Ideal timing for 300 I6
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5th Wheeling
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 32
Likes: 1
From: Earth
Ideal timing for 300 I6
The sticker under the hood says the timing should be set to 6 BTDC. I tried that and it runs crappy. When I advance the timing to 10 BTDC it runs much better, especially when I accelerate. It seems the more I advance the timing the better it runs. Can I leave it at 10 degrees (or higher) without harming the engine?
Also, are the valves (backlash) required to be a adjusted periodically on the 300 I6? Mine was overhauled about 30K ago.
Also, are the valves (backlash) required to be a adjusted periodically on the 300 I6? Mine was overhauled about 30K ago.
Senior User
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 497
Likes: 0
From: Houston TX
I don't think it would hurt it. 6-10 degrees is normal setting depending on the year. Some used 6, some used 10. Do you ever ping? Usually, for a given engine, the best way to get the *best* timing, is to set it until it pings , and then roll it back to the point where the pinging quits. But even this can vary due the fuel grade, altitude, etc...The rockers are most likely non adjustable unless you add locks or whatever. I use double nuts "the top one inverted" on mine, so I can adjust my valves. The only possible problem would be if you had too tight of valves due to a sloppy valve job, and setup. In general, according to ford specs, the valves should be at one turn down from zero lash or less. I actually have mine at only about 1/4 down from zero. A couple of mine were too tight, due to the above mentioned reason. "sloppy valve setup on the rebuilt engine". So I made mine adjustable. If the valves are too loose, naturally they will click. You would know it if that were the case. You can probably ignore the valves if it runs smooth, and no clicking. The main reason for mentioning too tight, is it's possible to burn exhaust valves if that goes on too long. MK
