Very interesting!

Two very different points of view on tuning from two very knowlegeble
2.1L WBX mechanics.

Yuz pays yuz nickel and takes yuz chances.

John Rodgers
Clayartist and Moldmaker
88'GL VW Bus Driver
Chelsea, AL
Http://www.moldhaus.com

B Feddish wrote:
> Way back when I was having my "running like crap" saga with my old engine I
> had taken it to one shop that found some ground issues but they also set my
> timing , etc. to factory specs. The van was unbearably sluggish when I got
> it back. Finally, after lots of items with my last mechanic he finally
> pulled the vacuum line to the front of the distributer, stuck and screw in
> the hose to block it then set the timing 10 degrees advanced. The van ran
> like it had Zetec in it.  (OK, an exaggeration.) It ran fantastic, plenty of
> power and gas mileage was ridiculously high, 18-19 city and 23 highway in an
> '83 Westy.
>
>
>
> OK, I get my van back from the guy who put the new engine in. He tells me
> that my mechanic had the wrong hose in the rear vacuum connector of the
> distributor but I did notice the other hose still laying there with a screw
> in it. I'm sure the mechanic set the timing to spec. Anyway, the van has
> smooth power throughout the entire band but is really sluggish. Nowhere near
> the power of my low compression leaky old motor.  Here is a picture of my
> current distributer:
>
>
>
> http://www.feddishbasses.com/vw/dist.html
>
>
>
> I'd like to get this engine running with a little more power. What is the
> opinion of the list?  Should I re-connect the vacuum hose?  Can I advance
> the timing safely to get more power? If so, how much is safe without harming
> the engine?
>
>
>
> Thanks,
>
> Bryan
>
>
>