I just dont understand timing i guess.
What i know is at the crank, the oil pump arrow must point at the mark on the crank
I got that part down.
Now what i cant seem to understand is the cam,
Im using a d16z6 camshaft with a y7 cam gear, from what i read, its suppose to fix the "mini me timing error".
My car runs laggy and i cant seem to advance the dizzy

If i set timing light to 16, the mark on the cover wont align with the far-single mark on crank pulley

If i set light at 0, the cover mark wont align with the middle of the 3-score marks, the dizzy wont advance anymore.

Im thinking theres suppose to be a certain angle that the cam gear is suppose to be to fix the timing issue, but i cant figure it out and need help.

 

This is how my cam sits, while the crank is at TDC. The 3 and 9 marks are way off, but the keyway is up.

 

Idk why its upside down...

 

I don't really know much about mini-me swaps, but the mechanical timing should always be spot on. Set the crank at tdc (single mark) and the cam marks set flush with the head to valve cover mating surface. It's easier to see the marks line up from the inside since you already have the valve cover off. The UP mark should be facing up, but don't worry if it's not perfectly up. The marks are what need to be perfectly in line with head surface, with up mark pointing in a general upwardly direction lol. Mechanical timing should be perfect before you attempt to play with ignition timing with a light. Even then, don't try to degree the gun in dialing 16 or whatever. Just shoot from zero and try to hit it at any (preferably the middle mark) of the 3 lines bunched together - not the tdc line that's singled out alone.

Having said all that, I believe I heard that the z6 distributor is a bit different from other d-series. What distributor are you using? Also, the mechanical timing procedure for the z6 may differ from the rest also? Idk, but I'm sure you could search it out if your's is questionable. Hope some of this made sense to you and helps. If not, sry for adding to your confusion.

 

Definately sounds like you are retarded one tooth on the timing belt. Z6's i believe you need the cover between the pulley and head to time correctly, iirc you line a mark on the pulley up with a mark on the cover, non vtec motors typically use the marks lined up with the valve cover surface. What i would do since you don't appear to have that cove is mark the belt to the pulley, slip it off and advance the cam one tooth. Make sure to roll it over by ratchet to make sure you don't whack any valves.

 

Thx for the replies guys.
Yeah i did end up advancing the cam about a tooth( after my mechanical timing of the crank was perfect)
And that made a HUGE difference, i now have more adjustability with ignition timing.

So is it better to set light at 0 and line it up on the middle of the 3 score marks?
Right now i have it at 16 and it runs great. Pulls hard, no hesitation when shifting. Vtec is smooth.

Only problem is the idle is a lil weird, it idle hunts sometimes then goes away, then comes back for a little

My concerning question is:
Does the ECU ( while idle hunting) try to "find" a stable idle, thus changing the ignition timing by itself? Does it do that? Or am i just tripping, cuz the other day i had the timing perfect, but the next morning it felt like timing was off, when i checked it, it was too retarded, and i adjusted it today, it runs perfect now, but ill see if it changes in the morning somehow. Sometimes i feel like my ef just likes to troll me.

 

You didn't say anything about what block you're using but mentioned a Z6 head and Y7 cam gear.

The only time you swap the cam gear like you did is if you're using a 1.5L block. If you're using a 1.6L block you use the gear meant for the cam.

Regardless of the block when you set the mechanical timing with a Z6 head you do it like a Z6. The Z6 uses the pointer on the rear upper cover at the 7 o clock position and the corisponding mark on the cam gear.

It doesn't look like you have the upper cover so you'll never get it 100% correct.

For the timing light it doesn't matter if you set it to 0 or 16* as long as you understand what you're doing by setting it to 16*. The end result is the same.