Older vehicles with distributor-based ignition systems need their timing checked on a regular basis, otherwise you can have a host of problems. Starting becomes difficult, idling will be rough, ...

It's all in the timing, they say. Well, other adjustments also play a big role in how your motor runs, but firing the spark plugs at the correct time certainly helps performance. Most 'wheelers simply ...

The Advance CurveAll engines require an ignition curve based both on the requirements of engine rpm and cylinder filling (volumetric efficiency). This means that at 3,000 rpm with the throttle open ...

Every engine has a means of coordinating the timing between the valve train and the rest of the engine. Some engines use a timing chain and some a timing belt. A timing belt has the relatively ...

We must first understand what each of these two systems does for a car. They both serve the same purpose, which is to coordinate the movement of the crankshaft as well as the camshaft(s) so that the ...

The timing belt or chain sits at the center of an engine’s rhythm, quietly keeping pistons and valves in sync. When it fails, ...

On New Years Eve 2015, my family and I were driving eastbound down the Ohio turnpike in my beloved 2002 Saturn L300. Everything was fine until, just past the Route 250 exit, the IP lit up like a ...

This GM HEI has the typical gummed-up mechanical-advance mechanism. Note the corrosion on the advance-weight pivot pins (arrows) caused by voltage arc-over and lack of lubrication. Brad Urban at The ...

Do you know what a timing belt or a timing chain is and what they do? Could you find them on your vehicle's engine if you had to? If you answered no, don't sweat it. Both are buried behind a lot of ...