Hey guys, I took the timing belt off the cam in the process of changing my head gasket. Before doing so, I put a mark on the timing belt and the cam so that when I put the belt back back on, it will be in the exact same position in relation to the cam.

After putting the belt back on and turning the crank, the original marks on the came and timing belt don't ever line back up. Is that normal or did I screw something up? TIA.

Edit: It was at TDC when I marked it and took it off.

 

Apart for the marks you made. The crankshaft and cam gear are lining his respective timing marks?

http://www.2carpros.com/forum/automo...k99Civic_1.jpg

 

The crank rotates twice for every cam rotation. So the marks on the cam gear and the marks on the crank will only line up 1 out of 2 rotations.

If they don't line up for 1/2 of the rotations, remove the belt again and put it back on with the marks all lined up where they should be.

Crank set at TDC
Cam mark set at UP...with the two lines lined up to the head surface.

 

You have to rotate the crankshaft two times before you come back to TDC.

Did you retension the timing belt according tho the FSM (3 teeth counterclockwise, then lock the tensioner).

 

Also...only rotate the motor counter clockwise after setting timing.

 

Facing the cam and crank pulleys with both perfectly positioned at TDC1, install the timing belt so that there is no slack in the timing belt on the left side.

 

Yep, marks on crank and cam are both still lined up.

I didn't undo the tensioner. I just slid the belt off the cam.


No matter how many times I turn the crank, my original marks don't line up.

So set it at TDC again, make sure the marks on the cam and crank are both lined up, take the belt off and put it back on?

 

Yes, but take belt off and then set the cam and crank set to TDC1, then install belt so that there is no slack whatsoever on the far left side ([1] to [4]).

 

So I adjust the crank and cam independently when the belt is off right?

So if I'm understanding right, this is what my plan is (I'm unsure about step 3 below):

1. Set the cam to TDC.
2. Slide off the timing belt.
*3.Turn the crank counter clockwise until its mark is lined up. (Do I have to turn it a certain number of times or is one rotation enough?)
4. Slide the belt back on with no slack on the left side.

Also should I mark it again to double check and does my original mark matter anymore?

 

1. Remove timing belt.
2. Do steps 1 and 2 below.
3. Install timing belt as I mentioned (your step 4).
4. Rotate crank pulley 2 revolutions (counterclockwise ONLY).
5. Verify cam and crank are still at TDC1.

 

To your #3 question, TDC is TDC, you don't need to rotate it a certain number of times.

I think people are missunderstanding your original question. Correct me if I'm wrong.

You marked the belt in relation to the cam gear with a paint marker or something similar, removed the belt and reinstalled lining "your marks" up. You rotated the engine and "your marks" didn't line up.

If this is the case who knows how many revolutions it would take for the cam, crank and "your marks" would all line back up. If the timing marks on the pullies line up after you rotate the engine, that's all that matters.

 

Mr. Nub, you are 100% correct about my original question. "My marks" aren't lining up after rotating the engine so I got concerned.

I just triple checked (before doing anything) and the cam gear is at perfectly lined up and so is the crank marks (I was wrong when I said it was past the mark earlier). So am I good to go as it is?

 

All of my comments are based on the following statement in your first post:

If this^ information is WRONG, please edit your first post to correct it.

 

Sorry for the confusion. I've edited the first so that it's more clear (hopefully). I truly do appreciate your responses and advise. Is nub's assessment correct?

 

If you made marks yourself on the belt....forget about them.

As long as the cam and crank marks from Honda line up in the right spots, the engine is timed.

The fact that you slid the belt on/off without un doing the tensioner points to other issues. Maybe you pried up on the belt with a screwdriver to get it on or the belt is so stretched that it comes off and on at will.

Neither are good scenarios. You really should do a timing belt, water pump, and tensioner while all this is apart. Rock auto sells gates kits for like $60something, IIRC.

 

I wouldn't say it slid off with ease but it did slide off. And I did have to push up a little with a screwdriver to get it back on but I covered it with some cardboard to not damage the belt (too much).

It really isn't apart anymore as I put most of it back together yesterday. Can I just tighten the tensioner or something? This whole thing has taken way too much time and I'm over working on it. Thanks.

 

It's a spring tensioner. Turn the engine to TDC. loosen the 14mm bolt for the tensioner. Turn the engine counter clockwise like 2-3 teeth. Then tighten the tensioner bolt back up.

Your belt will most likely snap fairly soon. A belt like the one you're describing is pretty old and stretched. You stretched it more by prying on it....and you pried on it. Probably got oil on it while you were working on it.

I would recommend a belt, water pump, and tensioner change. But...its your car, brohemoth.

 

FML! Yeah, there was some oil on the outside of the belt. There's only about 40k miles on this belt. Is it still bad? What happens if the belt snaps while you're driving and how often does that happen?

 

Oil should never be on the belt. It's taken a long time as you said already, what happens when the timing belt fails? Even more time!

Do it right the first time and will save $$ and a big headache down the road.

 

The life of a OEM belt is 100k miles. Aftermarket belt life varies. If your belt was pried back onto the cam with a screw driver, it *might* be damaged. If you got a little oil on it working on it, it will take some time to deteriorate...but that's not a big worry by itself. Again...I'm speculating about your belt via the internet. There may be no issues with it.

But...I'm not sure why you wouldn't undo the belt tension before taking it off or putting it on. I can't imagine how much it sucked to pry the belt on without moving the crank or cam gear by mistake.

If your belt snaps while driving, you could bend or chip a valve...or in bad cases, do more damage than that.

 

Because I'm a noob and don't know what I'm doing and didn't want to mess with more things than I thought I needed to. And because I watched some videos on youtube and they said to just slide it off.

It is a Honda belt so I'm just going to leave it and roll the dice. I appreciate everyone's input

 

for what its worth when I got my 97 it had a blown HG that I had to replace. I couldnt get the darn crank pully off and ended up doing the pry and pray method of sliding the belt off and back on. 10K miles later and its still running like a champ. and now that I posted this its gonna snap on me next week...

 

Mine ran after prying and re-tensioning for a while. I refused to replace the belt because I refused to buy a B series till my belt snapped. Well...it snapped not too long after lol.