Mercruiser 3.0 Pinging help

[longswl]

Let me start by saying this forum has helped with answering so many questions by simply taking the time to read. You guys are awesome!!

I have read everything on pinging and I am lost. This started a few weeks back, did the cardinal mistake. changed octane level of fuel and it started pinging. Got home and got most of the gas out, probably still had maybe 1/8 tank left. Put in the higher octane fuel and added seafoam. went out the next weekend and still pinging. Adjusted timing, replaced all the fuel filters, made sure accel pump is squirting two blast of fuel when turning throttle. Figured it was time for a tune up anyway so went ahead and replace cap, rotor, plugs and wires. Went to double check timing (base mode) bouncing between 1* and 2* BTDC, when I take it out its reading around 7*, when I bring up the RPM's to 3K it only advances to 12*?

I would think with it only advancing to 12 I would be running rich and have no pining chance?

For the timing advance issue I am buying a new ignition module and that will hopefully fix the advance problem, but could this be the cause of the pinging?

Thanks for any advice!!

 

[Redtruck12]

Sounds like a case for Mercruiser engine section
not resto

 

[Scott Danforth]

it would help if you indicated a few things

which ignition system do you have?
your serial number

what octane did you use. 87 should be more than enough. however if you have water in your fuel or you simply received crappy fuel, who knows.

Seafoam does nothing except replace money in your wallet with a receipt for snake oil.

 

[longswl]

shoot, didn't realize I posted in the wrong section. (should I repost in the right section?)

for now here is the answers to your question Scott.

I have the EST ignition, serial number M363499

yes I used 87 octane, I know that a lot of people say that it would be fine but I have also read that people went back to a 91 octane and it solved their pinging issues.

as for seafoam I hadn't heard that, figured I should be using an octane boost but figured I would go with what a lot of the experts were telling others.

 

[longswl]

03 Mercruiser 3.0 pinging issues

Let me start by saying this forum has helped with answering so many questions by simply taking the time to read. You guys are awesome!!

I have read everything on pinging and I am lost. This started a few weeks back, did the cardinal mistake. changed octane level of fuel and it started pinging. Got home and got most of the gas out, probably still had maybe 1/8 tank left. Put in the higher octane fuel and added seafoam. went out the next weekend and still pinging. Adjusted timing, replaced all the fuel filters, made sure accel pump is squirting two blast of fuel when turning throttle. Figured it was time for a tune up anyway so went ahead and replace cap, rotor, plugs and wires. Went to double check timing (base mode) bouncing between 1* and 2* BTDC, when I take it out its reading around 7*, when I bring up the RPM's to 3K it only advances to 12*?

I would think with it only advancing to 12 I would be running rich and have no pining chance?

For the timing advance issue I am buying a new ignition module and that will hopefully fix the advance problem, but could this be the cause of the pinging?

I posted this question originally in the wrong section (apologies)
EST ignition, serial number M363499 … went away from 91 octane to 87 based on several things I had read.

Thank you

 

[Bt Doctur]

click to enlarge

 

[longswl]

Im getting the 1* and 12*, but when I run it up to 2600RPM it only advances to 14*

 

[longswl]

I am assuming that when I change the ignition module that should take care of the engine not advancing, but could the engine not advancing cause pinging?

I guess I can manually adjust the advance under load this weekend and see if that takes care of the pinging.

 

[Bondo]

but could the engine not advancing cause pinging?

Ayuh,...... Usually just the opposite,.....

Pingin' is usually a symptom to to advanced timin' or a lean condition,......

What color are the spark plugs lookin' like,..??

 

[longswl]

they are showing signs of black - running a little rich (which I did on purpose, would rather a little rich than lean)

absolutely no performance issues other than it pinging out of the hole, as soon as I am up on plane and running at 3500 the pinging goes away, did notice today that when I am backing down and its hits around 2000 rpms it starts pinging again until I am down to around 1200.

I will be fueling up again tomorrow with 92 octane fuel, I have seafoam but have heard earlier that it is a waste of money … any additive you would suggest?

 

[longswl]

Need some guidance please

So I have several things going on but want to take a step back and address one thing at a time and hopefully it will lead to fixing other issues.

So I want to start with my timing not advancing past 12* … base mode set at 1*BFTDC take it out of base mode and it is around 12* BFTDC, bring up the RPM's to 2600 RPM's and it does not advance past maybe 14* from everything I have read it sound like the module or possibly the pickup coil??

thoughts, ideas..what am I possibly over looking?

 

[longswl]

Hoping someone has some advice as I think i could have stumbled onto something possibly.

I ended up changing the pickup coil (inside the distributor) and this corrected my engine not advancing.

Here is what happened last time out, started right up idling really good around 700 rpm's, got out of no wake zone and gave it gas (no hesitation where it would hesitate before...yah) under pretty hard acceleration no pinging (good) but had no top end power would get up to 25 MPH and that was it. brought it back down to idle and got the timing gun out. #2 plug wire was not connected. put #2 plug wire back on and got the power back but also got the pinging back.

Thinking next time out I would pull one of the other plug wires and see if I get the same results (no pinging) thinking if I get pinging something is up with #2?

Thoughts?

thank you!!