[TR] TR3 wanting to crank

[Paul Dorsey]

Hi all,
I think I had my TR3 engine running last year.  I had the engine rebuilt but I
am still working on the car's body.  So I know it runs, however, something now
is out of adjustment with the engine.  I've been hooking up the choke, so it
would seem the carbs (su h6s) might be off.  It would sound as if it wanted to
crank, and would cough, and run for one-half of a second, and on second crank,
it would do the same.  On the forth attempt, it would fail to catch and I'd
think it was flooded.  I'd let it sit for five minutes, and it would repeat
the procedure listed above, which seem to also indicate flooding.  After about
twenty minutes of this I then popped off the distributor cap.

The small line (or groove) in the edge of the distributor casting (under the
cap) seemed to point towards the engine block's pushrodtube for cylinder #2,
and I remember from VW days, that this groove was at 0 deg TDC and therefore,
I believe it should be pointing at #1's first pushrod tube on the engine's
block.  So maybe it's been knocked out of time?  I guess the small 'coughs
made by the engine' would also signal something different than a problem owith
the SU's, and so might the problem be with the ignition timing?

Thanks, Paul Dorsey TS 78316, Belmont Rd., Athens, GA