Magna 1994, 2.6L 4 cyl EFI, Exec

Hi all.

Just changed the cylinder head. On completion the car ran, but with no power when I put the car in gear. The car sounds OK (not perfect) out of gear. I have rechecked all of the timing marks, the crankshaft pulley is at the T mark; the camshaft pulley is at the vertical position; the distributor rotor points to just the right of the wiring harness and the #1 cylinder is at TDC of the compression stroke (no valves operating).

I have consistent and good compression pressure on all 4 cylinders.

I believe that I have traced the problem to air into the fuel rail, but after dismantling and careful re-assembly hasn't changed anything.

Any pointers welcomed & experienced answers would be excellent.

PM Madmagna he should be able to set you straight

With the crank at tdc, the cam should be off to the right as you look at the end of the engine (is a little hard to describe here lol)

Best to look up a manual to get the location, in hindsight you need to mark these when you take them apart.

With the crank at tdc, the cam should be off to the right as you look at the end of the engine (is a little hard to describe here lol)

Best to look up a manual to get the location, in hindsight you need to mark these when you take them apart.

The manual says that the camshaft locating pin is at the top when the timing mark is at TDC, which means the #1 cams are not actuating the valves as the #1 piston is on the compression stroke. But thinking about it, it can't be put back together incorrectly without taking the sprocket off the timing chain, which I didn't do (it can't be taken off easily without removing the timing cover), can it? :confused: It all went back together according to the manual anyway :angry:

Any suggestions appreciated.

"With the crank at tdc, the cam should be off to the right as you look at the end of the engine"

I agree - IIRC the dowel on the cam shouldbe 15 degrees past top dead centre.

Removing/replacing the cylinder head in the 2.6 doesn't affect the cam timing if the cam gear is left resting on the support underneath it. I usually tie some wire around the sprocket and chain to make sure it doesn't jump a tooth when the head is lifted off. Did you ensure the dowel went in correctly when you put the cam bolt back in?
Any air in the fuel rail would be expelled very quickly - not likely to be the problem.
I suggest:
Check ignition timing with a timing light. The method outlined in the manual for the initial ignition timing setup is only approximate, it is not uncommon for the engine to run like a dead dog until you get it spot on.
Run the engine some more - maybe the lifters need pumping up.

You have 2 refrences, the cam dowell and also the mark on the sprocket

If you are lacking power it is most likely a timing issue, I assume you have done a fuel flow and pressure test?

Thanks for the prompts guys.

I have checked the timing with a strobe & it is spot on. I have even experimented a few degrees either side & it does get worse as I move it away from the correct timing. The dowel did go in correctly when the sprocket went on - its difficult for it not to!:)
I haven't got the tools for fuel flow & pressure test. Any idea where to buy them? I think that this might be the problem area as valve timing, as you pointed out cannot go wrong unless I move the belt from the sprocket (I didn't). Appreciate the pointers though.

Anybody got any ideas?

The facts are;

Starts and revs OK, when parked.
No power (hardly moves the car) when in gear.
Valve timing is good.
Distributer timing is good.
Fuel rail & injectors have been checked (didn't replace the o-rings though).
The injector O-rings look OK.
Water & oil are OK.

I'm out of good ideas.

Did ya disconnect the timing cut point when you finished setting the timing?

All wiring plugged back in ? ISC, MAF, etc?

DOUBLE CHECK EVERYTHING!!!!

other thing to check

how old are the spark plugs
is the distributor advancing as the revs increase

to check that... rev the motor with the timing light still attached

Did ya disconnect the timing cut point when you finished setting the timing?

All wiring plugged back in ? ISC, MAF, etc?

DOUBLE CHECK EVERYTHING!!!!

MM, what is the timing cut point? Thats new to me, where, what, why, how?

All wiring has been plugged in, wiggled & triple checked.


other thing to check

how old are the spark plugs
is the distributor advancing as the revs increase

to check that... rev the motor with the timing light still attached

spark plugs are a nice colour after running off load & I can't keep it running in gear long enough to check after driving! The auto advance works well & moves about 30 degrees advance when reved to about 4000 revs.

The car starts well, a bit gutless when reved from between 1000 & 2000 revs, but revs out quick & fine above 2000 revs. I get a "pinking" noise when I put the car in gear that doesn't happen with the engine off-load.

I know that somebody is going to mention something basic & that will be the problem, so please keep the thoughts coming.

Sounds like timing is out or fuel pressure.

I have had a similar problem before where it started fine each time, idle perfect but could not rev it as it sounded like a timing issue. I check everything from changing dizzy, timing marks, replacing throttle body etc etc. In the end i hooked up a fuel gauge to the rail, in result i only got 20psi of fuel pressure in any rev range. Replaced pump all perfect.

Thanks for the pointers guys, I'm now convinced its not timing. It might be fuel pressure, but before I invest in a pressure gauge I thought I'd check the inlet gasket.

There was 6 different inlet gaskets in the gasket set that I got & were subtely different. The one I used is good except (possibly) for the part between #1 & 2 inlets. The head has a cut-out there, but the manifold has just a blank face (this is how the one coming off was also). The original gasket coming off disintergrated, but I never thought to check it anyway. There are 2 types of gasket I could use; one that has gasket paper over the cut-out & one that has the paper cut-away. I think the cut-away section would create a gap to leak from, so I'm guessing the one with the paper between the head cut away & the metal face on the manifold.

Anybody know why there is a cut-away & anybody know which gasket to use?