timing belt. . replacement.

[ThaGremlin]

hey guys a few months ago . while i was driving to school my timing belt broke on me . i was in the process of replacing it . but then i stopped because people were going to buy it as is. . but they didnt . .so now im deciding on fixing it to get rid of it. . so can anyone give me the low down . and possible steps that i would need to do inorder to fix it. . also


-my cyl. #2 piston ring is bad
-timing belt needs replacing .
-hopefully the valves arent to bad,


well thats all i know of right now . .so anyhelp would be great. .
as of now i currently have pretty much everything removed, i just need to take the harmonic balancer of and the timing cover. . is everything from there a peice of cake. \

i really need fast replys . thanks guys. .

 

[TimG]

www.vfaq.com is your friend.

There's everything you need to know in there.

 

[ZachM31]

the first time i did it, it was a pain, but i have pulled my t-belt off 5 times now within the last 800 miles, so it doesnt take me long anymore <-- was trying to diagnose a problem, anyways, yeah just take off the covers and keep track of your bolts.. i'd say the 2 hardest things are keeping the intake and exhaust cams lined up while tensioning the belt (what i do is just tweek the intake cam 1/2 tooth up, and the exhaust came 1/2 tooth down) that way when you tension it, they will both line up again, the 2nd hardest thing is to get the auto tensioner in spec (.15-.177").. it takes alot of trial and error with positioning the tensioner pulley.. you'll know what i am talking about when you get in the middle of things, just print off the vfaq and go through it prior to the change, and then make sure you know the basics, then start taking things apart... any questions, just post on here and i am sure someone will be able to help you out.

 

[GRsDSM]

Well, if your timing belt broke, Chances are that more than 1/4 of the valves are bent. So you may have yourself more then a small project on your hands. IMO, the timing belt replacment is the easy part. its the "head" job that is not so easy (but do-able).

 

[ThaGremlin]

hey thanks for that site. . it is really helpful. . also do you think that i bent any valves. .i was driving like 65-70mph and i wasnt boosting. and then snap. . also do you think its hard to replace just my piston ringgs for cyl# 2 will i have to remove the engine or can i do it while its in the car. .

 

[ThaGremlin]

Well, if your timing belt broke, Chances are that more than 1/4 of the valves are bent. So you may have yourself more then a small project on your hands. IMO, the timing belt replacment is the easy part. its the "head" job that is not so easy (but do-able).

do you think it would be easier to just replace the bent valves or just replace the whole head with a rebuilt one . .because im trying to sell this as soon as possible. .well actually i want to trade it with a daily driver car. . but i just need to get it running good and make sure it passes smog first. .

driving the starion. gets hard especially because of the gas prices. . . .

 

[Rx3]

Only way to know for sure whether you bent the valves is with a leakdown test. If if you hear air escaping from your intake and/or exhaust, the corresponding valves are probably shot. You won't know for sure until you pull the head, but the leakdown test (and before hand, compression test) is a good indicator. There should be a how to in the engine section of VFAQs on how to perform a compression and leakdown test.


As for what is easier to replace, it depends on your mechanical aptitude. If you don't do this kind of work a lot (or don't want to) then finding a head complete with good valves from another source would be the easiest route to go.

 

[ThaGremlin]

well honestly i do go to wyotech except im just lazy and need to get this done soon . .its been sitting for over 2 months . .the first time i did a leakdown test i came to find out that the piston ring was gone..

 

[Bostedquest]

honestly 2-3 days including pulling pistons... and that is taking your time. I worked on mine during "cool hours of the day" which is about 2-3. So honestly, a good soid day and you could be done.

I just got done replacing the rings while leaving the engine in the car, pretty easy actually.
Pulled head, and subsequent work and undid the front motor mount and pulled the front-back crossmember to pull the oil pan.

 

[GRsDSM]

do you think it would be easier to just replace the bent valves or just replace the whole head with a rebuilt one . .because im trying to sell this as soon as possible. .well actually i want to trade it with a daily driver car. . but i just need to get it running good and make sure it passes smog first. .

driving the starion. gets hard especially because of the gas prices. . . .

If you are selling it, IN MY OPINION...get a built head and slap that stuff together...Sell it and be done with it. IF you want to keep it then do the head (maybe some porting?) Good luck with that!

GR

 

[K_Hill]

My car did the same thing a week ago, but i pulled the motor on it. It took me about 7 hours ( somewhere in that range ) to pull the motor out of the car. It really isn't that hard of a job ( that is if you know what your doing and have the tools to do it with ). Good-Luck

 

[lil' red dsm]

my timing belt skipped and i broke two exhaust valves. i did it the easy way and bought a rebuilt head ($250 on Ebay). i put nice marks in the piston because of it and had to replace the piston, did rod bearings and pistons rings while i had everything apart. good luck

 

[ThaGremlin]

any special tools needed when pulling the motor. besides the cherry picker. . because i know everycar is different. . .