This is my first thread on this forum, but I've been benefiting from all of the knowledge of this site for a while.

Here's my problem...

Yesterday, after spending 18 hours on my first timing belt job for my 2000 4runner V6...I cranked her up and it sounded like there was a bird in my engine AKA the timing belt is loose. Here's what happened...

When I installed the belt everything was at TDC, the cam marks were all lined up with the marks on the belt, the top crankshaft mark was lined up with the oil pump however the right side crankshaft mark was off.

Here's a pic to remind us what it's supposed to look like:




So mine looked like the first picture, but for the side mark, the line on the belt was maybe 4 teeth or so lower than the mark on the crank timing gear which means I would have to give more slack to the WP side. BUT, the belt was so tight on the tensioner side that when I pulled the pin out of the tensioner it didn't even move and I could push the pin back into the tensioner. Also, the belt was looser on the WP side and I would be making it more loose if I could align it right...

So questions:
1. Is my tensioner bad?
2. Are the belt marks wrong? It is a gates belt.
3. Tell me why I'm a noob!

Thanks in advance!!

 

Line up your marks on the pulleys, Ignore the belt. Then Rotate the crank two revolutions and verify your pulley marks line up.

 

The link in the first post of this thread may help.

 

Just a FYI the belt is a pia take the pully off between the cam gears up top get all the marks lined up then put the belt on again it's tight as hell lol after belt is on and lined up put that pully on easiest way I found to do it good luck

 

So I think your timing is fine, but do the check suggested above. The belt marks mean nothing after initial installation. I don't see how a loose toothed belt that did not slip at all could ever make a 'bird in the engine.' My bet is your TB is fine, and the 'bird' is due to an accessory belt that you failed to tighten. Try running the engine with no accessory belts on and see if the bird dies. Are you using new accessory belts?

Is the TB still loose? It takes the tensioner a while to fully pressure the belt.

 

my bet is you're fine also; the belt marks throws everyone off at first. the cam/pulley markings are the important ones after the initial line up of the belt on install.

lot's of help on here, ask away, no worries! I had a debacle that also involved the timing belt and got a flood of support. Gotta love YT

The tensioner, if it wasn't causing a problem before, it's probably not now either, assuming all else is equal. (yes, assume is a dangerous word...)

hope you're back up and running

 

So...I wasn't planning on ripping the front of the engine apart until next Sunday, but I checked the drive belts. I tightened up the drive belts a little and realized that the fan on the front was really loose. I tightened the fan down, cranked her up and the engine sounds normal!!! Good news!!

Here's my question though: When I put the timing belt on, I never rotated the engine twice to double check everything was still aligned right. Should I do this before I call the job done???

Thanks so much guys!

 

Probably a good idea for peace of mind.

 

That's not what I want to hear...Ha! I guess I will do that tomorrow night...

 

I would just get the crank to TDC using the ignition timing marks. Then check your cam timing by cracking the front top cover. If those look fine, and motor runs fine, you are good to go. No need to tear things apart.

 

How do I do that? What are the ignition timing marks?

 

http://tacoma.site40.net/4Runner_96-...gntim/insp.pdf

1. Read this.

2. Look at last diagram.

3. Get a wrench on crank bolt and turn (clockwise from front) so notch is at zero (not 10) as seen in Step 2. If cam marks aren't visible, spin crank another 360°.

 

Okay. So if the notch is at 0 that is TDC or 360 degrees from TDC?

 

It's TDC, period, which is both 0° and 360° . You just don't know if it is compression stroke or exhaust stroke. Cam marks only line up on compression stroke. The camshafts (but not the crank) are at 180° on exhaust stroke when crank is at TDC.

 

Got it! I'm going to check everything this afternoon. Hopefully everything is perfect!

 

Okay so everything was not perfect. It was about a tooth off so I re-did the job last night. Ha! So it turns out that I had put the belt on backwards...(right cam mark on left cam). There was not front arrow, so I thought that the arrows on the crank gear line where to be pointing in when instead they are to be pointing at the mark on the timing gear. Well I must say that I've learned a lot, and now she is back on the road.

One question though, when I started it up the engine sounded great. Then I took it for a test drive and went up a big hill to be sure I had good power, etc. and when I park it and listened to the engine again there was a clicking noise close to the driver, kinda by the master cylinder...any thoughts?

Thanks again for all the help!

 

Great on getting the timing belt set correctly.

Do you have any electrical relays in the area the clicking sound was coming from?

 

clicking is evap solenoid. Don't worry, its doing its job.

 

Thanks Vital.....forgot about that evap solenoid being in the area.

 

hmm...I've just never noticed it before. It sounds more like its coming from the engine itself.