ]</p>

 

[Dave Russell]

Ha - That's a good one.

It will go uphill in reverse but not forward.

Just maybe it's running out of fuel. The fuel pickup is located in the very front of the tank. If the tank is not full enough the pickup will be sucking air when you go up hill. When you back up all the fuel is in the front where the pickup is.
D

 

[Johnny]

When you said "can't handle steep hills," is the motor accelerating? Might be worth a check of the accelerator linkage. I always check the simple things first. While idling, with engine warmed up, momentarily step on the gas peddle. Should accelerate all the way to the limit of travel. You might have to have someone do this for you while you observe the linkage. If still suspect, disconnect the linkage at the carbs and operate by hand. In any case your trying to verify the linkage allows you to operate the carbs levers to their limit. Good Luck.

One other thought; shouldn't the dwell be more of about 51 degrees?

[ 03-02-2004: Message edited by: Johnny ]</p>

 

[thecarnut]

Thanks for the tips.

A few quick answers:

Yes, the tank has plenty of gasoline.

Yes, the linkages are opening and the engine accelerates. I just does not have power under load (like when timming is off or using the wrong gear)

According to the shop manual the dwell needs to be 35 +/- 3 degrees. 51 degress seems high for me ... any others have comments on this topic?

I have a question a advance: The manual states that maximum advance is 35 degrees. If static is 10 BTDC .... is the advance setting at 6000 rpm suppose to be 45 degrees BTDC?

 

[John Loftus]

The dwell should be 35 +/- 3 degrees. If you set the static timing at 10 degrees that should come out to 15 degrees when checked with a timing light. The max is supposed to come out at 35 degrees irregardless of static or strobe timing at idle. The 600 rpm figure when using a timing light is to make sure the machanical advance does not influence your timing so it is important to lower the idle rpm. I also disconnect and plug the vacuum line but it doesn't seem to make any difference at such low idle. I assume you are using an advance timing light, otherwise you need to mark the pully for the 15 degrees - 51/64" (.796875 or 20.241 mm)

Cheers,
John

 

[Johnny]

[QB]One other thought; shouldn't the dwell be more of about 51 degrees?

/QB][/QUOTE]
My mistake, wrong car. John Loftus, of course is correct.

 

[thecarnut]

Quick update:

I reset timing to 15 degrees at 600 rpm. Also replaced the spark plug wires. Car now pulls very strong and revs all the way up the power curve ... and easily handles my steep driveway. No more need tackle the driveway in reverse!

Thanks for all the advice!