The timing tab goes on the engine's right side.
Subject: Poly Question / Starting Issues
This may be a silly question, but I finally figured out what was wrong with starting my 318 poly Fury - It was 180 degrees out. When we finally got a somewhat decent day yesterday, I pulled the distributor and switched it 180, and it fired right up --- Then I got a new problem - It was leaking under the new water pump. Upon checking I could see it was not the pump, but below it where the timing tab was.
What I found was that when the shop put the water pump back on, they placed the holes of the timing tab under the water pump, keeping it from sealing. I pulled the pump, then looked at the old 318 poly I have and saw that the timing tab was on the right (passenger) side, and the shop had placed the tab on the rebuilt 318 on the right (drivers) side (which is pretty well blocked by the lower radiator hose).
My question - where is the timing tab on a poly 318 supposed to be - passenger or drivers side? Gotta love what a shop does when putting these engines back together (hopefully the confusion is only on the outside).
Larry (Akron)