When adjusting the tension of the timing belt on a 1996 Accord (F22B2 2.2L) I rotate the crankshaft counter clockwise with a ratchet (spark plugs are in). Should I rotate 3 camshaft teeth and tighten the adjuster while still putting tension on the crankshaft ratchet or should I let go of the crankshaft ratchet and then tighten the adjuster? Having tension on the ratchet does affect the position of the tensioner.

 

no where in the helms or touringaccords guide does it say to leave tension on crankshaft, i would assume u let go and then tigthen the adjuster screw, many people say to just push up on the tension with out any muscle and tigthen the adjuster screw and ten check for play, but im pretty sure u just leave the tension off the crankshaft.

But we see what others say, so free bump!

 

well, I never really thought of that or looked at that so I can't say if it affected the tensioner position on any of the ones I did or not. With that said though, I've never done it that way on any of the timing belts I've done and I haven't had any problems. So I would say you'll be fine to let go of the ratchet thats on the crankshaft and tighten the adjusting nut.

 

I'd continue to hold the crankshaft as you tighten the tensioner. You left the spark plugs in, so if you stop at certain points, the crank will turn back a bit when you let go. If the plugs are removed, the crank doesn't tend to do that...

 

ah, I missed that

yeah, I always remove the spark plugs to make turning the crank easier.

 

I ended up removing the plugs to do it. The belt did have more tension doing it with the plugs in than without. The 1st time I did it, with more tension, I could feel the engine vibrating more through the gas pedal and steering wheel. Also there was a little more noise from under the timing cover, a slight whine and another noise which was probably the water pump, especially after the car was run for a while, 30+ mins. After tension was reduced so were all these symptoms.

 

yeah, a whine from the timing belt area is a typical sign of the timing belt being too tight.

 

could it strongly be heard around the far right fuel injector around where timing cover is?

 

I haven't heard it lately, but it seemed to be coming from the water pump area, but it was tough to tell. The other noise, the whine, seemed to be more towards the cam.

 

boo, won't it stretch or become broken in to said tension, i love the whine, makes vtec sound like it "spools"