Pinning the Crank Sprocket

G60ING

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 5, 2001
Location
MD
TDI
No TDIs Currently, I have an R36 Corrado. I've had an ALH Corrado swap, AHU Corrado swap and 2003 TDI Jetta
Fears from a previous generation of crank snout design have cause me to do this, well that and having had an issue that caused me to replace the crank cog.

I just picked up a box of 3/16" dowel pins from Granger and will take pictures outlining how I'm pinning the timing belt cog to the crank shaft. Over all its fairly simple. Drill the crank cog on a drill press or mill and then put it on the crank and use it as a guide for drilling the holes in the crank.

I plan on putting two in for 7,200 lb shear strength.

The AHU crank has the flat also.

If I were doing it I would use an 11/64" drill the way you plan then go through both the pulley and crank with a 3/16" reamer.

Thats what my friend and I agreed for the best fit.








I used the old bolt to hold the cog square & snug on the crank:




A word of warning, make certain you have the holes deep enough. I'd suggest that you do this with the cog off the crank. Put the pins in the crank, and then measure how far out they stand. If you install the pins with the drill bolt in place you will have a challenge to get the drill bolt out...I learned the hard way buy I overcame the lesson.

Nice snug fit with the use of the reamer.


G60ing, is this something that can be done in the car? If so, are you just using a right angle drill to drill and ream the crank?

Is this something that requires a TB change at the same time?

How long were the dowels you purchased?
I would recommend drilling the sprocket out on a drill press or mill. Once the sprocket holes are made you can use a regular hand drill to drill the holes in the crank.

Yes the timing belt does need to come out to do this.

The dowel pins that I used were 3/16" x 1.5"

I have a lot of spare pins I don't know if this is something the moderators would hate (i'll delete this if so) but I'll ship two pins out via first class mail for $5. This will save you the hassle of buying a bulk like I did.

Here is what I bought if you want to spend the extra money for a box of 50 for $14 Plus shipping if you can't pick them up: http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/Dowel-Pin-2MB66?Pid=search

Here is the reamer:
http://www.fastenal.com/web/products/detail.ex?sku=360068-131588&ucst=t

Here is the final pass drill bit (before the reamer):
http://www.fastenal.com/web/products/detail.ex?sku=53012&ucst=t

You will also need a new bolt, I used the old bolt to hold the sprocket in place while I drilled the crank. I had to grind the sides of the old bolt (shown in the pictures)

I bought the pins, reamer and drill bit because its about once a year that I have my hands on a strange motor that should be pinned during a rebuild or whatnot.

Here is a picture of the dealership tool for torque procedure on the crank sprocket:




The VW crank holder can also be used to hold the cam gear when doing the TDI timing belt. Its $65 from Worldimpex: http://www.worldimpex.com/parts/oem-counter-support_238827.html
 
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GTiTDi

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I like the sound of this...not liking the sound I get at first startup..notably a chirp..I have already done the tensioner spring...I need to varify it isn't the belt slipping..could it be the sprocket? I hope not
 

G60ING

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 5, 2001
Location
MD
TDI
No TDIs Currently, I have an R36 Corrado. I've had an ALH Corrado swap, AHU Corrado swap and 2003 TDI Jetta
Its probably NOT the sprocket. When the sprocket goes, so goes the timing and valves.

Your problem is most likely the alternator pulley or the harmonic balancer.
 

GTiTDi

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why ever would you do this it is already keyed to the crank. there is no point to it
The key is a weak point hence the redesign to a flat sided crank nose (in the ALH motors) rather than the puny little key way.

G60ING, I was thinking of getting a clutched alternator pulley too, know who has a reasonable price on them?
 

G60ING

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 5, 2001
Location
MD
TDI
No TDIs Currently, I have an R36 Corrado. I've had an ALH Corrado swap, AHU Corrado swap and 2003 TDI Jetta
why ever would you do this it is already keyed to the crank. there is no point to it

Guess you have never seen one fail. My cost was less than $15 for a little extra protection.

The G60 and 1.8T guys have had this happen fairly often. I'm fairly certain I've heard of it on here too.
 

1chrisapple

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Dec 28, 2010
Location
elizabethtown,ky
TDI
02 alh 5spd stock 231k
would like to c a write up on this im supporting u, obviusly the other guys tdi is invensable and this is stupid. but he will find out the hard way. as hard headed people always do.
 

KLXD

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 22, 2009
Location
Lompoc, CA
TDI
'98, '2 Jettas
The AHU crank has the flat also.

If I were doing it I would use an 11/64" drill the way you plan then go through both the pulley and crank with a 3/16" reamer.
 

GTiTDi

TDIClub Enthusiast, Macht Schnell! Vendor , w/Busi
Joined
Oct 18, 2010
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3 Spruce st Wareham, gateway to Cape Cod Massachus
TDI
'91 GTI CJAA swap,'02 Jetta wagon ALH swap, '03 GTI 1.8T rally car, '03 Sprinter 3500
Guess you have never seen one fail. My cost was less than $15 for a little extra protection.

The G60 and 1.8T guys have had this happen fairly often. I'm fairly certain I've heard of it on here too.
It'll happen to an ABA with solid mounts if driven hard enough..rapid acceleration followed by rapid deceleration...:eek:
 

Matt-98AHU

Loose Nut Behind the Wheel Vendor
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2001 Golf TDI, 2005 Passat wagon, 2004 Touareg V10.
why ever would you do this it is already keyed to the crank. there is no point to it
Because many of these cars, the pulley will loosen up and deform on the end of the crankshaft. It'll move around on the crank snout and if left alone for long enough, it will begin to deform the crank snout as well. So by the time you catch it and replace the crank sprocket and bolt, a new sprocket no longer fits snugly on the deformed crank snout.

This happened to my AHU, the engine could no longer maintain correct timing after 280,000 miles.
 

chrisfiat

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Jul 14, 2006
Location
farmington nh
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97 jetta
been owning and working on these cars for 35 years NEVER have i seen these problems, and i have changed over 2300 timing belts in that time. sounds like a solution looking for a nonexistent problem
 

GTiTDi

TDIClub Enthusiast, Macht Schnell! Vendor , w/Busi
Joined
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'91 GTI CJAA swap,'02 Jetta wagon ALH swap, '03 GTI 1.8T rally car, '03 Sprinter 3500
Since you have never seen it it must not exist..That's funny my boss has been in business 40 years plus and he admits he hasnt seen it all!
 

G60ING

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 5, 2001
Location
MD
TDI
No TDIs Currently, I have an R36 Corrado. I've had an ALH Corrado swap, AHU Corrado swap and 2003 TDI Jetta
it's ok grammer kings get me on every forum im used to it haha dont really care as long as people understand what im saying
no worries, I'm in the same boat, BAD SPELLERS OF THE WORD UNTIED:p
 

importam

Well-known member
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Feb 9, 2009
Location
Muskego WI
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1998 Jetta TDI
The key is a weak point hence the redesign to a flat sided crank nose (in the ALH motors) rather than the puny little key way.

G60ING, I was thinking of getting a clutched alternator pulley too, know who has a reasonable price on them?

It's not a weak point. It's people that don't know how to assemble it properly. They think pulling on a breaker bar against compression or having it in gear with a "buddy" on the brakes is good enough. Well, it's not. I've never seen a key way give with the bolt still being tight. The only reason it happens is because the bolt loosens up from not being installed properly. My shops done thousands of timing belts and have never had a problem. It only happens when it's not put back together correctly.
 
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Matt-98AHU

Loose Nut Behind the Wheel Vendor
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2001 Golf TDI, 2005 Passat wagon, 2004 Touareg V10.
Maybe you guys should ask oilhammer how many of these he's seen go bad :rolleyes:
 

bengone1

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Newport News VA
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1998 VW GTi 1Z powered. 06 Jetta PD. 01 allroad 6sp
The AHU crank has the flat also.

If I were doing it I would use an 11/64" drill the way you plan then go through both the pulley and crank with a 3/16" reamer.
Ohhhh great idea. I was wondering how people got the crank drilled without boring out the hole in the sprocket. I plan on doing this... Eventually.
 

G60ING

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 5, 2001
Location
MD
TDI
No TDIs Currently, I have an R36 Corrado. I've had an ALH Corrado swap, AHU Corrado swap and 2003 TDI Jetta
The AHU crank has the flat also.

If I were doing it I would use an 11/64" drill the way you plan then go through both the pulley and crank with a 3/16" reamer.

Thats what my friend and I agreed for the best fit.



 

Matt-98AHU

Loose Nut Behind the Wheel Vendor
Joined
Apr 23, 2006
Location
Gresham, OR
TDI
2001 Golf TDI, 2005 Passat wagon, 2004 Touareg V10.
Now the question is, how deep do you drill into the crank? How snugly do the pins fit?
 

G60ING

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 5, 2001
Location
MD
TDI
No TDIs Currently, I have an R36 Corrado. I've had an ALH Corrado swap, AHU Corrado swap and 2003 TDI Jetta
The cog will be the jig for the crank drilling, this is why the 3/16" od pins have had the hole drilled for 11/64". The pins won't fit until the reamer is used on both the crank and cog at the same time.
 

KLXD

Top Post Dawg
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Aug 22, 2009
Location
Lompoc, CA
TDI
'98, '2 Jettas
I'm cornfused. That is what my '98 looks like and the picher on IDParts' site for the ALH looks the same. What did the old design look like?
 

1chrisapple

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Dec 28, 2010
Location
elizabethtown,ky
TDI
02 alh 5spd stock 231k
The cog will be the jig for the crank drilling, this is why the 3/16" od pins have had the hole drilled for 11/64". The pins won't fit until the reamer is used on both the crank and cog at the same time.
so do the pin holes go all the way through so u can ream both at the same time
 

G60ING

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 5, 2001
Location
MD
TDI
No TDIs Currently, I have an R36 Corrado. I've had an ALH Corrado swap, AHU Corrado swap and 2003 TDI Jetta
yes, the portion of the sprocket that is drilled is roughly 1 1/8" thick. I bought dowel pins that are 1.5" long
 
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