Slykin Posted October 19, 2012 Report Share Posted October 19, 2012 Hey guys.. i've been noticing lately that if I put the engine under good load, especially at high RPM's that i'm getting what I think is detonation. It sounds like BB's clattering around in my engine.. Originally I thought it was something akin to clutch chatter, but i'm not convinced of that anymore. If it is detonation, what should I be looking for? I know a lot of guys talk about timing being an issue, but I think mine's at stock and I don't have a timing light(nor the knowledge to use one lol). My car does run a bit on the warm side, so i'm sure that's not helping either... Could it be the spark plugs are improperly gapped? I know I gapped them a while back(new plugs) and i'm not sure whether I gapped them right. Any info would be appreciate guys, I know detonation = bad. Oh, and also, I think my HB could be going out if that means anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sn95prcar Posted October 20, 2012 Report Share Posted October 20, 2012 Take it to local shop to check timing to be sure it's at 10*, they will probably do it for free. Try higher grade fuel, You need to take care of that balancer issue quick if it's going out, it could lead to very bad things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slykin Posted October 20, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 20, 2012 I'll buy myself a timing light and learn to use it before it comes to having a shop help me lol. I just don't have one on me currently. I just have my doubts it's a timing issue unless the balancer ring is "spinning" around the center. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slykin Posted October 21, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2012 UPDATE: I fixed the issue. The spark plug gap I set a few months ago was at .044, and when I re-gapped them I noticed they had closed down to .039. Stock gap is at .054, so needless to say the gap was WAY off. After re-gapping it today the detonation has gone away... I did notice my spark plugs looking a bit weird for having less than 5k miles on them though. Here's a picture. If anyone can tell me what the little white specks are, that'd be awesome. I know it's hard to see, but the ends of all the spark plugs had white specks spattered all over them. I don't know if the detonation was causing stuff to accumulate on them or what. There was especially a lot on the "strap". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luis@OrtizPerformance Posted October 21, 2012 Report Share Posted October 21, 2012 Looks like you got her fixed up. Usually when people here the "pinging" or detonation under load 75% of the time the EGR is not functioning properly. Under load, the cylinder temps start getting really hot so the EGR opens up and cools it down with exhaust gases. Looks like its not the case here but for next time it happens you should look into it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slykin Posted October 21, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2012 Well, considering my EGR is capped off... yeah, that could be contributing to it lol. It seems good for now though, so I won't worry about it unless it comes back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
01yellercobra Posted October 21, 2012 Report Share Posted October 21, 2012 The flecks you see are a result of the detonation. It's metal from the piston and combustion chamber. I would throw a new set of plugs in there and check after a couple hundred miles. Just because you can't hear detonation doesn't mean it isn't happening. Usually by the time you can hear it, it's pretty bad.Misspelling brought to you by Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slykin Posted October 21, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2012 Dang. That's no good... Though i'm not really surprised. I think the motor's kinda on the way out as it is though. I may just run it till it dies and rebuild it, i've been wanting to anyhow. Thanks for the info. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
revhead347 Posted October 27, 2012 Report Share Posted October 27, 2012 It's a good idea to put an EGR back on there too.Kurt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
