Just got done replacing my cam phase plates, as they keyways broke, the cams themselves were fine. I know "how" to set the timing, but i'm having an issue with actually getting the chain to sit properly on the crank gear. The top is easy to set to TDC and have the phase plates/cam marks/dots line up etc, the issue comes when I put the chain on the crank gear. With the crank gear at TDC the black link is a tooth or less to short to line up, if I turn the crank gear more i'm off TDC. This chain was fine a week ago, but here's what I happened: I picked up the intake cam w/VTC gear to move it to a safer location, as I was putting it down with the VTC gear in my hand the gear turned(don't know which way) NOT the keyway but turned the way it would if it were retarding/advancing. I can't move it anymore now, I feel like it's what's stopping me from actually being able to get that extra half tooth. Is tere a way to unlock the VTC gear by hand. Again with the cams etc set to TDC the black link should be able to reach the marked tooth on the crank gear but it cant! if I want it to, I have to take the top out of TDC or have a HUGE amount of slack on the intake side.


The pics below are how it sits now, which is the closest it will sit without blatantly setting it a tooth off, it's throwing VTC phase gap in k-pro. again I know this isn't adequate but it won't sit right anymore I think the VTC gear moving had something to do, as we had it sitting perfectly before.

 

Take a breath B_Swapped... now, forget the VTC gear... rotate the cam gears to the proper TDC marks (don't be afraid to use your TDC alignment dowel pins), place the chain on the cams with the colored links in the proper places, gently remove the slack out of the chain on the Intake side, then attempt to place the final colored link on the dotted tooth of the crank gear. IF you can't get it there, move the crankshaft slightly so that the colored link and the marked tooth meet. Now, without moving anything... install the exhaust side chain guide and bolt on the tensioner. Finally, release the tensioner. Last but not least... remove your dowel pins and DO NOT move anything counter-clockwise. You will be in proper mechanical time, and when you crank up the car, the VTC gear will move back to its proper index.

 

1st pic is what it looks like with lining everything up 100%, the chain will not fit, it looks like it could but as you go towards the intake side you can see it being more and more off. 2nd pic is me turning the gear clockwise just a bit so the punched tooth is straddled by the black link(how it's supposed to be). BUT see all the slack? that's impossible to eliminate without throwing the block out of time by too much and I won't get into what happens going counter-clock. Then I go to spin it with all that slack, before anything even moves all that slack is picked up by the tensioner, spinning the gear out of time as seen in the 3rd pic, pls note the top is still kept in TDC despite all this. All that slack CAN NOT be eliminated WITHOUT the bottom getting out of time one way or another it just dictates which way it goes out(dot to the left or right of arrow). NOTE: in the 3rd pic where he block out of time, all that slack is now gone... but the block can't be at TDC without all that slack again if I want no slack? the block has to be out of time. Want the block in timr? we'll there's tons of slack that can't be removed.


YES all the guides were in place before spinning it, just not at the time of the pic, the slack is so bad even with the guides it looks the same.

 

helms manual explains how to unlock vtc actuator