What kind of damage can slipped timing do?

And how long before it will cause problems?

 

Most of the time It would just cause rough running or no running at all.

 

I've got some serious white smoke at cold idle. And everything is pointing to the timing. A guy from a local shop said it could cause cylinder damage and not to drive it like that.

But the truck starts and runs great. mpg's are about 16 mpg so it could'nt be far off could it?

 

No, as long as it's running, and all gauges show "safe ranges" it won't hurt anything!!

Chris

 

White smoke can be caused by a lot of things. When it has occurred on mine, it has usually been an air leak in the low pressure fuel system.

 

Did it affect the way the truck started and ran though?

That is the only reason I wonder if it is timing. My truck does'nt loose prime, it only has to turn over once or twice at most to start. The only time I have starting probs is if it sits for a week, then it might have to turn over 3 or 4 times.

Once warm, it does'nt smoke but the fuel smells ritch.

 

The closer it is to TDC, the better it will start. Higher timing starts harder!

Sounds like maybe it slipped a little...like back near stock settings, and the winter fuel is screwing with it!

IMHO,
Chris

 

The air leaks made the truck harder to start, power seemed down also.

I also had an injector "hang" open which caused excessive smoke especially when starting. Fuel mileage and power were down and there was a constant "haze" when driving down the highway.

About the only potential damage I have heard of due to a timing problem is increased cylinder pressures. Don't have a lot of details though.

 

Thanks Jester, the injector prob is what I've been thinking all along. The truck acts like it is getting fuel after combustion so it smells extremely ritch and smokes. I just wish I had a way to diagnose the prob and quit guessing and changing parts. But you could change alot of parts before you even begin to reach the amount a shop would charge to figure it out.

 

You might check with a diesel shop you trust and ask them what it would cost to check your injectors. When a local shop checked mine none were within spec. They adjusted/repaired mine. Cost wasn't terrrible if I remember correctly. Don't remember the exact cost but it only a couple of hundred including both the check and repair/adjustment.

 

I thought about that but I can buy new injectors for a prety good price too and get them a little bigger than stock.
Thats how I justify being a parts changer, I tell myself the part was prob. wore out anyway and eventually would have gone bad! I consider it more like preventative maintainence when I change a part that's still good.

 

Allright, I have heard about slipped timing and I know that I may sound like a village idiot for this but how exactly does the timing slip? Isnt most everything on 12 valves gear driven? Is it that the gears are off by a tiney amount and it just adds up over time or what?

 

The injection pump shaft is tapered, and the gear is only held on there hy the nut's torque...if the shaft isn't cleaned right, or something's just not perfect, it can slip. No one has figured out a way to make a better system with the adjustability needed, so we just have to deal with it!

 

Sure sounds to me like your timing has slipped = a classic example of white smoke which is unburnt fuel and shows up much worse when the weather is cold . You say it smells like fuel when warm again not complete combustion due to retarded timing. I also think you have some leakage starting in you fuel system from your description of longer cranking after sitting for a week. Air in the fuel can also contribute to white smoke.
As far as damage due to timing too far advanced leads to very high of cylinder pressures and blown head gaskets to far retarded could produce low cylinder temps.
My trucks can sit for a month or more and still will start on the 1st revolution.
Hope this helps you

 

Not being a jerk at all but, I had to laugh. I wonder how many times a power stroke has to turn over to be considered a starting problem.