Setting timing, engine off, correct?

[urbex]

TL;DR version - I believe the timing is retarded on this truck, and need to advance it. Towards driver's side, and engine off, correct?

Neighbor recently picked up an 80-something K30 with the diesel motor, non turbo, non running. I tried hard to discourage him from buying it, but he was convinced that the seller was correct when he claimed that "all it needed was a fuel pump, and it would run GREAT!!!" Of course, neither of them have a clue of how diesels work, and apparently thought the lift pump was the only pump on these things.

....and sure enough, after replacing the lift pump, it still didn't start. After explaining that diesels are different, and need the fuel system primed, AND much cursing...I finally got it to fire up, and it's smoking worse than a crop duster while also having virtually no power. It was just barely able to reverse up a small incline...in low range, while smoking worse than a crop duster. All white smoke, with a wicked strong odor of unburnt fuel.

I have a general understanding of diesels, and run a F350 7.3 IDI turbo myself, but have never touched a GM diesel before this.

 

[tRustyK5]

Engine off. Loosen the three bolts that hold the injection pump on. Look down behind the pump at the area where the pump meets the timing cover. You may need to clean it up some, but you should be able to find a pair of scribe lines. One on the pump, one on the timing cover. To start with, line them up, snug the bolts and fire it up. If it's still smoky, loosen the bolts again and rotate the pump clockwise so the scribe lines are off by no more the 1/16". snug the bolts and fire it up again. As you advance the pump timing you should be able to notice the diesel clatter get a little louder.

If it is still a smoky mess, it likely needs the injection pump rebuilt.

I would never discourage someone from buying a K30. Two words...Dana 60. He could always go LS or big block if the 6.2 is a money pit.

 

[urbex]

I discouraged him from spending 3 grand on a truck he couldn't verify the mechanical functionality on, ESPECIALLY a diesel that neither of us are familiar with, and one that he expected would perform like his prior '06 Ram 2500, just because it's a diesel. We had no good way of even knowing whether the engine was good internally, whether it needed injectors and/or injection pump, trans rebuild, axles, transfer case, etc etc etc. To me, a lift pump is a very easy, quick, swap out....otherwise known as "only needs a $25 part that takes 10 minutes to change!" Seller insisted he didn't want to do it, despite obviously being mechanically inclined, and was more than happy to talk about the other vehicles he's built. To me, that just screams that there's other major issues he knows about, and is trying to cover.

$1000 for a K30? Sure, all day long, regardless of it's running condition. $3000? Suddenly not much of a deal if it needs a motor and trans...this one happens to be an ex-fleet vehicle and is dually. I've found in the past it's FAR easier to sell a SRW 60 than a DRW one, even after lowering the price to account for the hub swap most guys will want to do. The 14BFF are a dime a dozen around here, and less so being a dually. TH400s don't exactly command a premium, though I haven't looked under it to see if it's a 205 or 208 case.. Even still, if the engine can't be brought into good running condition with some adjustments, I don't see it being easy to resell for the $3000 he has into it.

 

[tRustyK5]

Fair enough. The devil is in the details for sure. Hopefully you guys can get it running OK.

 

[campfire]

Seller insisted he didn't want to do it, despite obviously being mechanically inclined, and was more than happy to talk about the other vehicles he's built. To me, that just screams that there's other major issues he knows about, and is trying to cover.

Yeah, that would prompt me to examine things very closely. Sounds fishy.

And there is no possible way that a 6.2 will ever emulate the performance of a 2006 CTD. Completely different engine, built for an entirely different purpose, in a much older chassis, with no turbocharger. It's a cruising engine, not a dedicated towing engine, and he's going to be sorely disappointed if he's equating the two.

It sounds like you understand this already. So you might not be able to do much aside from watching the situation unfold.

 

[longbedder]

The scribe-line thing will get you close - that's what it's for.

The other very real possibility is a stretched timing chain if It's high-mileage. I ran out of adjustment on mine, threw a new timing set on, and the engine went right back where it should be. Spec on the chain is 3/4" travel (max) if you push on it in the middle between sprockets.

If you really want to time it so you know what it's doing get a luminosity probe timing adapter.

 

[yblow]

Compression and leak down tests might be needed. Is it black smoke?

 

[diesel4me]

It might have had some home brewed bio-diesel in the tank also..or whoever ran it last might have run it on used oil or ATF in too strong a concentration..
Thread is pretty old,I wonder how it turned out ?.