Timing question

[Wrencher]

I drove my 66 dart the other day and like a typical slant six, it ran like a champ even after sitting for quite some time. My only complaint is that the car has like ......... no damned power at all. its annoyingly weak.

When i was 16, i owned a 65 dodge dart and rebuilt the 225 that was in it and i seem to remember it having a lot more power than the 66 does now. The engine in the 66 was rebuilt 10 years ago or so, stock, just like my 65. I'm not sure why 2 cars that are only 1 year apart could have such different capabilities. Its possible that this 66 has a 170, im not 100% sure.

I am suspecting that the timing is a bit on the low side, as it does not have any symptoms of being out of time mechanically, however the distributor does not have a lot of room to advance any farther. I want to advance the timing passed where the current limit seems to be. Is it possible to get a different style distributor hold down? I have this little bracket thats bolted to the bottom of the distributor, and id like to change it to something more like the chevy v8 style, where it just cinches down where i want it. Any suggestions?

 

[RedFish]

Been there. New points, cap, rotor, etc.., valve lash adjust, carb kit, and still not happy. A reman'd distributer was the fountain of youth for that car. I wished I had known earlier since the new dist' came with points and stuff.

 

[66aCUDA]

Wrencher
Go visit slantsix.org and poke around. READ the FAQ in the engine section. You will be able to do a lot to that old car in no time. After that ask me some specific questions and Ill try and give you good info.
Frank

 

[valiant1966]

You can get more timing out of it.

There is anther bolt opposite the one you see but it is on the bottom side of the distro. Hard to see and harder to get to but there is a special wrench made to get there or I use a crowfoot wrench.

If this doesn't get what you need, you'll have to move the distro one tooth and go from there. Dennis

 

[Wrencher]

Thanks for the info, I'll pull the distributor and swap the bolt location to see if it helps, after i poke around slantsix.org. Thanks