'68 GTX 440 hard starting

[jim77070]

Ok, I just bought this car.  The previous owner had it setup for drag racing and i'm converting it back to a daily driver.  The engine has been apart but I don't know what they stuffed into it.  They placed the original Carter AVS carb back onto the Edelbrock Performer.  The car has a Mallory distributor and coil.  I have to retard the timing about 20 deg to get the car to start then after it warms up advance the time back to where it was originally.  Is something badly worn here?

[aifilaw]

sounds like you have carb issues.

I would put the edelbrick back on there if I didn't have the money for a holley.... or you can ask one of the TQ/carter guru's like chryco what to replace on the carb to get it to warm up properly, you shouldn't have to adjust the timing until it heats up.

[Chryco Psycho]

is it just lugging as it cranks... maybe is has a limited advance curve inside the dist ?

[DPL]

I'd point my attention to the distributor/ignition.  If it starts, the carb and fuel system are at least working.  The fact that you have to retard 20 degrees is suspicious.

This may seem stupid but have you checked the plugs/wires and made sure they are setup properly?

[firefighter3931]

It sounds like there is a lot of base timing in the engine at startup. This is usually done to compensate for a large camshaft. Get a timing light on it and tell us what you've got.


Ron