Ok good! I will be getting up at 1:30 AM so I will check to see if its running. I am sure you will post when your done, right?
no such luck...it was raining cats and monkeys last night. An open engine with monsoon rain don't mix.
C'mon Chris! It's a rally car! It's supposed to be able to handle little things like that! Just kidding. I lived in Central America for 3 1/2 years and know what those rains are like. You're lucky if you can find your car, much less work on it.
hahaha you know how it rains here. So frustrating seeing it has not rained until I got the new chain.... like the chain to flush the toilet! HAHAHA
You probably don't need this reminder but don't forget once you get the old chain out resist temptation to jump instantly to installing the new. Get yourself a really good, close inspection and comparison between new and old before you install the new one and lose the opportunity to compare side by side.
Steve , That will be the first thing I will do . I'm really interested in comparing both chains because this will be valuable information for other high mileage engines if this is the problem. That's why I'm covering everything I've done due to the strange error.
I got some rain free time last night. I matched the link pins at the top of the chain but at the bottom the old chain was more than a half a link out. Also I matched up the timing marks but after a few revolutions they start to go out of sync. I reset the marks again but the same issue happens. I presume with the smaller bottom gear and bigger top gear the marks must line up at some point? I just got bored cranking over the engine to see how many turns it takes. Anyway nothing fouled so the timing must be correct. Once the new chain was fitted the chain was about ½” inch less distance to the other side of the chain. Chain guides had no wear so I put them back in. One thing to look for on high mileage engines is the 2 rubber O rings for the oil pump, they go brittle with age and then you will lose oil pressure, Mine were replaced in 2013 and looked good.
in the dark and 10,000 mosquito's! LOL The set up is so romantic with the citronella candles burning and UK dance music playing in the background. I hope tonight to finish the job and start the engine.
Chris, could I ask a favor. Could you measure the outside links on both the new and old chain. My THEORY is that if the links are stretched , the holes in the old chain will be elongated, changing timing as the 'slack' is taken up during engine operation. Just a little...enough to screw things up. But, what do I know?
Chris- Also look at the sprockets the chain rides on. If the chain is worn the sprockets are too. How much I don't know. If the teeth are sharp they are shot.
Yes I'm with you on that idea Goldsmithy. I did check the sprocket for wear but they looked ok, the bottom one is 132,000 miles and the top 23,000 miles . Actually the Bentley manual says the chain and sprockets should be changed together but I didn't see that until after I'd ordered the chain. DUH! but saying that the chain is longer than spec and needs replacing to eliminate that as a possible cause.
There was some excitement last night, enough to brave the rain. I finished putting all the parts back, turned the engine without the plugs to check I had oil pressure. All looked good so I fitted the plugs and started the engine with the lap top hooked up. The ignition timing is still erratic but the fuel trim was down to -7.66% which was an improvement. So I went for the 4000rpm, all was well until dropping down to 3500rpm and staying there for a few seconds, then the fault happened again. Next! I'm going to run without the cat, then pull off the intake and check the crank sensor. When I got the ECU tune I sent ECU, key, alarm etc to Way and he added the tune. This will be the last thing I can do when I leave in another week.
It will be just a process of elimination and time. It's funny because I'm having similar issue at work which basically started the same time so I'm in deep with both issues with no solution in sight. LOL
Thanks. my worse fear is the roll started a potential wiring fault. Finding that would be pretty much impossible without replacing the whole wiring loom....I live in hope.