I have a 95 GT that is completely stock with almost 80,000 miles on the clock. I couple months ago I was passing this car and heard a horrible knocking noise...so I decided to check my timing when I got home. I hook everything up and look to see the timing bouncing around sporadically. The lowest it prolly got was 9 or 10 and highest was around 14 or 16. I use 89 octane from the "better brands" of gas. It's gotten colder here since then but it still has a noticable knock. I havent checked my timing since then but I'm sure it's still jumping around. Do you guys have any ideas or suggestions?

I saw in a MMFF mag a while back an article on ignitions and they said that a bad gear on the distributor may cause the timing to be inconsistant. I've already replaced the cap and rotor and plugs so those should be outta the picture...but any ideas would be appreciated.

Jeff

 

Did you check that your distributor was tight? Another thing to look at is your ignition module. I lost my 95GT early this year

 

You have to pull the spout plug otherwise the computer constantly changes the timing to try and maintain correct A/F and idle speed.

Look for a small grey plug in the wiring harness coming from the distributor and yank it out then check your timing.

Dont forget to put it back in when your done.

 

I pulled the SPOUT and made sure the cap was on good...my dad was a mechanic back in his hayday so those things we checked...

Thanks though...

I was thinking about the module and coil also...Wont be all that cheap just to replace them but since they've got some miles on them i might just do that...that way all my ignition areas will be covered...Any other probable causes that you guys know of so I can get away with a smaller bill?

 

timming chain?

 

Coupla things... the distributor gear could be trashed, easiest thing to check, just pull the distributor and look at it.

or the timing gears may be damaged on the crank or cam... if they use the nylon wrapped gears I think they do, that could cause the random timing. Gots to appreciate how the engineers were so concerned about keeping the valvetrain quiet that they used nice durable nylon for such a high wear area...

My '94 had them, and it a good double roller timing setup fixed any possible issue.

 

Can you see the timing gears on the cam when you pull the distributor? If so i'll be sure to check those out. Will the teeth on them be messed up or what?
Thanks for the help

 

You all might laugh,


Here is my list of ideas,

Bad Timing light...


TFI is toast
Slop in timing chain
Cam gear is wipped out,
Balancer is shot or Keyway in balancer is shot. (youd be surprised at how often its happened)

Brandon

 

Bad timing light....LOL ya that is funny...but a possibility only if it wasnt knocking after it came back from Ford...thanks for your other possibilities I'll check them out...wouldnt some of them trip a code though? (not sure what the TFI is...where's my shop manual? )