so my "new to me" yota with 22re is in need of getting a timing check/adjustment. i know that you can advance it and retard it with the distributor, but i want to get it factory first before i start getting things screwed up. ive got a light, just not sure how to use it. can you guys give me a quick 101 on this? im pretty sure that it needs to be advanced a little but i just dont want to without seeing it with the light. any info helps. thanks

 

make sure you jump your e1 and te1 terminals (think that's them) to give you your baseline idle. then hook up
your timing light, and your
good

 

where are the terminals located? near the under the hood fuse box? think i read that somewhere.

 

That is correct. Make sure you have the engine warmed up when you check it as well.

 

shouldnt be too bad. thanks alot rusty. what are you guys running at? as in advanced degrees?

 

Right now I am running at the stock 5*....I have a RV head with oversized stainless steel valves and a 261 cam though and have ran it at around 8* for a little more power. It makes me a little nervous to do that though. I wouldn't do anything other than 5* if you have a stock motor.

 

yea, its bone stock with 130k. so thats good to know.

 

Another tip when setting the timing is to make sure your idle is set as well at 750 rpm. When you change your timing, your idle will get off a little too so it is a bit of an iterative process. You change the timing, check your idle. Adjust the idle if its off then check your timing again....you keep doing that until you get it at 5* at 750 rpm with the engine fully warm and no accessories running. (You check timing with the the jumper in and you check idle with the jumper out).

 

ok, so i jump the wires to set the timing, and un hook them to set the idle. but how do i go about setting the idle with no tach?

 

You might be able to rent a tachometer from a place like oreilly's or advance auto, etc. to hook up to your ignition coil. If not, you can get it close by feel. 750 rpm is about as low as you can go before it starts to idle a little rough...like its about to die. So lower it until it gets to that rough point and then just turn it back a smidge until it smooths out. You'll know if its too high if you get the surging idle that so many people talk about on here. That's about as best I can help you if you don't have any means of getting a tach. Others may have some different ideas?

 

You can't.

 

Alright guys, i think my dad might have an old tach I can use just to check that. So I should be able to figure this out, not too hard. I really appreciate all the love from the fellow Toyota family. Thanks

 

Before you mess with the timing light, set your TPS. With your TPS set correctly, when you short the two diagnostic terminals, the idle will change. Then you can break out the timing light. I assume the engine is supposed to be warm up before you start?

 

Tachs are cheap. They sit nicely on the column.

 

OK wrong pic but you get the idea.

 

how do you fix this situation .?