People have taken the task of tuning up their own cars since cars first ever got on the road, however very few people actually do it correctly. In this article we will explain how to do a tune-up properly.
First Things First – Check The Basics
Before you start you should spend a few minutes checking over your cars engine compartment. This is a very important step because you could improperly tune your cars engine if you a few things are overlooked.
1.) Make sure that your car’s cooling system is operating as it should be. If your car is overheating there may be a more serious problem on your hands that a simple tune-up cannot fix.
2.) Make sure that your battery is fully charged and that your alternator is operating the way it should be.
3.) Check to make sure that your cars fuel system is clean, check the fuel filter to ensure that it is not dirty, and that there is adequate fuel pressure.
4.) Check to make sure that the linkage on your throttle body, or carburetor are taught and move freely and smoothly.
5.) Make sure that all the wires in your engine compartment are connected properly and are in good shape (no frayed wires, etc which can cause electrical shorts.)
Pre-Check Complete – Now Your Ready To Start
If your car is carburated, don’t touch it, it’s the last thing you want to work on when you are tuning up your car. By working on this part first, if there are problems it will cause you more headaches in the long run as you go and chase down the problems with your engine.
When you begin the tune-up with your car make sure you have a fresh cap, rotor, and spark plugs, as well as spark-plug wires (if the rubber ends of the wires are degraded.)
First Step – Set Your Engine To The Right Position
Make sure to crank your engine to the top dead center (TDC) position, which will be indicated on the balancer. Once it is set to TDC open the distributor cap and make sure that the rotor is sitting in the 1st cylinder position. Once this is achieved the engine is now set in the proper order of firing.
Second Step – Remove Old Parts
Now that the engine is prepped, take out your old cap, rotor and spark plugs; Remember all cars are different and some configurations may require you to consult your repair manual if it’s a little bit more involved than the average car.
Step 3 – Prep Your Parts And Install Them
With all the parts removed make sure to gap your spark plugs to the proper settings as indicated on the emissions control sticker under your hood (if you can’t find this most parts stores can tell you the proper gap.) Install the plugs, and make-sure they are turned until they are snugged, but do not over tighten them as you can strip the threading in the bores which will make future tune-ups difficult. Next install the new rotor on the distributor, which should only go in one way, but if not put it in the position that the previous rotor was pointing. Following this step you will want to install the cap and re-plug in all the wires in the position they were originally in.
Step 4 – Check Your Engines Timing
Next step you will want to get out your timing light, that way you can check your engines timing. Over time your timing may be off from what the manufacturer recommends. If you set your cars points after every tune-up however, your timing should never change. However if your timing is off from what your manufacturer recommends step 5 will show you what you need to do.
Step 5 – Setting Your Engines Timing
If your engines timing is off you will need to set it, you do this by taking the timing light and mark the position on the crank pulley where the correct position should be. Next rotate the distributor until the marking on the distributor lines up with the mark you made on the crank pulley. Then check your engines timing again with the timing light. If the timing is correct but the engine is running too slow, you may need to increase the idle speed.
Step 6 – Adjusting Your Engines Carburetor
This step naturally won’t apply if you have a fuel injected car, but if you have a carburetor what you want to do is adjust your idle mixture screw which is on the side of the carburetor. Prior to doing this however, you will want to warm your cars engine up to normal operating temperature. Once normal engine temperature is achieved, rotate the idle mixture screw clockwise to the point where the engine stumbles and then turn it counter-clockwise one turn. At this point your carburetor should be fully adjusted.
Now that your car is fully tuned up, you can take it out for a drive, make sure to note any possible problems that you may have. If you do experience any problems such as engine stumbling or hesitation, go back and check for some obvious signs (such as loose wires, etc.) But if everything after this point is smooth sailing, you know you’ve successfully tuned up your car!
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