balance shaft belt only removal?

[spcebrd]

guys
I just got my hands on a 91 tsi awd. I had a bad oil leak and discovered that the front and real balance shafts are still in but no belt or tensioner. the leak was coming from the tensioner bolt hole which i plugged. so no more leak . My question is, are there any issues with leaving the front and rear shafts in? also I get no oil pressure on my gauge so I am replacing the sending unit this weekend, but now im wondering if it has to do with the shafts still being in the block. I know the gauge is ok cause I grounded it and it moves.
Any hwlp is appreciated.

 

[diambo4life]

guys
I just got my hands on a 91 tsi awd. I had a bad oil leak and discovered that the front and real balance shafts are still in but no belt or tensioner. the leak was coming from the tensioner bolt hole which i plugged. so no more leak . My question is, are there any issues with leaving the front and rear shafts in? also I get no oil pressure on my gauge so I am replacing the sending unit this weekend, but now im wondering if it has to do with the shafts still being in the block. I know the gauge is ok cause I grounded it and it moves.
Any hwlp is appreciated.

You need to drop the oil pan, remove the balance shafts and install the elimination kit if it's not already in there.

Go to www.vfaq.com and follow the BS elimination procedure. You have to completely remove the shafts or re-install the belt. You just cannot leave them in there without the belt. I wouldn't be surprised if your oil pump was trashed from someone else's sloppy work.

 

[spcebrd]

I checked out that link already. Thanks
If the front shaft is rotated with the belt, it wont rotate once the belt is removed. That means the "rotating mass" has been eliminated and dead weight is left on the block. Also, leaving the front shaft in, blocks the holes in the bearings allowing oil pressure to remain high.
I have not taken the oil pan or oil pump assembly apart so I dont know if the rear shaft is still in there or it was cut.
I only know the tensioner and the belt for the front shaft are missing.
If the rear shaft is still in there, won't the rear shaft just keep working normally?
Is it possible for rear shaft to rotate while the front shaft is not?
Is it possible for the engine to operate normally with only the rear shaft rotating, or should I assume the rear shaft is gone?
I hope I'm making sense . The engine seems to work ok and I do not want to go thru all the hassle if I don't have to.
Thanks

 

[ArticNemesis]

Drop the oil pan and check to see if the rear balance shaft bearing is there... With the rear one rotating and the front one not, it can cause some wierd vibrations, which might trigger your knock sensor and have the ecu pull timing. Some people say that it worked for them by just pulling the belt, but in my personal experience it was horrible on the motor and performance.

 

[spcebrd]

Thanks artic! thats the kind of things I wanted to know. The effect on the rear one spinning without the front one doing so.

 

[IamCool]

can someone show a pic of what a BS looks like? Is it visible from the outside?

 

[Red 2g GSX]

You can also take the shaft to a shop and have then turn it so the weight is off so it just a shaft with no weight on it and put it back in. The reason is is because if you put in the elimination kit you will not have anyting int he baring journalwhere the shaft once was so there is nothing supporting the shaft. When the belt is on shaft there is alot of side load on it because there is not 2nd support. You will wear a crooked hole and it will leak oil again.

If that is unclear let me know ill try to explain better.

VIc

 

[kalla]

Removing the shafts and installing the blockoff kit is not a difficult thing to do as long as you have the correct tools and you are patient. Doing it with the motor in the car can be done though it will be quite a bit more annoying than if the motor was on a stand.

 

[WhiteAWDtsi]

*MOST* people when removing the balance shafts leave the front one in and cut the belt while replacing the rear with a stub shaft.
You would notice a huge vibration if your rear bs was spinning and your front wasnt. Its a pain in the ass to get the bearings out of the front balance shaft holes. You do have to drop the front crossmember in order to even remove the front BS. When doing this mod while the engine is still in the car ive found it best to leave the front bs in there and replace the rear with a stub shaft.


I'd rather leave the shafts in because of the amount of work. Take your t-belt off and make sure the rear and front shaft are not seized even the slightest. To check if your rear bs is cut or not, take the bolt out of the block and use a screwdriver and see how far it goes in. You can rotate the rear shaft 360 degrees to see if the screwdriver hits the rear bs. The bolt is on the back of the block. If you do decide to put the belt back on make sure you set the rear bs in phase by lining the marks up and placing the screwdriver back in the bolt hole. It should only go in 1inch if it goes 2inchs in then you need to rotate the rear bs 360 untill it only goes in 1inch.

I really hate removing balance shafts. Maybe i just have a fear of taking off oil pans....

 

[blackGSX2g]

Having the balance shafts in shouldn't give you low oil pressure. If anything, it should raise it as the oiling holes for the front shaft are being blocked. The rear shaft has oiling holes that go through the inside of the shaft, so that wouldn't affect oil presssure.

I wouldn't just remove the belt, they are meant to turn together in sequence and if they are out of time, it will have a bad vibration. If you don't feel it now, you will down the line.