Timing belt shifted by two teeth??

[Clifford Pope]

You need to check very carefully that there is no dirt on the plate surface nor on the engine preventing it from sitting evenly.

Also remember that if you remove the tensioner, to clean it up or replace, the belt will be loose and may take the opportunity to slip a tooth. It is dodgy doing that with the lower cover in place, because you can't see the timing marks to check. What I've done (also when removing the camshaft sprocket) is to rig up a bit of string to keep the belt tensioned firmly against the lower two sprockets.
(You can put a dab of snopake on the cam sprocket and belt so you can tell if that one has moved)

[gloupemilia]

Hello, news from Toulouse!
Today, I had some time to work on my car. I put a new belt tensioner; it was better, but not perfect, still the belt on the edge of the cam pulley?? On top of the warped tensioner, it looks like a washer is missing behind the pulley, it is not aligned with the others?? I dismounted everything and I understood: the disrtibution and cam pulleys are very similar, but not identical... I swapped them and everything went fine!

The rest went OK. Then comes the moment when you turn on the engine for the first time... and it starts perfectly!! I followed the gasket manufacturer's specification and kept it runing till it gets hot and stopped for it to cool down (4 hours, they say...).

Looking forward to test it on the road...

By the way, no need to re-tighten the head cylinders bolt after a few hundreds km?

[Clifford Pope]

Originally Posted by gloupemilia

Then comes the moment when you turn on the engine for the first time... and it starts perfectly!!

I know, it's a heart-stopping moment.
Have I remembered everything?
Are all the bolts tight?
Is the belt really going to stay centred, or veer off suddenly and flay itself to bits?
I've lost one of the screws holding the cowl to the radiator. Did I drop it down the timing cover - perhaps it is sitting on the crank sprocket waiting to jam in the belt?

[gloupemilia]

A heart-stopping moment... but a great one finally when it starts perfectly!
Given the number of things I had to unscrew, disassemble... The dirt I had to clean out everywhere (250.000km makes SO MUCH dirt in the intake... amazing)... and the head cylinder gasket tightening, always a stressful moment... and on top this belt story!

I went for a 1 hour test drive, it runs very well. It is less noisy, less vibrating than before -- the two teeth shift?? No smoke, no overheat... I don't say victory yet, but it looks good.

[gloupemilia]

A hundred km after: the engine is running fine, no smoke, no noise... BUT... there is a small oil leak on the head cylinder head . A few drops on the rear of the engine, left hand side when facing the engine.

Apart from the timing belt story (no link I guess), I had a doubt when tightening the bolts. I followed the instructions (2, then 3, then 6 kg.m + 90°, in spiral, oiled bolts) but at one point I had a doubt that my torque wrench was well calibrated, it didn't seem so difficult to tighten...

Do you think I could try to tighten a little more, let's say 45° more?

[Bugjam1999]

Are you absolutely sure it’s the headgasket that’s leaking? The rocker cover gaskets are prone to leaking meaning oil runs downwards from the top of the engine...

[gloupemilia]

Almost sure... you're right I'll double check before.

[AlexO]

I'll second what Bugjam1999 says. I replaced my rocker cover gasket last year and it still leaks like an absolute sieve and causes a mess of the left of the engine.

A good way to check is to run a fresh piece of tissue along the left hand long edge of the rocker cover (when looking at the engine) after running the engine for a little while, it'll be pretty obvious if it's leaking.

Hope that helps,

Alex

[Clifford Pope]

I agree. It's very difficult to get a perfect seal on the valve cover gasket.
The problem I suspect is where it rises to go over the end camshaft bearing blocks. The sharp kinks at the 4 upturns are a weak point.
Wherever the oil leaks from, it can track along the edge of the gasket unseen, but always appears at the back left because of the engine tilt.

Oil can also seep out of the filler cap. I'm never convinced that the washer is being firmly squeezed enough. I've tried several spare caps until I've found one that seems a bit better. Can the plastic washer be replaced?

[Bugjam1999]

^yes, the rubber seal can be replaced, I’ve replaced mine. Order direct from Volvo.