First time pulling the boat. 19' fiberglass with 4.3L I/O.

About 3000lbs.

My truck was a slug with a case of the super ticks.
The ticking was sooooo LOUD all the way to the cottage.
I had so little power that I was afraid to see a hill.
I had it to the floor on small hills and no acceleration just ticktickticktickie.

WHAT IS GOING ON?
a 4.9L should pull it np considering I have used a 4.3L Astro van with no issues before and also used a 3.4L Montana.

Is this timing? Compression? whats the scoop?
It is embarassing. I was really disappointed.

 

Sounds like it isn't getting enough fuel or the timing is advanced too far.

 

According to the 9-10 MPG not towing.....I will lean toward the timing issue first.

Is that sound pre-detonation?
Sounds like marbles in every cylinder. I notice it slightly when not towing.

Man I hope I find it and it gives me a little get up and go. im not expexting a tonne just more.

 

That is what pre-ignition sounds like. It's hard to tell over the internet because one man's tick tick tick is another man's clank clank clank.

Running lean will also hurt mileage because combustion will be incomplete, requiring more foot to get down the road. Back in the carb days you would lean out the idle misture until the hydrocarbons went up, then richen it up slightly. The excess HC indicated the onset of poor combustion.

If the timing has never been reset it shouldn't be an issue. I tow pretty regularly with my truck with no problems and the timing is up at 14 degrees.

Do you always get gas at the same place? You might try a tank or two from somewhere else and see if that helps. What octane are you using.

 

All this is true except for the timing. The chain might have stretched. If that occurs, timing will become retarded, and excessive heating of the combustion chamber and the exhaust valves can actually cause pre-ignition every bit as much as too much advance.

 

Its a '95 do I have a chain?

Regardless I will check timing as I don't know the vehicles complete history and then move on to the next place to start looking.
Could a Fuel Pressure Regulator be an issue for lean condition? if they aren't that much I will just swap it out.

It never seems to matter what grade or location i get the gas from.
One other thing is that at 60 mph...same noice if I try to speed up. I have never got the truck past 65mph.

 

Oops....I misread your post. I thought you were asking about the 4.3 in your Astro. My bad! You are right, your 95 4.9L has no chain.

 

Check your fuel filter. It sounds like you're getting only the bare minimum of gas to your engine. Ticking is normal on older engines. Mine just developed a tick, but I just added some slick 50 and forgot about it.

EDIT: Regarding the timing, I can confirm that there is no chain. The I-6 uses gear-driven (for lack of a better term) timing. There's no stretching, and it's good for heavy duty applications. (It only adds to the collective durabiliy of the I-6)