My Timing belt installation with pics!

[vicvega]

Well here is my first post. I did use some posts from here as reference along with the shop manual. I am mechanically inclined and my dad being a mechanic also helps a lot. Ive done chains and belts in the past but this was my first dohc.

**** This is not for the faint of heart just so you know****

Well here goes
Took off the coils

Unplugged the harness partially

Then took off the valve cover

Removed the splash guard engine cover

Note bolt locations

Now the compressor and crankshaft pulley are visible

Don’t forget this little clip

Next I removed the crankshaft pully bolt. I placed the breaker bar on the bolt and secured it on the lower control arm the turned the ignition key and it loosened on the first tap of the key

Then before removing the serpentine belts I loosened the water pump pulley bolts

I then started to loosen the compressor

Then I started to loosen the alternator. This was done from top and below the car

Just for reference I took a photo of the serpentine belts

I then proceeded to remove the upper timing belt cover

Then I proceeded to remove the lower timing cover. Take not of the three bolts

Then I removed the cam position sensor

I took a pic of the spring, tensioner and idler pulley for reference

I proceeded to position the the cam gears to the correct position to TDC however in the shop manual it indicates that the left cam cam gear “ Mark I” and the right cam gear “Mark E” should be at the top. Mine didn’t exactly match however I knew I was at TDC since I verified it by doing two things.
1. I verified that the pulley boss notch was facing upward or at 12 oclock
2. I took off the spark plug from #1 piston and put a screwdriver in to make sure it was TDC
See photos describing visuals
Timing marks are where they should be. I did notice a notch in the the gears also faced each other

Here you can see pulley boss timing mark facing top or 12 oclock

Here is the screwdriver at TDC

I then secured both cams with an adjustable wrench and wrench clamped down by a vise grip to ensure that they would not move when I removed the belt and worked on the other stuff. My dad gave me the idea and I had also seen it on another post

Notice the top of the belt has a bit of slack

I made marks on the belt to match to the new one and this should ensure the belt is properly mounted.

I had to remove the motor mount in order to remove the belt!
Since I was replacing the water pump I drained the coolant. The drain plug is under the radiator a plastic Phillips head screw. I unscrewed the radiator cap to allow the coolant to flow freely
At this point I removed the idler, tensioner, water pump and crankshaft seal.

Reassembly

Installed new crankshaft seal and water pump.
Installed new idler pulley
I matched the old belt to the new and painted the marks on the new belt from the old belt making sure all the teeth were properly aligned
I installed the new belt matching the marks on the gears
Belt with marks

New belt on. Note marks on belt and gears

Then I proceeded to install the tensioner. I did not tighten tensioner until you hook up the spring.
Then with an allen wrench in the tensioner I applied the most pressure towards the ensuring there was no slack anywhere on the belt. Once it was tightened, I repositioned the allen wrench again to apply more pressure, loosened the tensioner and applied more pressure then tighten the tensioner again
Be sure to take note of the position of the spring before removal since I believe it goes on a certain way.
Then I proceded to reassemble everything back in the reverse order.
Its always a good idea to either label everything or take pics for reference.

Old belt.
Im wondering if this is the original belt?

Here are all the old parts replaced

This is to be used as reference at your own risk. This is how I did it and it may help someone trying to save a few buck and do it themselves. Take your time as you and have patience and in the end it will pay off.

 

[pw~mp5]

Great writeup. Awesome pics make it easy to follow.

 

[vicvega]

I read many threads on here about recommendations on how to do this and what parts to use but I guess I will be the guinea pig since I used the following parts:

Dayco Timing belt
Dayco Tensioner, Idler Puller and Spring
Bosch water pump - New
Fel-pro Crank Shaft seals and oil pump gasket.
If any of these fail I would be posting up on it. However I have used these products on other applications in the past with no problems whatsoever

I didn't do the oil pump or the cam seals but now that Ive done the work I know exactly what to do and it shouldn't take me more than two hours tops to get back in there and out if I had to.

 

[wmoesser]

when is it recommended that we change our timing belts?

 

[meGrimlock]

when is it recommended that we change our timing belts?

according to the owner's manual:
for 3rd gen protege, schedule 2; inspect at 60,000 miles, replace at 105,000 miles

this is by far the best set of pictures, i wish i had done it myself. i had to cobble together a few different walk throughs from this site but ended up taking it to the dealer cuz of time/laziness.

i asked the dealer to replace the idler puller, tensioner, spring, crank seals, none of which they actually did. instead they replaced my accessory belts which were only a few months old, replaced the timing belt, and called it a day.(bang)

 

[vicvega]

according to the owner's manual:
for 3rd gen protege, schedule 2; inspect at 60,000 miles, replace at 105,000 miles

this is by far the best set of pictures, i wish i had done it myself. i had to cobble together a few different walk throughs from this site but ended up taking it to the dealer cuz of time/laziness.

i asked the dealer to replace the idler puller, tensioner, spring, crank seals, none of which they actually did. instead they replaced my accessory belts which were only a few months old, replaced the timing belt, and called it a day.(bang)

Thanks. Ive learned from my own experience from collecting information on the forums first and second to try to provide the simplest explanation and best possible photos to help anyone out there that may want to be a do it yourselfer. I wish I could provide more pics. I hit a few snags but nothing major.

 

[Sport23]

subbin. Well done write up!

 

[destineal]

thx 4 the write up

 

[MSP2024]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6lJ_3yw_Tc
sorry to thread jack but there is a vid of this too

 

[super1chow]

Nice! This is very helpful!

 

[91Protege]

Its a very easy belt to do, The spring is whats actually supposed to tension the belt, with the allen you might make it too tight and caus the belt to be loud. I used the dayco stuff all the time at work(mechanic) I like gates myself too, Yea 100k is when most belts are do, unless its a kia, and its usually broken by then lol. Looks like that belt was done already, most times the dealer only does the belt, not even the pulleys or anything under there, then they can get you back later for it.

 

[vicvega]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6lJ_3yw_Tc
sorry to thread jack but there is a vid of this too

This video is great and very detailed since it covers from head gasket to timing belt. Didnt show anything about the water pump or oil pump just the water pump pulley but its fairly easy to work on these motors. I dreaded fwd cars since some are a pita to work on but I would take this motor apart and rebuild it myself if I had to. And yes it seems that the belt on my motor was done but since I had no clue as to when and what they did or didnt do I didnt want to chance being stuck somewhere due to timing belt failure. Then again nothing's guaranteed

 

[pablosqy]

nice write up! ill use this in few days =s ill change it myself!

 

[low rider luis]

Success

Hi.

I used your method and photos and was able to get the job done withe ease. The car has 99,504 miles on it but runs like new. I really appreciate all the work you did to put this info together. Again, thanks a lot and Happy Holidays.

 

[vicvega]

I'm glad that my post was of help!

 

[jerry.stoangi]

Great thread, helped me out alot!

 

[SeR_Cyclops]

I always use Gates belts. I feel they are the best.