ok guys, im big time frustrated!! i have a 96 metro lsi with a 4cyl 1.3l. when i line up the timing marks, it just backfires thru the intake, hence telling me the timing is off, correct? ive tried about everything, made sure it was at tdc and that the distributor was pointed at the #1 plug and it still dont fire. this is not a photo of my engine, i hope the owner of this pic, who is in this thread, does not mind if i post it. mine looks like this except it is a v shaped mark instead of a u shaped mark. http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/9734/work018dk2.jpg after reading several posts about timing, i assume that its not the correct cam gear. if i line it up as this photo says, it will not run. also, i want to make sure im using the correct mark on the crank as well. the mark im using is not the dowel for the pully, but if you take off the pulley, there is an indentation, thats the mark im using. it is at tdc when that mark is lined up. is this the correct mark? you cant see this mark with the pully on.... there are some marks on the pully as well, but there is several so i dont know which one would be used besides the one im using. i hope i didnt forget anything, this is really frustrating!! im not a pro mechanic, but i didnt think i was bad! lol thanks for any help!!:banghead:

ok never mind!!! i got it going.... anyone else with this problem, ill tell ya what i was doing wrong that my haynes manual says nothing about. the little nub on the cam goes DOWN, there is two slots on the side of the gear, the one opposite the nub is the mark you should use. i lined it up and it fired right up and runs great. hopefully i can save someone else the trouble. thanks and good metroing:smokin: