[CapnSass]

Originally Posted by v8volvo

As 745TG said, that will get you in the general ballpark, good chance close enough to start and run, but not optimal... If you want it to run as well as it can, proper timing with dial indicator is necessary. If you liked the way it worked before, putting it back together with everything visually in the same place won't guarantee it'll end up running the same. The marks are there for rough alignment and aren't a precise method for timing. Plus any difference in belt tension will affect timing too even if the marks are exactly where they were.

This would be like replacing the distributor on an old gasser motor and deciding that you could get away with a visual alignment of the dizzy and the block for timing. Sure you could easily enough get it to a spot where it would run okay, but to have it run the way it should, almost nobody would argue for trying to do the job without a timing light. In the same way, small changes in injection timing here can make noticeable differences in cold starting, power, smoke, mileage, engine life, EGT, etc...

The injection timing tools are some of the cheapest and easiest to find of everything that is needed for this motor, plenty of them cheap on ebay or available for loan for free from forum members here (see the Tool Rental thread), and not difficult to use. The benefits of getting timing right far outweigh the effort of getting and learning to use the timing equipment. If you like the car and want it to run its best, it is well worth it!

Thanks for this info! See my other posting for related response. Thanks so much.