While checking out the condition of my distributor cap and rotor. I noticed I can turn the rotor to the next firing position in the distributor cap. For example if it was on number 8 I could turn it until it was pointing to 4. It moves back and forth easily and seems slightly spring loaded. It clicks into place. Is this normal? If so what is the purpose? As a side note the car turns over but doesn't start. It has spark at the coil and a good strong spark at the spark plugs. The plugs are black like it has been running rich. I also found the last set of plugs that were in it and they were black too. Not a heavy coat of carbon more like they'd been painted flat black. I sprayed some fuel into the intake to try to get it running but it doesn't fire. When I moved the roter the one click it backfired once through the exhaust. The fuel pump relay doesn't enguage unless I jump the ground going to the negative side of the relay winding. The injectors get juice when I turn on the ignition but no ground. When I jumped the ground to the injectors I could hear them clicking. I have gone through all the grounding points in the car and cleaned them up. I've also checked all of the fuses and tested every relay in the car. A lot of stuff I know if you can help me with any part of it let me know. Thanks.

 

I believe the play in your rotor is the centrifical advance springs, as such, what you describe is probably normal.

I'd pull #1 plug, crank engine with wrench & thumb in plug hole.

when you feel compression, check your timing marks, top dead center, see if rotor is pointing @ #1 plug wire. (it needs to)

check all your wires in cap for correct position.

Do you have a manual? - I don't recall the static timing advance @ idle, but you have to get it close, and when you are running the centrifical advance will kick in above idle.

luck, greg

 

Well I got back to the distributor and to make a long story short the distributor has a lot of problems. The clip holding the reluctor to the distributor drive shaft wasn't there. So the rotor was able to move. I noticed by lifting it slightly I could turn it freely. Furthur disassembly revealed that one of the counter weights in the bottom of the distributor was off its post and the spring attatched to it was also loose and had burnt up from the friction of being wedged between the shaft and the other counterweight post. That's just one of many problems this car has. Thanks for your reply

 

POOP

Some of the old school auto parts (NAPA?) stores sell spring kits for distributors, if you know how much advance you need.

luck, greg

 

Well Greg, I'm too the point now where I doubt this car is worth all the expense and time it'll take to fix it up. The basic motor is good but there are just too many ecu's and selenoids and sensors that can and appearantly do go bad. I live on top of a mountain in the middle of nowhere. 4-Wheeling, for me is an everyday experience. During the rainy season (now) I have to cross two rivers (without a bridge) and wade through mud up to 2 feet deep. All of my cars are 4-wheel drive: 2 toyotas and one susuki side kick with a porsche body. They're dependable so I keep them. The landcruiser has too many parts that can affect if you get home or not. I have a friend at an oldtime hotrod shop up in the states. He's agreed to help me adapt a chevy or dodge (pre-computer electronic) and an adaptor to make this thing carburated. We'll use readily available and time proven components. I don't need this Land Cruises and can't see spending a lot of money on it. I'll turn it into something that will serve me and not make some parts place rich. Keep in touch.

 

Howard, its a Land Rover not a Land Cruiser.
You can put a carb on that engine, go to www.discoweb.org and search around, there is a guy who did that to his DI.

 

Good luck to you, howard

greg

 

Spioke, sorry about the land cruiser mistake. I forget which "land" I'm working on sometimes. I'm not giving up just a little discouraged. I could fill up three pages of all the things I've found wrong with it. I think the guy I got it from wanted to take care of it but he knew nothing about cars and neither did the people here who've been working on it. I'm just trying to get to a point where I can start putting it back together. I'd love to prowl around some junkyards and other Land Rover enthusiasts shops scrounging parts but there are zero here so I have to do what is practical. I need to be able to work on it. The 4-wheeling I do here is daily and tough but it involves mud, rivers and mountainsides. Not much of the extreme angle stuff so a carb should suit me fine. I still like the Land Rover I just have to adapt it to life here. I promise to do a good looking, fine running job. The other option is to turn it into a piece of playground equipment. I'll look up that website. Thanks and thank you Greg. I won't give up it's all just school to me. I like getting to know all the vehicles I have and when I get them I go through everything so I don't end up in the mud on some rainy night trying to get it running before a flood washes it away. Interesting life down here. I'll keep you posted on my progress.

 

Oops sorry about the Spioke, Spike. Sometimes the keys on this are too close together for my swoollen fingers

 

No problem Howard.
Hey, can you post some pics of your farm? And of the roads that you have to travel?
I am always interested in some of the places people live/work.