Hello All,

Been driving my 88 Sammy for 3K miles since I got it and it has run fine, but I want to make sure I am getting all the power I can from a stock 1.3 motor.  What can I do ( in order ) for a
tune up to make my motor run great?  Also where would you spent money to increase power?

And no I can't afford a 1.6 L motor  

Just want a tight reliable wheelin/huntin rig.

Thanks guys

T

Start with the basics, I do these things everytime i pickup a used vehicle or toy.

-oil and filter change, who knows when it was last done?
-cap and rotor, wires and plugs.  sometimes you can get away with just cleaning the contcats on the cap and rotor but they're cheap.  And spark plugs can make a huge difference especially if they are not gapped correctly.  and wire sometimes are wore out and ground out or arc before reaching the plug.
-Air filter- replace or recharge(K&N) - better flow will let the engine run better
- fuel filter - can cause hesitation and reduced fuel flow when they get plugged up.  Another one of those not necessary, but why not because they're cheap, then you know.
-lube - get out the grease gun and lube up all the joints.


Not to sure about hop-ups, (i am new to the zuk world), But a good bet would be a header and exhaust, cam, or carb upgrade.  these are common upgrades on toy 4 cyl, I'm sure one could expect some gain in a zuk.

hth

Mike

Turd,

Thanks man.  I am not very auto "literate", but that is partly why I bought the Samurai as they are considered easy to work on and I want to learn and teach my 16 yr old kid how to work on his own rig.  I already changed the oil and filter and it has used almost one quart in 3000 miles.  I think the oil pan gasket is leaking alittle and plan on replacing it with next oil change.

The cap and rotor and wires look new like they were replaced recently, but I don't know about the plugs.  I will have to replace them next too.  Air filter makes sense too.  I did not think about a fuel filter.... so where is that located?  What abut just buying a "tuneup" kit from Hawk?? for $79 is it worth it or cheaper to just buy them on my own?

I will get headers and an exhaust in the future, but want to make sure the engine is ok first.
It seems to run ok, ( 65mph on the highway ) but who never know.  How do you do a compression test and how do you adjust the valves?  Could that be something to look at too??

Thanks for the help,

T

Also,  I have noticed that my mileage has dropped off  to like 20-22 mpg from like 26-27
and it starts up ok but kinda idles alittle rough after it warms up?  Just thought it needed a
little tune-up.  But any other ideas...............

Thanks,

T

Tat,
 in many cases where there is a drop off in performance and a rough idle, it is possible that the choke is partially closed all the time.   It is one of the weaknesses to the hitachi carb that comes with the 1.3 engines.  There is a little wax pellet that will melt as the water in the cooling system heats up, causing the choke to open up all the way,   if the choke isnt adjusted right, then it wont open wide and will result in more fuel consumption.

  Another possibility to less performance depends on where you live...in Seattle WA they use additives in the fuel during the winter months so vehicles will run "cleaner" and it does affect my mileage, but not that bad.

  If you really want to keep your 1.3, I would recommend trying an after market carb, such as a weber.  One of my rigs has one and it runs great without all the hassles that the hitachi seems to have,...it has better performance even with the oversized tires and lift kit on the rig,...I also have a weber for my daily driver, but Ive been lazy installing it because I really could use a new engine in it and lack motivation to install it at this time.

 the best way to improve your performance, is with a new carb and new exhaust system,...something like a thorley header and 2.5 inch exhaust system, and a weber carb.
that combo would get you somewhere around 100 hp from a 65 hp engine.   And, you can also install a high performance cam, like the isky cam,  which would also boost performance.

Nothing wrong with the 1.3,  its just a puny engine is all,....I would love to drop a vw diesel into my daily driver,...50+ MPG and great low end torque.  500 miles to the tank and only filling up once a week for work,...NICE....

Adjust the valve lash too.

After the tune-up and some of the adjustments that others have mentioned here.  I would add a KN Airfilter, and a aftermarket underdrive pulley for a couple of cheap mods you notice a nice difference in the power.  On my 88.5 spring over with 31's and all stock gearing.  I ran this setup with the 2 mods I mentioned for 2 years, highway driving 100miles round trip 3-5 days a week.. Loved it!

of course now on my 87 I run a weber and 4.62 gears along with the KN Airfilter....