engine and drivetrain last minute checks that i should go through before firing up

[Guest Anonymous]

if anyone can offer any advice on starting up a new engine please post!

i am in the last few steps and will hopefully start it saturday. i need to

do an idiot check and don't want to forget anything obvious or not so

obvious. thanks again!

Mike

p.s. i know about the throttle, radiator and battery....

[Guest Anonymous]

chamber (pull plugs) to lubricate the cylinder walls. Expect blue smoke on start up....that would be normal. Am I all wet? Anybody else heard this? One reason I'm interested is that I will be doing the same thing in coming weeks.

Thanks,

John

'72tii "Hugo"

[Guest Anonymous]

advise pulling the plugs and cranking the engine until you get oil pressure. This should lubricate everything with minimal wear on the bearings. Put the plugs back in and fire it up.

Have fun!

John N

[Guest Anonymous]

(nt)

[Guest Anonymous]

and crank it without fuel or spark. That will lubricate the cylinder walls, and at the same time, it will prime the oil pump.

Even though the book is against it, it is why I prefer to install the pistons and rings with wet cylinder walls.

[Guest Anonymous]

(nt)

[Guest Anonymous]

or Yeungling ( did I spell it right? )..I don't think he'll put a postcard in your shoe though!!

Tim

'69 2000

[Guest Anonymous]

My son is coming home for Easter...here's hoping! I have lots of bubble wrap and blankets to protect that gorgeous engine bay! :-)

Happy Easter & HURRY SPRING.....whatever happened to it! :-)

[Guest Anonymous]

(nt)

[Guest Anonymous]

(nt)

[Guest Anonymous]

a baroque angel 501 and some other vintage bimmer. Get a chance to poke around for the door mirrors? I have a Wallothnesch 2002 parts binder, come get it next time you're here, has the part#'s and prices ( euros though ).

Tim

'69 NK 2k

[Guest Anonymous]

and check everything again.

If you are trying to rush and fighting off sleep, you will probably miss something dumb.

If you can get another set of eyes to check stuff, that helps too.

I like to step away from the car, and then sit down with a Haynes book or the like, and mentally go through everything on the motor. I'll usually make several trips in and out of the garage before I finally take the plunge.

[Guest Anonymous]

(nt)

[Guest Anonymous]

I've started dozens of engines after rebuilds. Here is exactly what you do. It helps if you have two people, but one guy can do it no problem. It's all about no leaks, break in the cam, set the timing and idle, then drive it.

If this is a fairly recent build - say within three months of when you assembled the engine, then you don't need to put anything in the cylinders. It will just promote residue on the rings, get the chambers dirty and delay getting the rings seated. If you do put oil in the cylinders be very sure that you spin the engine over with the plugs out to get it out again, or you stand a chance of hydraulic locking a cylinder.

Set your valve clearances. Set the timing static to where you think it should be. Have the wrenches to set the timing handy, but don't leave the distributor too loose. Have the rad/water all topped up, leave the rad cap off so that you can check for water level in the first five minutes. fill the engine with oil, put oil in the filter. If you did that a long time ago, put half a litre in the head to oil the cam.

With plugs out, crank for oil pressure. You just need to see the needle move up to about 20 psi. If mechanical fuel pump, make sure that the carb is full from the pump.

Put the plugs in, attach your timing light, have a trouble light handy so that you can check for leaks.

Start the engine, make sure it runs at at 2000 - 2500 rpm. I screw down the idle screw to do this. No need to blip the throttle, better if you don't. let it run while you check for leaks, check for water level, put the rad cap on since it's going to get hot fast. A fan to clear out the smoke is good. Check the ignition timing, change it if you need to, but basically let the engine run at 2000 - 2500 rpm for 20 minutes. Make sure it doesn't over heat. If you get a leak, if you think something is wrong, just shut it down while you think about it. It's far better to shut it down and consider what to do calmly than it is to try to fix it while it's running. Just don't let the rev's drop below 2000 rpm for the first 20 minutes of running time.

Now set the idle, set the timing, check the valve clearance, go for a drive. For me, I get the engine hot, drive for 20 minutes, do a few third gear full power pulls from 2000 to about 5500 rpm, and then it's done. It's about 95% broken in after those four or five full power pulls, you can drive it completely normally.

Congratulations, have a beer...

Brian

[Guest Anonymous]

Prime the oil pump, and add oil to the filter cartridge.