Timing belt install help needed

[BigTyla]

I'm having a problem installing the timing belt on my 1G with a balance shaft delete. I have all of the timing belt install tools from Jay Racing to help me out, so I align the cam marks (with the dowel pins pointing up) and insert the cam keeper tool. Then I align the crank gear to TDC and point the arrow on the oil pump gear to its proper location (even though it's not necessary with the BSD). Then I put the belt on, starting with the cams and putting clips on the belt and cams to hold the belt in place, then around the idler pulley, oil pump gear, crank gear, and finally the tensioner pulley. Everything is properly aligned until I go to tighten the tensioner pulley. When I rotate it clockwise, it provokes a similar rotation on the crank gear, so by the time I have the tensioner pulley fully fastened, the crank gear is just a hair past TDC, so when I set the hydraulic tensioner and rotate the crank six revolutions, the timing is off by a tooth.

Any ideas on a remedy? I've spent at least four hours over two days trying to get this right and I'm very frustrated at this point. Maybe I should pull the cam keeper tool after securing the timing belt to the cams with clips? I've tried offsetting the cam gears by one tooth beforehand but that didn't work.

Funny how much experience I have working on cars and I can't get the timing on this one right!

[97SPYDER210]

I had the same problem it's the oil gear. It's loose so when you try to wrap the the belt the gear rotates back try it again these time when working the belt around the oil gear keep pressure on the gear with a socket then around the crank. After its around the crank hold on to the belt bc it will slip back.

It does these bc of the bsd.

[WES_393]

1. Your cams are off. The marks need to be the closest two teeth on the gears. Both marks need to move up.

2. The belt slack between the crank and oil pump is way too much. How I install the belt is cam gears first and then secure them with clips. Then wrap the belt around the oil pump and use the oil pump to tighten the slack. Then, wrap the belt around the crank and set the tensioner pulley. If your concerned about oil pump timing then set the oil pump sprocket 1 tooth back. It will be in time once you use the oil pump sprocket to tighten the slack.

[born2tune]

well I just did mine, and the steps i took was like so and it worked:
1-use your plastic cam gear tool to lock them in place.
2- ensure your tensioner pulley bolt is snug but loose.
3-install the hydraulic tensioner long bolt to keep it in place (only to install the belt, then remove long bolt after belt is in place but dont do additional work with that long bolt in there)
4- install your belt in a clockwise manner starting from the exhaust cam gear, int cam gear(you might have to move the intake gear a hair counterclockwise to grab the belt tightly), idle pulley, oil pump gear then crank sprocket, this way the slack ends where the tensioner is.
extra tip is when you are moving the belt around the oil pump move the gear an extra tooth counter clockwise from time mark. then at the crank, you may want to turn it very slightly counterclockwise to make the belt catch a tooth extra to make sure it grabs all the slack, at this point it will naturally pull the oil pump gear clockwise back into time, and tight.
--- now remove the cam gear plastic holder---
5-verify the tensioner pulley dots/holes are on the parallel to the ground
now apply 2.6ftlbs of tension counterclockwise to increase the belt tension, now without moving your hand from that torque wrench you must torque the tensioner pulley bolt to 36 ftlbs.

rotate the crank clockwise untill the dowel pins are up again and the crank sprocket is lined up,
another tip is that i put a 1/4 inch drive 12" extension inside the no1 sprkplug hole so when i rotate the crank i can verify true top dead center by watching the extension rise to its fullest when all marks are aligned. hope this helps.

oh, and when everything is set and done check the hydraulic tensioner length i believe it 3.8mm to 4.5mm, this will insure you have torqued the tensioner pulley correctly, if torqued wrong the hydraulic tensioner will be reading an out of tolerance length.

[NHerron]

*I just noticed it seems there are some different bolts holding the hydraulic tensioner in place. You may want to stick with the special OEM bolts because they center the tensioner perfectly. Otherwise it won't end up in the correct spot

Memorize this tip from the 4g63 timing belt tips link and you'll be golden. Even though the marks may seem to line up with the cylinder head deck, the pair of marks are actually a tad bit higher (hard to notice at first)

"Important note from VFAQ (step 33 of 2g) that I want to repeat here: NOTE: THE EXHAUST CAMSHAFT SPROCKET MAY ROTATE IN THE COUNTERCLOCKWISE DIRECTION AS THE BELT IS TENSIONED. THIS SHOULD BE CONSIDERED WHEN INSTALLING THE TIMING BELT. If the camshaft sprocket timing marks don't line up after tensioning the belt with all the other timing marks lined up, loosen the belt and retension it, but try rotating the exhaust sprocket slightly clockwise (1 tooth off) first."

[born2tune]

I noticed how you put the plastic cam lock tool upside down, which will throw everything off, also the slack on the oil pump to crank gear is a tooth too much, follow my steps and you will fix these issues.

[DSM1G90]

Two 17mm wrenches and two bulldog clips works wonders also to hold the belt over the cams ...

I used a 17mm socket and a 17mm box end wrench...

You set the marks up, put the belt over the sprockets, take the clips to hold the belt on the sprockets and half of your work is done.

All right there in VFAQ .. how I did mine...

DSM

[BigTyla]

Thanks guys. I thought there might have been something wrong with the timing of the cams since there's a line on the cam keeper tool that seems to indicate where the timing marks should be. Didn't realize you could put the tool upside down! I'll fix that.

Also, I did notice the slack in the belt between the oil and crank gears, but I just couldn't figure out how to solve it. Good to know that the BSD can cause this problem. I'll use the methods outlined above to solve this.

Thanks for pointing out the non-OEM bolts on the tensioner. I didn't even think about that. One more screw-up from the previous owner I have to fix. Any idea on the part number for those bolts or do they come with a new tensioner?

[born2tune]

STM: OEM MITSUBISHI 4G63 HYDRAULIC TENRIONER BOLTS | 90-99 DSM | EVO VIII-IX | MD129350

here, and here md 129350 welcome.

[BigTyla]

Thanks! I knew STM sold tensioners but I must have overlooked the bolts they sell. Given the shady history of this car I might just bite the bullet and get a new tensioner even though I was told this one is relatively new.

[born2tune]

Originally Posted by BigTyla

Thanks! I knew STM sold tensioners but I must have overlooked the bolts they sell. Given the shady history of this car I might just bite the bullet and get a new tensioner even though I was told this one is relatively new.

Buying a new one is always a fail safe measure. But costly at times.
U should look into buying a solid tensioner as an option. I believe kiggly racing makes it, but I can't remember. Anyways -good luck with your build.

If u need any advise or help keep posting, that way others may benefit from the info.

[BigTyla]

Thanks for the help! I'll look into solid tensioners later if I decide to make this car more race-oriented down the road.

I was able to get the timing belt on properly. Thanks guys!