It is my first time replacing my stock engine's water pump and timing, and I would like to surely confirm if timing cam positions are correct.

I am concerned because even though I'm able to get the middle marks of both cams aligned the intake cam gear is not at a perfect 12 'o clock position like the exhaust cam (pls see picture). I also bought a cam lock tool that I am unable to place between the cams. I've tho watched and read info where many people do not need or use this tool, but I was surprised to be unable to fit it even with both cam marks aligned in the middle. Another reason to make sure my cams are correctly aligned. Already had searched but so hard to find anyone with similar question.



Fwiw I have aligned the crank with the marking on the oil pump housing and have also turned the crank counterclockwise several times with the timing belt on (not pictured) to make sure it still maintains same timing.

And both cam gear markings still align with each other along with the timing marks on the deck, but the intake cam still is not perfectly straight and pointing more to an 11 'o clock position than 12.





If I am able tighten t-belt tensioner with belt in place then align the single mark on the crank pulley with the mark on the lower plastic timing cover, would my engine be ready for me to properly set the ignition timing.

Sorry for noob question, I simply would like to make sure if it is normal for the intake cam to not be perfectly straight up 12 'o clock as my exhaust cam side is.

Thanks!

 

If you have stock cams use the alignment holes in the middle of the cam to lock them. On the cam caps there are little holes to put pins in that will lock the cams. I have never used that cam lock tool from ebay. I've done my belt like 50 times already. Only time it was off was when I accidently lined up the crank to the 3 timing marks instead of the TDC mark. It was really down on power I then reinstalled the belt and bam TORQUE. lol
Step 1 acquire helms manual and follow the procedure. It's literally all right there
Remove pins after installing belt. Make sure the tensioner is loose then place your hand on the belt on top of the exhaust gear and spin the crank a few cranks of the wrench and the belt will tighten up. Feel the tension on the belt to make sure its tight and then tighten the tensioner. Now spin the crank by hand a few full times until you are satisfied there is no piston to valve contact. Done.

 

Thank you for reiterating and also sharing helms scans.

Always nice to see references again. I do have the same printouts when I'm working on the car, but when I actually work it atleast for me it just looks and feels much different than on paper. Plus you have a bunch of other video recommendations that are a little different than the manual and sometimes easier.

Yea, I keep reading about people recommending placing an allen wrench inside the alignment holes in the middle of the cam to lock them. The only video I found was by Garage Built changing a T-belt on his b20 using something similar but I'm not sure where these cam holes are for a vtec engine. Sorry, I'm kind of slow. If someone can point it to me visually I will surely use this technique! :D


Yes, what I've followed is many people recommend rotating the crank counter clock by 3 teeth and feeling the firmness of belt on the exhaust side and making sure most of the slack is on the intake side then pushing on the belt tensioner and tightening to spec to tighten everything down.

I've done this but am still not confident the belt has enough tension because the off-center intake cam that is not completely showing the "top" indicator directly pointing at 12 'o clock.

This might actually be a tensioning issue based on another thread of someone going through something similar. The crank, middle and side timing marks on cams all match up at this point for me, it's just about making sure if I have the proper tension and if the intake cam's "top" indicator is not pointing straight up at 90 degrees would be okay.

btw I did place a wooden dowel in cylinder 1 and was able to visually verify TDC at current cam position.

Thanks for all the info!

 

Ok, got it. It's a tension issue.

For anyone having similar questions about similar b18c1 or b series cam positions as pictured above and just want to verify if this is actual TDC before setting ignition timing,

It was a matter of turning the crank 3 teeth then tightening the tensioner (not torque yet) by rotating 4 to 5 times the cam lock tool was able to lock the gears in place at TDC. Tensioner can then be torqued to 40lbs. Simply put, the reason cam lock tool wasn't able to be placed in the cam teeth for me and the intake cam is "off-center" is due to inadequate tension.

Once you properly apply tension to the belt after rotating the crank several times, it will be able to maintain TDC and cam gears and all timing marks will align with one another. If cams jump tooth or change positioning while you have already or are installing t-belt, you can always rotate them back into TDC position with a 14mm wrench and make sure the crank aligns with the mark on the oil pump casing. Repeat turning the crank to verify timing has been set and maintains position.

This thread helped me out- https://honda-tech.com/forums/acura-...align-2765991/

Thanks HT!