Ignition timing Questions...

GSROWNSU

New Member
As i sat and thought about cars yesterday at work like i do every day...i came upon the question of what changing the timing on honda engines is and how to do it. I hear alot of people talk about advancing the timing or retarding the timing when it comes to tuning our engines. The question i have is that the vtec engines are "no tolerance" meaning if the timing is off it can leave devastating consequences...so how do you adjust the timing when it has to be dead on for our engines to function properly. I guess the other question would be how do you go about doing this and what do you get from advancing the timing or retarding it if needed.
 

TegSox

Super Duper Moderator
It think your confusing ignition timing with keeping the valves "in time" with the pistons, two totally different things. Advancing or retarding timing has nothing to do with the timing belt, pistons and valves or any of that.
Ignition timing can be done by moving the distributor forward and backward, actually loosening the bolts that hold it to the head and turning it by hand. It is done to have the distributor have the spark plugs ignite the air/fuel mixture sooner (advance) or later (retard) than the stock point. Igniting it sooner creates a stronger explosion which pushes the piston back down harder.
Advancing and retarding is measured in rod angle degrees before top dead center (BTDC).
The downside to advancing timing:
-more heat is created inside the cylinders.
-cylinder pressure is raised.
-more strain is put on the crankshaft, rods and cylinder walls.
A little advancing can be beneficial, but pushing it too far isn't worth the added strain on the engine, and the resulting stunted lifespan of engine internals. Advancing too far can cause detonation.
 

GSROWNSU

New Member
yea i was hoping he would read this one...thanks for clearing that up for me man i always wondered about that...i see you even changed my title to the post lol thanks tegsox. So technically i could advance my timing and get a little more power out of my motor if i wanted to.
 

teggyls

STREET SAMURAI
yes you can but not to much my dad did it to his and my mustang it made a huge difference idk what it would do to a honda motor tho i went from like 8 degrees to 14 degrees in my mustang
 


TegSox

Super Duper Moderator
GSROWNSU said:
i see you even changed my title to the post lol thanks tegsox.
Yeah, so people will find the post in a seach on the subject.
Yeah, you can advance it and gain some power, just please do it right. Leave it to a mechanic with a timing light who has experience and can dyno to see results. It might be temping to go out to your car and try to just wing it and eyeball it because it's so easy to do (to move the distributor, I mean), but you can kill your engine if you go just a C hair too far. Not worth the risk. I'm not saying I think your dumb enough to try it, GSROWNSU. I just want everyone who reads this to know the danger of trying it. :)
 

GSROWNSU

New Member
no i'm not gonna adjust it no need to take the risk i just wanted to know how it's done and what are the advantages/disadvantages.
 
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