1999 5.7l Distributor Phase Question

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chevyracer8262

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ive been helping my uncle work on his 1999 Suburban that has a rebuilt 5.7l vortec engine and we’ve followed the distributor factory installation method provided in the Mitchell 1 service manuals and we can not get the distributor installed in phase. When we get the engine at TDC and the distributor will not install properly, when we line up the indicator cast into the distributor housing with the no8 stamping and the big window of the distributor and the cam sensor mark inline then line up the gold down clamp the rotor ends up pointing to the no7 spark plug. Has anyone ran into an issue like that? If we advance the distributor around it’ll crank and run but has no power, if we try to crank it with the distributor in the specified location the engine will not start. It seems to me like the cams out of phase but we pulled the timing cover only to find the timing marks lined up, does anyone know if they make a vortec timing set that’s retarded? I’ve seen that on some older smog vehicles. It’s a factory cam so I don’t have the specs to check it with the degree wheel
 

evilunclegrimace

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It sounds like you are installing the distributor a few teeth off.You will need to get the engine to #1 cylinder TDC and then drop the distributor so that the rotor is correctly oriented with #1 plug wire. Some times you have to turn the oil pump dive shaft to allow the distributor to drop in the correct position.The drive for the oil pump on the distributor shaft is in alignment with the rotor.
 
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