hello i have a 91 ram with a tbi 360,auto. i just got this truck and it was backfiring through the intake, i adjusted the timing with out a timing light and its running decent now but when i got a light on it it said it was at 10*ATDC .and from the forums i found out it needs to be 10*BTDC . but when i try to adjust it down that much it backfires thought the intake again. i dont know whats wrong.

o and i just found out that i need to unhook the coolant temp sensor. i didnt do it before, could that be the problem?

 

the distributor might be 180* off. i don't think not disconnecting the coolant temp sensor should make that big of a difference.

 

i guess ill check into that. right now i almost have it running perfect just needs some final adjustment.(runs great until i go up a hill and it looses power) it just doesn't match the timing marks.

 

One of the problems with the harmonic balancer on these trucks is that with age the outside ring of the balancer can shift on its rubber bushing. Since the outside ring contains the timing mark this can effect what you see with a timing light. A check of the static timing will reveal if this is a problem in your case. Another possibility is if someone was inside the engine and did not install the distributer drive gear correctly. Again a check of the static timing will reveal if this is a problem in your case.

 

ok thanks, it has 177,000 miles so it probably the balancer shifted .