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Pulling the Motor On my GSX

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DSM Chase

10+ Year Contributor
778
51
Sep 19, 2011
Senoia, Georgia
Today my dad and i pulled my motor on my 98 GSX, The Timing belt had alot of play in it so we decided to just go ahead and replace the Timing belt, water pump, tensioner, pulleys, Etc. My question is What is a good Timing belt to throw on it?

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because its alot easier to change the timing belt with the motor out of the car is it not?

No, it is easier to change the timing belt in the car, you don't have to all the extra work to pull the engine, drain fluids, and all that.
 
It's easier to do just about everything to the motor once it's out... it's that whole "getting it out" part that is a pain. I hope you plan on doing a hell of a lot more than just changing a timing belt after pulling the motor. Clutch comes to mind first. Oil pan. Knock sensor. Starter. A/C Compressor.... might as well do a head gasket while it's out. You're already 90% of the way to having the head off too. Clean the cylinders. Clean the manifolds. New exhaust studs. That's what comes to mind right off the bat. Don't be that guy that yanked a motor for a timing belt and a couple pulleys... I have had to redo the timing on my 95 eight times (not joking) in the last couple weeks because of the damn 95-96 CAS. I can do the whole mess in 2 hours with the motor in the car... no reason to go the 100 extra miles yanking the motor, but since you did, do the other stuff now too. Might as well get it out of the way while it's easy to do.

...seriously, change everything you can afford to right now. Especially exhaust manifold stuff, gaskets (every one you can get ahold of, do... head, pan, all of it), replacing/repairing the oil pan if you've dented it... CLUTCH. <----- Look at it. If it's even 1/2 way worn, I'd do it. It's damn near the same amount of work to do a clutch alone, so take a good look at it. If the pressure plate is in good shape, take it off and look at the disk and flywheel. Inspect it very, very closely.
 
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Like stated, I would deff. do everything you could afford. If you have the motor out simple green the engine bay and wipe stuff down and make it look nice. Just be you will be happy later when everyone is saying how nice it looks. Without the motor in the car you can get all the nooks and crannies.
 
I would STRONGLY recommend OEM when it comes down to timing belt. I have experienced first hand what a POS autoparts store belts are (cost me a nice head). :notgood:

One time I accidently used a wrong bolt in my oilpan (the one that goes in by the belt) It was too long so it dug into my OEM belt. I beat the car around for a while like that, not knowing LOL. LOL So the time to give the car a tune-up came around.. and when I took off the timing cover... SURPRISE!! WTF my belt was almost shredded all the way off! BUT THAT MOFO WAS STILL ON THERE!!:p

Moral of the story.. OEM tuff as f#%^!! :thumb:
 
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Balance shaft elim while the engine's out. That's the only time I'll do one.

Aside from that, you pulled the engine for no reason. The hardest part of changing the timing belt with the engine in the car is removing the cover(s).
 
Damn...all that for a t-belt? :)

It goes without saying, but anytime you change the belt you need to change all of the other components along with the water pump (unless you are sure of their mileage)....even on a normal t-belt job with the engine still in the car.

If you have any plans to use adjustable cam gears and the engine/head has ever had any machine work done, now would also be a good time to bolt up the ACG's and degree your cams; if for no other reason than to get a good baseline for future reference. It's pretty tough (if not impossible) to degree the cams with accuracy with the engine installed.

At this point, you may as well check and repair the harness and all connectors, clean/repaint the bay, replace all the firewall hoses, etc.
 
I went ahead and pulled the motor because the trans is at shep, so everything was already out of the way so we pulled it. As for the clutch I have a brand new 6 puck. Car also could use a headgasket, basically were just doing an overhaul on it.
 
Much easier to do with the motor & tranny out but... This would be a great time to do balance shaft elimination kit & clutch. I mean; it doesn't get easier than when you have the motor & tranny out.
Don't forget to replace the water pump
A lot can be said for doing the BSEK. Simplifys things, gets rid of a weak link and puts a little more hp down to the ground.
The OEM timing belt is very stout. Keep in mind you can't get oil on a Kevlar belt.
 
ROFL

That's better... I figured there had to be a lot more going on for anyone to justify pulling a motor. If the transmission is out, pulling the engine is easy...

As stated, do the balance shaft removal now too. It is nearly impossible to do it with the motor in the bay, and it's cheap... At the very least, consider doing the front "B" shaft elimination. It gets rid of the timing belt assassin B belt. That's worth the effort, since it could potentially save you several hundred dollars and the hassle of doing a valve job.

Degreeing the cams is a good idea too. Much easier to see the crank timing marks with it out.

If the head gasket could use a change, that's the time to put in ARP studs if you plan on making 350 hp or more. (Yes, I know they are overkill for 350 hp, but they are 10x better for the head regardless.) Everyone always says use the OEM gasket. It's good, no doubt, but I have had good results using Cometic and even Felpro gaskets also. I have a Felpro in my engine now, against good advice, and it has held up to some serious punishment. The prep work, cleanliness, and precision you torque to makes a big difference in performance. If you do it, have the head checked and decked if needed.:thumb:
 
ROFL

That's better... I figured there had to be a lot more going on for anyone to justify pulling a motor. If the transmission is out, pulling the engine is easy...

As stated, do the balance shaft removal now too. It is nearly impossible to do it with the motor in the bay, and it's cheap... At the very least, consider doing the front "B" shaft elimination. It gets rid of the timing belt assassin B belt. That's worth the effort, since it could potentially save you several hundred dollars and the hassle of doing a valve job.

Degreeing the cams is a good idea too. Much easier to see the crank timing marks with it out.

If the head gasket could use a change, that's the time to put in ARP studs if you plan on making 350 hp or more. (Yes, I know they are overkill for 350 hp, but they are 10x better for the head regardless.) Everyone always says use the OEM gasket. It's good, no doubt, but I have had good results using Cometic and even Felpro gaskets also. I have a Felpro in my engine now, against good advice, and it has held up to some serious punishment. The prep work, cleanliness, and precision you torque to makes a big difference in performance. If you do it, have the head checked and decked if needed.:thumb:

Thanks for the info, I will be doing everything posted here :)

Why not go ahead and rebuild the bottom end with forged internals while you're at it?

haha need $$$$
 
Not sure I saw this, but make sure to check all of your motor mounts while your in here as well...

Cheap and easiest to do with the motor mount. Good luck with the rest of the work!!!
 
Also check the coolant hoses also known as "by-pass" hoses, when my motor was out i noticed those things were about to pop anytime. They were as soft as a sponge.
 
Yea, those are the biggest pain in the ass things to do in the engine bay... Clutch, balance shafts, gaskets, degreeing, manifold studs, and oil pan work. Everything but the clutch is pretty light on the wallet... And if the pressure plate is good, the disk isn't super expensive but well worth the time. Honestly, after as many times as I have had to break my motor down to the top of the block restoring it back to it's original glory plus some extra, I wouldn't blame you for pulling the motor to change the throttle body... I have never ending back and neck pain from being hunched over that damn engine bay for literally months on end, every single day... I am actually buying a second motor to build up and have as a spare for when this one craps out on me. A few hours to swap motors and get back on the road with leeway to work on the busted engine out of the bay is HIGHLY attractive.
 
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