I have a 1980 250 out of a granada but the motor is in a fox body mustang . I race it at my local short track . It is stock i heard somewhere that if you advanced the timing to around 28 to 32 degrease it would give me some power gain . could someone help with the best timeing to run on the motor
250 timeing
- Thread starter racer111
- Start date
Gene Fiore
Famous Member
If I'm not mistaken, about 12 deg initial advance will give you around that amount of total advance...others may chime in here as well. 
Rustang Racer
Well-known member
I just changed the total advance on my 250 this past Sunday and can attest that going from 26 total to about 33 total made a noticable difference in power. I think you are right that the consensus is around 32 is best but its not an exact science (at least at my skill level).
Someone posted this link when I asked similar questions a few months ago and its a really good link with pictures and directions on how to make the mods to the distributor. Unfortunately you can't say that a certain intial advance gives you a certain total advance. There are too many part variations in the duraspark distributors, especially remanufactured ones. I was able to get the additional advance I needed by removing a little sleeve that was on the arm that slides back and forth in my 13L slot. Read this article and that sentence might make sense.
http://www.carbdford.com/viewtopic.php?t=5543
I think a good starting point would be to try to get about 10 initial timing and 32 total (centrifugal advance). That should give you pretty good track performance. If you need to fine tune driveability, then you can play with different springs or bend the tabs holding the springs. I'm not an expert on this at all but this is just my experience.
Edit: I forgot to mention that to check total advance you really need a timing light with a degree dial on the back that lets you dial advance into the light itself. The marks on the engine only go up to about 12. Harbor freight has one of those timing lights for about $30. Another method is to get timing tape (I think thats the right name) that adds a bunch more marks on the balancer. That way you can use a normal timing light.
Someone posted this link when I asked similar questions a few months ago and its a really good link with pictures and directions on how to make the mods to the distributor. Unfortunately you can't say that a certain intial advance gives you a certain total advance. There are too many part variations in the duraspark distributors, especially remanufactured ones. I was able to get the additional advance I needed by removing a little sleeve that was on the arm that slides back and forth in my 13L slot. Read this article and that sentence might make sense.
http://www.carbdford.com/viewtopic.php?t=5543
I think a good starting point would be to try to get about 10 initial timing and 32 total (centrifugal advance). That should give you pretty good track performance. If you need to fine tune driveability, then you can play with different springs or bend the tabs holding the springs. I'm not an expert on this at all but this is just my experience.
Edit: I forgot to mention that to check total advance you really need a timing light with a degree dial on the back that lets you dial advance into the light itself. The marks on the engine only go up to about 12. Harbor freight has one of those timing lights for about $30. Another method is to get timing tape (I think thats the right name) that adds a bunch more marks on the balancer. That way you can use a normal timing light.
Similar threads
All Small Six
I have a few questions about the 250ci
