cam timing adjustment

phendriks · Post by **phendriks** » 04 Sep 2010, 09:32

In the process of replacing a front cam seal, set the engine to the timing marks before disassembly. Agree with forum that crank gear marks are hard to find. Might be an assumption on my part, but the index marks I see are on the back of the serpentine belt pulley. which I carry across the crank gear to the index mark on the block. This puts the cams 1 or 2 teeth off their index. I've marked and removed exhaust sprocket, which has slotted holes.

So the questions is - do I set the sprocket back on as marked and rotate shafts to index marks, or is there some adjustment to go with the slotted holes.

The car is a '95 850 with 175k miles on it, purchased at 130k. Service history unknown, but somewhat neglected. I did the timing belt at 150k but never seen crank mark so I indexed the crank pulley where it was. Quite sure I put it back together the way it was.

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 04 Sep 2010, 14:26

I always use spray paint to mark the bolts before I remove the sprocket so that I can get everything back to where it started. In the absence of marks just line the bolts up in the middle of the slots and it will be "close enough".

...Lee

phendriks · Post by **phendriks** » 04 Sep 2010, 15:46

Thanks for the response Lee. I did spray the bolts and sprocket before disassembly - no problem putting them back in the same place.
I'm questioning how they're set in the first place. Could previous owners/mechanics have moved them. If I assume they're right, should I realign the cams to jive with the crank index mark

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 05 Sep 2010, 05:57

If the mark is a tooth off on the timing belt set the cams back to the marks. It is very common for a lazy mechanic to get the cam timing off a tooth. If it is less than a tooth and the car ran OK before I would just leave it as is.

...Lee