I have an 02 TL 3.2L that the water pump just recently went out. I did the huge mistake of not setting my timing correctly before removing the belt. Granted I've worked on cars for about 30 yrs as a side gig, but never have I ever had to work on timing. And it's just been kinda basic stuff like tune ups, oil changes, brakes, replacement of gaskets, etc. So when my water pump went out...i was like no biggie, i can change it out in no time (i had just changed my son's water pump a week prior on his impala). Then when I researched it...i found out it was timing belt driven and freaked out!!! So when I started out I did make sure front cam was set at the tdc #1 marking....after that everything went out the window. My crank is at the 1 o'clock position and it looks like my rear cam is at the 6 o'clock. Any suggestions as to what I should do or how to approach this the easiest way possible. I'd hate to screw my car up due to a rookie mistake. Help me plz

 

I've done this before with my old single cam, honda civic engine. The only safe route I see here:

1. remove the intake manifold
2. remove the valve covers (both)
3. remove the cam journals, this will move all valves into the closed position so that you can perform the next step without damaging any internals
4. re-time your crankshaft to the correct position
5. re-time your cams to the right position (when they are not being held down by the journals)
6. reinstall the cam journals (per the camshaft reinstall instructions in the manual)
7. install timing belt
8. manually crank engine through several rotations to ensure timing is correct.

 

Thanks for the help...I will attempt today!! 🤞🤞🤞

 

What do you suggest using to hold the timing gears in place when removing the belt? Would a clamp do the trick, or do you use something else?

 

My understanding is that you've already loosened the belt tensioner with the timing in the wrong spot i.e the belt is already loose and can be easily removed. if you are very gentle with how you're touching the cams when removing the belt you should be alright.

If you're not comfortable with touching the belt near the cams at this point, leave it there while you loosen the CAM journal caps.Loosening the camshafts so that if they can be re-timed independently without colliding is key. Aim to get the cams lifted off the valves first , re-time the crank, re-time the cams, tighten down journals (per sequence in the service manual) and then re-install the timing belt.

the trickiest part is avoiding the cams slipping one way or another before / after journals are tightened down...

When re-installing the timing belt, there is an order here as well and it is important as you can't really be moving the cams to get the right number of belt teeth between the cams.

Hope this helps...

 

hi Mwhite,

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