Guys make sure that your distributor is advancing... Makes a huge difference!

[execmalibu]

I have (2) E9s that are Autos and my new 73 3.0CS ran terrible... It had hesitations and the idle was all over the place. So I just spent a couple of hours disassembling then checking, cleaning and lubing all the moving parts in my distributor. I found the advance both mechanical and vacuum were not working.

The springs looked OK so I left the mechanical advance in place.

Soaking the distributor in gasoline then spraying with carb cleaner got all of the old dried oil and other crap cleaned out and a few shots of WD40 got everything moving smoothly... Then I lubed with a special oil for guns (Breakfree) that does not dry out.

The vacuum advance was the dual type (advance/retard) and it was shot so I pulled an old Porsche 911 distributor off the shelf and stole the vacuum advance mechanism. The Porsche mechanism is the same as early E9s with only advance (no retard) and the tube is on the bottom. The Porsche mechanism might have a little more or less advance but it should be pretty close.

The car now runs great! No more hesitation and it chirps the tires in second gear. In truth I was very surprised at how well the car runs and drives with an Auto Trans not that much different then my 4 Speed E9...

Now that I know how well the E9s with an Auto can perform I am going to take a little time to check the distributor in my 1974 3.0CS also an Auto Trans. That car drives very smoothly but it is a complete DOG as far as acceleration. You step on the gas and by sometime tomorrow the car will get to 60 MPH!... It might also need a little distributor attention.

 

[Stevehose]

name of this gun oil por favor?

 

[execmalibu]

Steve The oil is called Breakfree

The Gun oil that I used to lube the distributor is called Breakfree...

 

[tazio03]

What is the best way to know if the distributor
Advance is working properly?

 

[execmalibu]

The old way was to suck on the vacuum tube.. Now I have a vacuum bleeder and a wife!

The old way was disconnect the vacuum tube at the engine and then wipe the tube clean. Then take the distributor cap off and suck on the line ( NO rude comments about your girl friends:mrgreen while watching the plate in the distributor with the points to see if it moves about 1/4 inch then goes back quickly when you stop...

The mechanical advance requires taking the distributor apart and turning the top shaft while holding the gear at the bottom. While doing this the weights will expand and should go back rapidly when you release the tension. If it does not move or goes back slowly cleaning the grime off the weights is required. This is assuming that nothing is broken or falls out when taking the distributor plate out...

 

[Mike Goble]

I put a timing tab on the front of my motor, then put marks on my damper at TDC and 36° BTDC. I can use a regular timing light to set the total advance to 36°, which works very well. Using a dial-back light, you can measure the advance at any point in the curve. You can also measure the amount of vacuum advance per inch of vacuum using the same marks and a Mighty-Vac.