okaaaay! In that Elsawin FAQ/pdf thing you posted Rubjonny, its says for the EZ engine, 14-18 degrees before TDC, with the vacuum hose ON. So I guess thats cleared that up! I checked for the 8valve GTI and it says 4-8 degrees before TDC, but I couldnt see any mention of a vacuum hose... I guess that means vac hose off!?
I sold a cam to Newkid on here, who told me he'd got much better results when he set the timing to 6 degrees... and I think it was with a golf driver dizzy. Maybe he'll be along to confirm in a bit?!
were you looking in the EV code one? It does say 'Ignition timing - Vacuum hose off' this is probably the main difference between the 2 timings I'd guess. Mike dont suppose you know which method your mate used? the haynes manual is very confusing on this point, in 1 place it says it should be left on, somewhere else it says it should be left off!
yeah i assumed the EV code was the one i was after, its gone in now, so we shall see what they make of it (please dont let them balls it up!!) I gave them a sheet of paper with that diagram of where to put the 6 degrees mark (that you posted in a thread awhile back rubjonny) and telling the ignition timing and vac hose on or off for both the gti and driver, so hopefully they will work it out!
Well, an update for you all, after this long drawn out thread! I've had it done, cambelt and tensioner he said I was on borrowed time, he showed me the tensioner and it was seized, would turn a little way but then jam and he said it was only a matter of time before KAPUT!! The belt was also cracked and old looking, thankgod its now done! The GTI cam, well what can I say, its made the biggest performance boost of anything Ive had done to the car - maybe its a culmination of all of them, and then this being the icing on the top, but im well happy, and for 75 all in!!!! As Ive read somewhere else, there is really no difference up until it hits 3000rpm, and then wow you can feel the pull, before it used to pull nicely, but after about 5k rpm it felt pointless to carry on in that gear because it wasnt pulling any harder, now it just keeps going and going up to the red line with the same pull through the rev range! Now what can I do next!! Oh and for your information, he said he timed it up to 6degrees BTDC and this worked best! Thanks for all your help guys!
coolio, more advance is always good, just as long as you dont get any pinking. If you dont have a GTI exhaust get one
I have a full stainless steel exhaust, although I dont have the GTI exhaust manifold, but Im sure this will suffice for now! Thanks for your help mr. jonny! Can I officially call my 1.6 a GTI now, or am I still stuck with the driver tag?!
Would it be possible to do the same thing to a 1.3 Pierburg engine? What I can conclude from this thread is that the timing shoudln't be changed?
No, and No, in that order. The big block cams (1.6-2.0) don't fit in a 1.3. The timing was changed from 17 degrees to 6 degrees to get the best result. If you want to pep up a 1.3, then I'm told that some of the polo heads and cams are better than others. Polo GT bits might be what you want, but there are people on here who would know far better than me.
aye polo GT cam will fit, BUT you need to make sure it has the fuel pump drive lobe on it. Since the Polo GT over here are MPI they have an electronic fuel pump. I cant recal if our Polo had the lobe on it. A Euro spec MK2 Polo GT would do you (we didnt get them over here, since RHD models had no brake servo) A GT head would also be a nice upgrade, I've heard the 1.4 Golf MK3 ABD lump has the same head as a GT, but I'm not sure. If you can get the entire engine block you're laughing, a nice bolt in upgrade for a few more horses.
got a feeling that the 1.4 head has an oil way in a slightly different place but i haven't had them side by side to know for sure, if you could get it to fit though it'll be a good option.
if 6 is closer to tdc than 18, and the flywheel rotates anticlockwise, than 18 arrives to the point of spark earlier, and that's why it's a more advanced ignition.
I'm thinking that erantomer is correct. 18 degrees BTDC is more advance than 6 degrees BTDC. 6 degrees BTDC is still advance though, just less. I'm also wondering if the difference between the timing of driver versus gti is mainly to do with the vacuum advance being connected when doing the former, and disconnected when doing the latter (+ other conditions to do with CTS and revs)??????
its to do with compression, you basically want as much as possible, without pinking, so the later the spark is and burns the fuel before the piston reaches TDC the better. ideally you would want the fuel burnt giving the biggest bang possible as the piston reaches TDC
I am drunk ATM, so ill read this properly tomoz when i have a head ache! and apologise if im talking ****! where is toyotec when you need him gooooood night!
