TB45E timing marks?

[Jantie]

Hi guys
As been advice on the intro i would like to ask all the very clever people for help.
I have a 1998 4.5 and need to check the timing. But i cannot find as how the the config for timing marks are. Are they the same as the tb48 or do they differ.
What i have is the tb48 crank pulley marks which is 5-0-5-10-15 degrees.
Any info will be helpful.
thanks
Jantie

[Bigrig]

Not with you on the "config" for the timing marks mate? Do you mean which way is advance and retard??

I'll work on that basis and hope I'm on the right path for you. There should be a timing mark on the pulley wheel itself, can you see that (you can flick the key ever so slightly for ignition to get the engine to turn till you can - you can also use a socket to turn the motor by hand if you know how). Once you locate the mark, if it isn't really clearly visible, mark it with a bit of liquid paper (thin line over the mark following the same contour of the indent). The numbers closest to you as you stand looking in from the drivers side are to advance the timing (before top dead centre - BTDC), the other way is to retard timing, with 0 being TDC.

Setting the timing is a different matter - is that what you're trying to do? Do you have a timing light?

With the car running, you connect the timing light to plug lead number 1 and earth and the light will flash. If you point the light down at the timing mark, the flash will "highlight" the timing mark against those numbers and will appear to sit in one spot - this spot, relevant to the number it's sitting against, is where your timing is sitting at idle - if sitting beside 10, then it's at 10 degrees advance (BTDC) and so on.

Hope that was what you were meaning!! If not, well ... I've wasted your time!!! lmao

You use the distributor to set the timing, but have you done this before?

[Jantie]

Thanks Bigrig

You are on the spot.

See i am in south africa and not sure whether your vehicles are left hand drive as to us witch is right hand drive.
On the crank pulley are five marks and no numbering at all. now if you stand in front of the vehicle looking down on the pulley with the marks top side i need to know left to right the marks indication numbers.
The timing light i have and done before on my other vehicles but with this one i am short of the technical info on the marks. I don't want to make mistake on this brute.
thanks
jantie

[97_gq_lwb]

If it is injected you usually have to put the computer into diagnostic mode to set the timing as well surely the info is in the manual

[04OFF]

We are right hand drive in Australia (drive on the left side of the road)

The Australian 4.5L (TB45E) has a sticker with the timing info on the top the tappet cover (sometimes called rocker cover, or valve train cover) the sticker is towards the rear of the tappet cover around cylinder No5.


From memory, your TB45E timing marks should be 5-0-5-10-15 degrees, with Zero (top dead centre) a slightly longer mark.

You can always pull the dizzy cap off, and pull No 1 spark plug out, and find Top Dead Centre with a soft probe into the cylinder, once you have that, you can mark Zero Deg on the Crank Pulley with a white dot (or a mark thats easy to see)

You wont need to set the ECU or anything, just have the engine at normal running temp, confirm the idle is normal, if not check fo Vaccum leaks etc first.

[JoseM]

If it is injected you usually have to put the computer into diagnostic mode to set the timing as well surely the info is in the manual

I know yhis is an old thread, but for sake of clarity and value of information...
This is wrong. What needs to be done on the TB45e is (after warming up engine needle to the middle) disconnect the throttle position sensor harness connector, restart engine and under no-load, check ignition timing at idle with a timing light.
What you normally read on a data monitor is not always what is really going on since the ECM always tries to compensate, because of this you disconnect the TPS harness, so that way you wont be "fighting" the ECM...
Don't matter if it is LHD nor RHD, is all the same...