Hey all. I recently (1200 miles...I drive ALOT) did a tune up on my
73 standard beetle. Initially, I timed this dual-port 1600 stock engine to 7.5 deg BTDC static (009 distrib). However, some miles later, upon asking at my local ACVW garage what the proper timing should be for this distributor and engine, he said 10-12 deg BTDC static becuase of the high altitude(5500-7500 ft in driving range). Makes sense to me. So I retimed the engine at 10 deg BTDC. Ran alright for a while, but now, just about 900 miles after that last timing adjustment, my engine feels sluggish and hesitant in all gears. Is it possible that I just need to retime (including points adjustment) again so soon? The problem is worse when the engine is cold, but even at normal operating temps, there is still a hesitation. Esp. in first gear. I accelerate, and it kinda goes, then at a certain RPM BAM! It throws me back into the seat. It used to pull like that through the entire range of RPM and gears, but how come it's changing settings so much? Also, I've noticed that the engine is a little hotter than usual when I arrive at my destination. It doesn't smell really really hot, but the dipstick is generally almost too hot to remove. Temps around here have been 98-102 deg during the day lately. So I guess my question is, do I need to just continue playing with the timing until it runs perfectly and efficiently, or is this not related to the timing? I realized it may be the air filter, but the last time (3000 Miles ago) I checked the filter, it was fine. Thanks for any help.