Hey everyone, first time posting here. I just did my timing belt this weekend (In case anyone's curious car was at 130,000 miles and the timing belt looked fine) and just thought I would throw out a few observations/ thoughts about the project some of this may already be on the site but I didn't come across it when researching this project:
- First off the "How To" post by livelyjay is basically a bible for how to change a timing belt.
- Second, make sure you use the shop manual to do this if for no other reason than the torque settings for most of the bolts
- I didn't see this mentioned anywhere but to get the motor mount off you will need a deep socket 17mm socket. I don't believe it is possible to fit a wrench into the space and a standard socket isn't even close.
- Keeping the cams aligned is the hardest part for sure and we used the wine cork trick: wedge a wine cork between the two cam gears/ pulleys so that they can't move while putting the belt on if it sound frightening it really isn't the cork has no where to go, just make sure you remove it before starting your car!
- I read a few different ideas for how and when to attach the tensioner spring. We attached the spring before putting on the belt but while fighting to get the belt on the car we ended up over stretching the spring and making it completely useless. Best way we found was to attach the spring to the pulley and then bolt the pulley onto the car, put on the timing belt and then attach the spring to the stem on the engine (this wasn't exactly easy but if you are capable with your left hand and use pair of needle-nose pliers its totally doable).
- Tightening the crankshaft pulley bolt is a nightmare. Finding a method that worked took almost as long as the rest of the timing belt combined. We tried a belt wrench (see: chain wrench) but couldn't brace it tight enough, we were really reluctant to put anything through the power steering pulley for fear of damaging it or the power steering pump, and the proper tool to hold the pulley still wasn't available anywhere.
- The tip for putting the car in gear and standing on the brakes does probably work... for a manual. Unfortunately I have an automatic. Apparently you can open up the bell housing for the transmission and put a screwdriver in there but that was too terrifying to try. Ultimately we found a piece of plywood, drilled three holes: one for the crankshaft pulley bolt and the other two for the threaded holes on the face of the crankshaft pulley.
- I have no clue what thread size those two holes are on the pulley, I read on a different site that they were M8 size but they aren't... doesn't matter the thread. I believe that they are 5/16th sized with a fine thread (24 or 28) but I couldn't find that bolt anywhere (literally no where in town had the 5/16th with fine thread!) so unfortunately I actually cross threaded a coarse thread M8 bolt in a few turns (I know I know I am bad!!!) to hold the wood in place, braced the plywood against the ground by lowering it with a jack until I had a completely flat surface (the wood wasn't supporting the car it was merely braced against the ground) and was finally able to tighten the bolt to manual specs (120 ft-lb).
I had my dad help with this project as he had done a few timing belts in other cars and figured he would have some tips (the wine cork was his idea) with two of us working on it (we also replaced the tensioner pulley, idler pulley, and valve cover gasket) it took roughly 7 hrs of labor for the timing belt and accessories and another three to four hours of labor to trial and error and manufacture a way to tighten the crankshaft pulley. I did this project thinking that I could do it for about 1/2 of what I've heard mechanics charge for timing belt replacements ($500-600). In the end when you factor in the pulleys and valve cover gasket and the new socket it cost me almost four hundred dollars and took part of three days to do it (one half to do the timing belt, an half day to finish reassembly and try basic ways to tighten the crank-bolt, and about an hour and a half the third day to fight the pulley bolt and screws on pulley face). My advice? Unless you want to do the pulleys and extra parts/ projects... take the damn car in and pay a mechanic! Use this advice or don't but I hope it can save you even an hour if you take on this project yourself!
(It was a great learning experience but if I have this car in another 100,000 miles I will think hard before doing this project)
- First off the "How To" post by livelyjay is basically a bible for how to change a timing belt.
- Second, make sure you use the shop manual to do this if for no other reason than the torque settings for most of the bolts
- I didn't see this mentioned anywhere but to get the motor mount off you will need a deep socket 17mm socket. I don't believe it is possible to fit a wrench into the space and a standard socket isn't even close.
- Keeping the cams aligned is the hardest part for sure and we used the wine cork trick: wedge a wine cork between the two cam gears/ pulleys so that they can't move while putting the belt on if it sound frightening it really isn't the cork has no where to go, just make sure you remove it before starting your car!
- I read a few different ideas for how and when to attach the tensioner spring. We attached the spring before putting on the belt but while fighting to get the belt on the car we ended up over stretching the spring and making it completely useless. Best way we found was to attach the spring to the pulley and then bolt the pulley onto the car, put on the timing belt and then attach the spring to the stem on the engine (this wasn't exactly easy but if you are capable with your left hand and use pair of needle-nose pliers its totally doable).
- Tightening the crankshaft pulley bolt is a nightmare. Finding a method that worked took almost as long as the rest of the timing belt combined. We tried a belt wrench (see: chain wrench) but couldn't brace it tight enough, we were really reluctant to put anything through the power steering pulley for fear of damaging it or the power steering pump, and the proper tool to hold the pulley still wasn't available anywhere.
- The tip for putting the car in gear and standing on the brakes does probably work... for a manual. Unfortunately I have an automatic. Apparently you can open up the bell housing for the transmission and put a screwdriver in there but that was too terrifying to try. Ultimately we found a piece of plywood, drilled three holes: one for the crankshaft pulley bolt and the other two for the threaded holes on the face of the crankshaft pulley.
- I have no clue what thread size those two holes are on the pulley, I read on a different site that they were M8 size but they aren't... doesn't matter the thread. I believe that they are 5/16th sized with a fine thread (24 or 28) but I couldn't find that bolt anywhere (literally no where in town had the 5/16th with fine thread!) so unfortunately I actually cross threaded a coarse thread M8 bolt in a few turns (I know I know I am bad!!!) to hold the wood in place, braced the plywood against the ground by lowering it with a jack until I had a completely flat surface (the wood wasn't supporting the car it was merely braced against the ground) and was finally able to tighten the bolt to manual specs (120 ft-lb).
I had my dad help with this project as he had done a few timing belts in other cars and figured he would have some tips (the wine cork was his idea) with two of us working on it (we also replaced the tensioner pulley, idler pulley, and valve cover gasket) it took roughly 7 hrs of labor for the timing belt and accessories and another three to four hours of labor to trial and error and manufacture a way to tighten the crankshaft pulley. I did this project thinking that I could do it for about 1/2 of what I've heard mechanics charge for timing belt replacements ($500-600). In the end when you factor in the pulleys and valve cover gasket and the new socket it cost me almost four hundred dollars and took part of three days to do it (one half to do the timing belt, an half day to finish reassembly and try basic ways to tighten the crank-bolt, and about an hour and a half the third day to fight the pulley bolt and screws on pulley face). My advice? Unless you want to do the pulleys and extra parts/ projects... take the damn car in and pay a mechanic! Use this advice or don't but I hope it can save you even an hour if you take on this project yourself!
(It was a great learning experience but if I have this car in another 100,000 miles I will think hard before doing this project)
