i read in a magazine that turning the dizzy to the right will advance timing thus adding power with the use of premium fuel on the b18b. is this true? will this work. is it safe? or is it foolish. guidance would be great thanks...

 

myth....this is something that old timers did to muscle cars. Doesn't help hondas that much if at all. I've had people that race tell me to do this, but i haven't come across a mechanic that thinks it's a good idea.

 

It'll help but not much, your gonna wanna brag yourself a set of adjustable timing gears, that'll allow you to adjust your timing forward more and allow you to overlap your intake and exhaust valves. I wouldnt do this myself if I were you though, I'd have an established shop that can dyno and tune your car at the same time while doing this.
The dizzy adjustment is more for how your car is running and what part of the country you are living in then anything else. Advancing your timing will make your car harder to start in colder weather then not doing it, so if you live in a cold state please be forwarned.

Andrew

 

Probably just gives a little more pep in the lower rpm range. Like when how the motor pulls when it's cold.

 

Ignition timing has nothing to do really with cold engine operation or engine temperature at all. All turning the dizzy does is advance or retard the spark BTDC (before top dead center) The stock timing on a B18B is 16 degrees +/- 2 degrees so anywhere from 14 -18 degrees is usually ok. Some may find that with really crappy 87 octane gas that you will get "pinging" or detonation with 18* and need to back timing down some.

Advancing timing is NOT just an old muscle car myth either and works on every internal conbustion engine ever made. The key is getting it advanced correctly and using the correct octane gas to prevent detonation. What do you guys think most all performance chips out there do?? Either custom or off the shelf the timing curve is advanced throughout the curve to improve performance.

However it is not as simple as cranking it up and more is better. You should really do it on a chassis dyno and watch the power curve. Keep advancing until the torque/power dips and then back it off 2 degrees. This is optimal timing and can be seen on ANY dyno.

 

I keep mine set to 18 deg. BTDC. It's a GS-R so I run 93 octane always anyway, and it's been like this since the car's first timing belt change 7 years ago. It's had 2 more timing belts since then and never had a problem.