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Tune Up Instructions for a 1949 Chevrolet 230 C I

The Chevrolet 230 is a six-cylinder inline engine. The engine is quite reliable and was used in many General Motors, Studebaker and Checker vehicles. General Motors produced a large number of inline six-cylinder engines of the same configuration with different bores. High production equates to affordable and readily available parts; new ignition and tune-up parts for the Chevrolet 230 can be found on the shelves of many auto parts stores. Worn contact points and oxidized distributor cap electrodes are a few good reasons for a tune-up.

Instructions

Tune-up

1

Trace the spark plug wire from the first spark plug in the engine to the distributor cap and mark a corresponding line on the distributor housing straight down from the spark plug wire. Be sure the mark is visible on the distributor after the cap is removed.

2

Remove the distributor cap and rotor button from the distributor. The distributor is located on the left side of the engine when viewed from the front and the rotor button is inside the distributor cap.

3




Loosen the nut on the wire post of the distributor, using the small ignition wrenches, and remove the contact points and condenser wire. Remove the screws that attach the contact points to the distributor plate and remove the points.

4

Loosen, but dont remove, the screw that holds the condenser band to the distributor plate and push the condenser out of the band. Dont remove this screw because it is tough to get back in place and if its dropped in the distributor it is difficult to retrieve.

5

Install the new contact points with a gap set at .019-inch with a feeler gauge. Push a new condenser into the condenser band, re-tighten the band screw and attach the wire to the wire stud on the contact points.

6

Place a new rotor button on top of the distributor shaft and install a new distributor cap. Be sure the rotor button seats into the grove on top of the distributor shaft or it may aim at the wrong distributor post and cause harmful back firing.

7

Pull the spark plug wire off the first spark plug on the engine and remove it from the distributor cap. Remove that spark plug and replace it with a new one. Place one end of a new spark plug wire on the new spark plug and the other end in the hole of the newly installed distributor cap that corresponds with the mark made on the distributor.

8

Proceed in a clockwise direction and remove the next spark plug wire from the old distributor cap. Trace that wire to the spark plug, remove the spark plug and replace it with a new one. Install a new spark plug wire on this plug and place the other end of the plug wire in the next hole of the newly installed cap proceeding in a clockwise direction.

Repeat this procedure until all the spark plugs and wires are replaced with new ones.

9

Unscrew the wing nut on top of the air cleaner and remove it. The 1949 Chevy is equipped with an oil bath air cleaner. The oil bath air cleaner has a wire mesh type filter in it and contains oil to trap the dirt.

Dump the oil from air cleaner in a container for proper disposal. Internally clean the air cleaner with a spray brake cleaner. Refill the air cleaner with oil to the level line marked and reinstall it.

Engine Timing

10

Connect the timing light induction clamp to the spark plug wire of the number one spark plug. Connect the lights red clamp to the positive terminal of the battery and the negative clamp to any grounded bolt on the engine.

11

Loosen the distributor hold down screw a half turn. Disconnect the vacuum line from the distributor housing and start the vehicle.

12

Locate the timing marks through the bell-housing access hole, located on the front right side of the bell housing by aiming the timing light pulse at the hole.

13

Set the engine idle at 500 rpm, align the circle ball mark on the flywheel with the indicator mark on the bell-housing under the timing light strobe, by rotating the distributor shaft until the marks align perfectly. Lock down the distributor hold down bolt once the marks are aligned and recheck the timing to be sure it did not change after it was tightened.