Whenever someone starts talking about putting boost to an engine the topic of ignition timing comes up. Everyone jokes about putting more fuel and timing into it to make more power, and that does work up to a point. But there is always a timing number that a particular combo gets to where it stops having any benefit. And if you run an engine on the dyno you can see this clearly in testing and be able to then know where the timing needs to be for max power and safety. I say safety because many times there is a timing number that makes peak power, but one, two, or three degrees less timing only cost 2-4 horsepower at 7,000 rpm. That’s not enough to care about when pulling that timing makes a big difference in potential longevity.
Video Description:
JUNKYARD 4.8L TURBO LS TIMING TEST! HOW MUCH TIMING SHOULD I RUN ON MY BOOSTED LS? HOW MUCH EXTRA POWER IS TIMING WORTH? HOW MUCH POWER DO I LOSE BY RETARDING THE TIMING? DO SUPERCHARGED AND TURBOCHARGED MOTORS RESPOND DIFFERENTLY TO CHANGES IN TIMING. CHECK OUT THIS VIDEO WHERE I RAN TIMING TESTS ON THREE DIFFERENT BOOSTED 4.8L LS COMBOS. I RAN TIMING TESTS ON A 4.8L EQUIPPED WITH A VORTECH SUPERCHARGER, A WHIPPLE SUPERCHARGER AND SINGLE LOW-BUCK TURBO. EACH 4.8L COMBO WAS RUN AT A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT TIMING LEVELS TO ILLUSTRATE THE POWER GAINS OFFERED WITH CHANGES IN TIMING. WHAT TIMING DO YOU RUN?
