Hi All,

Just did valve clearance for the first time and noticed that the crankshaft pulley notch is about 3/4" right of the "0" indicator plate, when the camshaft pulley's 2 dots are at 12:00. Please see diagram below.

When I aligned the camshaft dots to 12:00, all 4 of the correct rocker arms were loose as explained in the FSM. (Intake/Exhaust #1 etc.). When I rotated the crankshaft 360 as per the FSM, the other 4 rocker arms were loose, just as the FSM describes.

From reading older posts, it looks like the harmonic balancer could be old and worn out, leading to this discrepancy. The FSM makes it seem like when the 2 dots on the camshaft pulley are at 12:00, the Notch in the Harmonic balancer should line up with the "0" mark. My engine has a small tick once warmed up, and I figured adjusting the valve clearances would fix this.

I also watched a video that said if the notch on the crankshaft pulley is less than an inch off, it doesnt matter much for adjusting the valves, as long as the camshaft dots are at 12:00. Is this true, or should I dive deeper into possibly replacing my camshaft pulley? Once again, my engine starts up and runs fine, minus the tiny tick at operating temp. Thanks guys.

 

Usually, we say the camshafts have "sprockets," and the crankshaft has both a sprocket and a harmonic balancer (the harmonic balancer hides the crank spocket). The "notch" to which you refer is on the harmonic balancer, and the harmonic balancer has v-belt grooves to drive accessories.

Many on this forum have reported a failed harmonic balancer, where the rubber annular ring has failed, and allowed the outer part (with the notch and the v-belt) to rotate versus the inner part (keyed to the crank). If that's your case, it's just a matter of time before you throw the balancer through the radiator. Your valves might be adjusted properly, but I would still check the harmonic balancer. This isn't trivial; the spec torque on the crankshaft bolt is 116 lb-ft, and you'll have to make a tool to keep the crank from turning when you wrench on the bolt.

 

Hey thanks for the reply and the all the good info. I will look up how to inspect the harmonic balancer, and put that down at the top of the list.

I've seen a few videos of guys removing them, and yeah, it looks like an ordeal. One dude made a tool out of some webbing, and another braced a breaker bar against the frame and cranked the engine.

 

Ah, yes. "Crank the engine." Pretty exciting, but once you get the bolt out, how are you going to get it back in? You still need (in the case of the 22re) to hit 116 lb-ft, so you still need a tool to keep the crank from turning.

I (obviously) am partial to this one: https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f116...h-3vze-137934/ That posting has descriptions of other very good (some more costly) methods as well. Your choice, just think ahead.

 

Are you using factory parts?

​​​​The camshaft dowel will line up with the arrow on the rocker tower @12, this is in the valley of the sprocker, and the sprocket dimple will be on the first tooth to your left of the dowel.

If you've lined up the dowel and dimple such that you have the imaginary line between them vertical you've way over shot. This means that both the dimple and dowel are to the left (your right) of the marks on the rocker tower. Something like one and a half to two teeth retarded.

Having these slightly out when adjusting your valves isn't a big concern since there is some overlapping time when the valves are both closed, albeit not ideal.

Having these slightly out when inserting your distributor or inspecting the position of the balancer marks is a big problem.

 

Just saw this, thank you for the info. I'm about to dig deeply into this, and it looks like I need to replace my harmonic balancer based of what Scope said, and will probably do the front main seal at the same time (?). I will do some searching for threads on this project. Any advice before I start searching?

 

Tightened bolt just fine on my 92 22RE in fifth gear, parking brake engaged, and wheels chocked.

Tiny tick on a 22RE? Mine ticks like a mofo, but it runs top notch.

 

Note the "fifth gear." Some get confused; if you leave it in first gear 116 lb-ft on the crank could pull it through the parking brake.

There are plenty of good methods (some described in my old post cited). Pick one out. My tool cost me all of $0.00 and I've used it on other make vehicles. Just think it through.

 

i take it the later 22re is different, ie, running flat, grooved belts vs v-belts and a harmonic balancer vs a plain pulley?