Advancing Timing: Questions

I have been reading alot about advancing timing. First off what does that mean and is it really effective. If it is effective how do you advance the timing. Want to make my car faster so i would i like to do the timing because if it's FREE and i'm hoping ill get something oiut of it.

By having the spark plug fire a couple of degrees sooner, you give the mixture more time to burn, thus burning more completely, thus releasing more energy, thus creating more power. One of the limiting factors in how much advance you can use is knock. This is one of the places octane comes into play. Lower octane fuels burn more quickly and limit the amount of advance you can dial in. But our motors are designed to run regular 87 octane, and since 17 degrees is within spec for the motor, you shouldn't need to go to higher octane, unless you've done something else to the motor like running higher compression.
from sr20de list.

i have mine like 15 or 17 or something i cant really remember (hehe) but anyways when i first did it, i DID feel a diffrence in the low end power. it had alittle more get-up-and-go.

I read the sr20de.net webpage and have a few questions. Firstly, what do you attach the timing light to?
2) When they refer to the distributor cap, do they mean the black thing that all the HT Leads plug into?
3) Where are the timing marks they talk about?

Help appreciated.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by AWD Primera
[B]Firstly, what do you attach the timing light to?

The positive and the Negative of the battery and the no. 1 plug lead.

2) When they refer to the distributor cap, do they mean the black thing that all the HT Leads plug into?

Yes

3) Where are the timing marks they talk about?

They are on one of the pulley wheels (the ones with all the belts attached to them) down on the left side of the engine. I think, if you're looking from straight above, that they are on the middle wheel. On mine i remember they were like nicks in the side of the wheel.

Hope this helps.

So how DO you really advance timing? What do you need to adjust?

It is done by slackening the distributer clamping bolt and rotating the distributor housing. There are other things as well like disconnecting the TPS etc so find yourself a good procedure.

the actual distributor cap moves back and forth when you LOOSEN the nuts holding it to the block. you should find these nuts by seeing they can slide either way. im not sure which way is to advance or retard but thats what you have to do.

Thanks for that info. Now does anyone know where I can get myself one of these timing lights and how much they are.
I had a look at the black distributor cap. Im still not sure which bolts to undo to advance the timing. I understand that if I rotate it towards the front of the car the timing is advanced. There are two bolts on either side of the black cap. I can loosen these but the cap doesnt rotate at all.
Another question. What to you actually use the timing marks on the belt for?

Not on the cap .... on the aluminium distributor housing base flange where it attaches to the head. Tell you what, go to the library and find the Haynes Nissan Primera service manual (book # 1851). It has everything you need to know in it. If you buy a timing light it may come with instructions on how to use it.

EDIT:

If you're coming to Hamilton for the motor show this weekend I can show you how to do it.

One last question. Anyone from NZ know where to get a timing light and how much they are?

I looked up the instructions on se-r.net, but before I start, can somebody tell me where the TPS harness connector is and what it looks like?

Whats this advance timing i keep hearing about, here and on E-bay? can you guys explain it to me and how you guys do it? I would definitely appreciate it.

read whats on this thread... thatll help :rolleyes:

dont get that "advanced timing kit" on ebay, its straight bullshit. only a dumbass would buy it. search on se-r.net and search for "advanced timing" for the procedure.

Damn x2 posts

Advancing or retarding timing with stock parts won't GIVE you hp. What it does is simply move power from one part of your powerband to another part of your powerband. Take advancement of timing, it shifts some of the power from your top-end to the low-end where it is more usable. Thus you will be faster off the line, but your usual mid-top range power will suffer and vice versa. Very rarely you will actually get hp from adjustable cam sprockets, not to mention it takes a lot of dyno time to make sure. It's a trade off.

Mike K. got 6whp above peak when he messed with the timing on a dyno. After advancing my timing there was a noticable difference not only in the low end but all the way to redline. I believe it gives you a nice little boost in power from idle to redline but that is just my butt dyno so I could be wrong.

Originally posted by gdalton
Mike K. got 6whp above peak when he messed with the timing on a dyno. After advancing my timing there was a noticable difference not only in the low end but all the way to redline. I believe it gives you a nice little boost in power from idle to redline but that is just my butt dyno so I could be wrong.

Ummm, tuning on the dyno is somewhat more scientific than messing with it yourself and selecting 15, 19, 17 or 21 degrees yourself...

Tee hee, glad you realise the limitations of the SOTP method or butt dyno! ;)

Oh yeah, AWD Primera, did you get your timing adjusted? How'd it go? If not, are you coming to Taupo Easter weekend? We can tweak it then...

Originally posted by gdalton
Mike K. got 6whp above peak when he messed with the timing on a dyno. After advancing my timing there was a noticable difference not only in the low end but all the way to redline. I believe it gives you a nice little boost in power from idle to redline but that is just my butt dyno so I could be wrong.
I find it hard to believe that you wouldn't lose power somewhere in your powerband. I can understand gaining hp in certain parts, but I can't believe throughout the powerband with stock parts.

you can gain hp, timing adjustment doesnt require aftermarket parts, your just sparking early so the fuel can burn longer (higher octane) mean more power and im pretty sure its throughout the powerband. i know theres a dyno chart sumwhere here or on sr20de.net or sumplace.

Originally posted by akuma810
you can gain hp, timing adjustment doesnt require aftermarket parts, your just sparking early so the fuel can burn longer (higher octane) mean more power and im pretty sure its throughout the powerband. i know theres a dyno chart sumwhere here or on sr20de.net or sumplace.
It's still hard for me to swallow. I would need to see the chart to convince my hard head. I think you mis-understood me. I'm fully aware that hp can be gained in a certain part of the powerband by adjusting your timing but not without sacrificing power from somewhere else in your powerband. I could fathom gaining hp with aftermarket adjustable cam sprockets because they are independently adjustable unlike the stock counterparts.

Hi guys,

I need some help trying to figure out this ignition timing thing. I have my hands on a timing light. It says to plug it in between the number one lead and number one spark plug. I did this fine. I have been reading the timing instructions on sr20de.net and did what it said about warming up, disconnecting the TPS etc..
Now Ive hit a problem. Got my timing light hooked up and ready to go, but where do I am the thing. I thought it was meant to be aimed at a belt on the drivers side(US Passengers side) of the engine. But when I aim it down there I dont see any timing marks. The timing light flashes continuously but Im no seeing any marks. Can someone help me out. P.S. Its a 92 Primera (P10).

One other thing, can someone explain exactly how to rotate the distributor housing to advance the timing. I.E. What screw do I loosen to turn it and where do I find it?

Help much appreciated...:silly2:

How far can I advance my timing and still use 87 octane?:confused:

Ok AWD Primera, aim the light at the crank pulley I think it is the lowest pulley on the car, you will see a little pointer at the top of the pulley. To adjust the distributor there are two bolts on a flange that holds the dist. in place just loosen the bolts and rotate the whole thing towards the front bumber to advance or towards the firewall to retard I believe this is correct but it has been a while since I have done this my self so the rotation of the dis. might go the other way.
Howard, if you are going to use 87 octane I would suggest not going over 15 deg and if you go up to 92-93 octane then you can safely advance it to 19 deg which is what I run.
I hope all this helps.

Advancing your timing will give you more power all across the entire rev range. This is not a case of "moving" power further up the powerband and there is no loss of power at high RPMs. Just as someone else said, advancing the timing allows the fuel to spark earlier and burn longer which gives you more power. The trade-off is that you have to use higher octane fuel to prevent knocking (detonation). So, even though it might not cost you anything to do this mod, it's not really "FREE" since you'll be paying more for gasoline than you normally would. And don't expect anything drastic. You're only looking at a <5hp gain, at most. I, personally, run my timing at the stock settings. The few hp i'll gain is not worth the extra trouble and expense to me.

Also, aftermarket cams don't always respond well to timing advances. IIRC, the JWT cams are specifically designed to run at the stock 15* timing.

I completely agree with this post!
There is no shifting of the power band. If properly tuned, it'll add 3-5 whp to your current stock.

You must use higher octane! Anything below 92 might detonate the engine.

I recently got mine advanced and I notice significant difference in acceleration.