ALH timimg belt tips: diy spanner + shortcuts & tips.

Works like a charm some of the time. I have had many that won't break free and I've hit them so had the socket deformed.

Well ya, you are correct, it doesn't always work. But it is something to try before you get out the OLE boot destroyer pickle fork.

I unnerstand whacking the sides of a joint to pop out the ball. I usually use two hammers together; never failed yet. Might take forty whacks, timing is everything.

I don't get hitting the end of the cam. That would be analogous to beating on the end of the ball joint itself.

The part about whacking the cam gear that bothers me is that you are hammering the camshaft longitudinally so where is that thrust taken? I know that this has been the factory method in the past, but they changed it for a reason and maybe that reason is that it was damaging the bearing saddles.

I don't know any facts, but this thought makes me cautious so I use the MN puller.

It's still the method to remove it on the 1Z/AHU and the metalnerd puller doesn't fit on the 1Z/AHU cam pulley.

Post 14 says "hit the cam where the bolt goes" with a punch. Seems bass-ackwards.

Ol'Rattler said:

No, you don't smack it on the bottom opposite the nut, you smack it on the side of the tie rod end or ball joint. Works like a charm.

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Almost always works. Doesn't damage anything.

keaton85 said:

The gates kit is great! But you still need the stretch bolts for the motor mount and the larger roller.

As for the procedure, I'm with you all the way on not using the "special" tools as they are overpriced. With a little brain power you can do the whole job without issue. I did end up buying the basic tools just because I wanted a solid tensioner tool. As for pulling the sprocket, just pop off the cam bearing cap and use a punch on the sprockets flange. It will pop right off. Once everything is back together I hold the sprocket with one hand and torque the bolt with the other. No "special" holder needed.

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I will admit to re-using all the stretch bolts on this job. I was careful not to over torque the stretch bolts and put a fair amount of blue loctite on the engine mount bolts. Yeah, I know, I'm risking damage there. Engine mounts need refreshing on the wife's car anyway (230k) so I'll get back in there eventually.

I'm doing the exact same thing to my 02 jetta tdi 5-speed today. I'm gonna try your method of popping off the cam sprocket so I don't have to whip out the drill again. Thanks! I'm replacing the camshaft seal, so I have to remove that cam bearing cap anyway.

jasonTDI said:

If the belt is to tight to go on you are doing it wrong. You do not need to remove the rollers. Likely the pump bolts were not loosened and thus the belt is improperly tensioned.

The LAST part of the belt to go on is the cam gear section. You put the belt on the gear, and slide it onto the end of the camshaft. EASY.

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I did loosen the three IP bolts, so that wasn't the problem. The cam sprocket was the last piece I tried putting the belt on. The cam spocket was also still loose, and I tried getting it on with varying levels of "looseness." Without removing the small pulleys (which were all new, came in the gates kit) I was only able to get the belt partially on. Perhaps the belts in this kit fit tighter than normal - They are marked "made in UK", no brand marking, but I found a thread somewhere debating the quality of that gates kit, and iirc someone from idparts or kerma confirmed that everything in that kit is good quality, even though it's mislabeled (box says TB is made in usa.)

Either way. Removing the small pulleys just made it really easy, and the car is running fine, so I doubt I installed it incorrectly. I hand spun the engine before putting everything back together and there was no binding - Though the belt stayed pretty tight. I had the tensioner tightened so that the notches were lined up, per instructions.

Edit: JasonTDI, I think I see what you're saying. I should have the camshaft sprocket completely off the cam, and then just push the sprocket and belt onto the cam and insert the bolt? I'll try that today.


The tensioner in this kit is Litens "made in Canada" for those interested.

After researching coolant choices for our cars I bought some Zerex g-05 from NAPA for $17 a jug. A bit cheaper than the vw stuff, and is high quality "HOAT" coolant.

As far as smacking the camshaft goes. I use a rubber mallet (won't dystroy the cam or the sprocket if I miss) and it really didn't take much force at all for mine to pop off. I also sprayed the sprocket/cam mating surface with pb blaster before attempting to remove. I'm sure in situations when the sprocket is really stuck the proper tool would prevent damage.

I should have the camshaft sprocket completely off the cam, and then just push the sprocket and belt onto the cam and insert the bolt? I'll try that today.

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'Zactly. It works a treat. I think I learned that at Fix-um-Haus in Portland probably 8 years ago. Of course Jason probably did more timing belts last week than I have since I learned that, but it's definitely the way to go.

Well thanks for shaming me about re-using the stretch bolts. I was able to find some grade 10.9 bolts at a local ace hardware... Don't have to worry about it anymore.

Can anyone confirm if the 3 bolts that attach the "mount bracket" to the block are stretch bolts or not? One source says they're stretch, one source says they're re-useable.

@Keaton85 - your method of popping off the cam sprocket worked great.

@jasonTDI - I installed the belt per your instructions this time. So easy! I left all the pulleys in place when installing too.

Also, loctice gel in the chap-stick-like dispenser works awesome

I was able to leave my fuel filter and lines attached again... though I will say the 5-speed jetta has less room in that area than the auto new beetle. The auto beetle has the power steering res near the battery... not sure if that's auto specific or beetle specific.

Edit: This is a cheaper source for reusable bolts than the hardware store: http://store.blackforestindustries.com/mk4bfimomoha.html

If the torque spec is listed as a torque value plus degrees of rotation (like 30ft-lb + 90deg), then the bolt is TTY (Torque To Yield).
If there is no rotational value listed, it is not TTY.

The TTY procedure stretches the bolt past it's plastic state, rendering it permanently stretched. Those really must be replaced after use.

The three bracket to block bolts are not TTY. They are commonly replaced during the TB service as doing so gets you nice clean threads which gives you a better chance of getting the correct clamping force from the bolts.

In a TB service, the TTY bolts are the lower large roller bolt, the two small motor mount to frame bolts and the two large motor mount to bracket bolts.
The latter are most important - if they snap the engine drops down and all sorts of fun ensures.

We talk so much about the TTY bolts for the engine but never about the same bolts at the same torque for the transmission mount bolts.

Also - though it may be true on VWs - it not always true that a torque-turn torque spec is TTY.

whitedog said:

'Zactly. It works a treat. I think I learned that at Fix-um-Haus in Portland probably 8 years ago. Of course Jason probably did more timing belts last week than I have since I learned that, but it's definitely the way to go.

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lol.

Yes, it's the EASY method! TDI's can be really trying if you don't know the little things.

Just because it's not listed as a TTY doesn't mean it's not a good idea to replace certain bolts that are known to be problems.

Abacus said:

Just because it's not listed as a TTY doesn't mean it's not a good idea to replace certain bolts that are known to be problems.

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The ever popular variable thread pitch bolt.

Now THAT was funny!

If only I'd invented it, I could make millions!

The variable pitch bolt is one of many specialty bolts used to solve various problems:

Nice one Todd - where can I order? I have a number of stripped threads, and that last bolt should work well!

The threadless bolt hole bolt....that is the winner!

If you haven't used at least one of these bolts, you're not a real mechanic!

Crooked then straight looks exactly what I pulled out of my lower control arm.

I thank the dealer body shop for that one since they installed it as part of a post-accident repair.

Hahaha I can't get over that picture of the bolts.. Too funny!

I've been reading a lot of this forum and trying to gather all the info needed to get my t-belt done this winter. I believe I'm gonna buy the eBay kit and either buy a universal sprocket holder or make something. Maybe a trip to good old Harber Freight and see what they have as a sprocket holder.

Has anyone used this one?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/400772231057?lpid=82

Only thing I don't really understand is the tensioner. I
have never seen one yet. I'm only familiar with the hydraulic 1.8t tensioner

I picked up one of these the other day:

http://www.princessauto.com/pal/en/Engine-And-Transmission/Camshaft-Holding-Tool/8159808.p

so I could remove the cam sprocket on my '01 2.0L to fix a faulty positioning sensor. Worked like a charm.

I used it later that night to turn the cam on my '03 TDI so I could see the marks I made on the injection pump shaft while I adjusted the pump timing. Could have broke out my 19mm but I'd already lost daylight.

Awesome deal for $14.

Malleabis said:

Just changed the timing belt on my wife's 2002 beetle tdi automatic. I followed the "a4timingbelt.pdf" guide from this website, though I used no special tools.

I just wanted to share a few tips and things I learned.

1. No need to disconnect fuel lines or remove fuel filter. After disconnecting the filter mount from the engine mount there is enough play to move the fuel filter out of the way and get to the engine mount bolts, etc. I didn't have dowels to plug my fuel lines and did not want to have to prime the fuel pump and injectors.

2. I bought an adjustable spanner wrench from harbor freight for $4.99. The pegs are a little too wide to fit in the tensioner, so i got out the dremel and shaved them down with a sand paper cylinder. Perfect.

3. Getting the camshaft sprocket off is a pain! I tried 3-jaw pullers, 2-jaw pullers of various sizes and configurations and the jaws popped off the sprocket everytime. I ended up drilling a hole in the timing belt cover and using a punch and hammer to pop it off. This was really easy and came loose on the 3rd hit, but if you don't want to drill a hole in your timing belt cover this is the one special tool I would recommend buying.

I used a piece of metal flat bar for the cam lock and a drill bit for the IP lock. I checked a rechecked the TDC mark on the flywheel since I used no crank lock.

The old timing belt had tons of slack in it. Surprised it hadn't skipped a tooth, lol. The new timing belt was so tight it was a struggle to get it on. I removed the 2 small rollers to give it some extra slack so I could get it on all the sprockets. They are easy to re-install after the belt is on all the major rollers and sprockets.

I also replaced the camshaft seal, the vac pump seal, the thermostat and water pump. I got the metal impeller water pump with the gates timing kit "Gates TCKWP321M" -it's available on amazon (prime) for $179. I got the camshaft and vac pump seals from IDparts and the Behr thermostat + housing from autohausaz.

Car started on the first crank... still need to adjust timing with my VAG-com, but it's running fine.

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thanks for share..

I bought the Metalnerd tools. I figured I could easily sell them for damn near what I paid for them so it'll end up like renting them.

I'm glad I did. The right tools make the job go much smoother. If I had a bunch of experience doing these I might try the job with makeshift tools but this was my first time doing it.

I did my son's 2000 Golf TDI TB without replacing the motor mount stretch bolts - how critical would this be later on? Where is a good place to just buy the 4 mount stretch bolts? - the one for the lower roller came in kit so that was replaced - has anyone noticed what part of stretch mount bolts fail? I wonder if it is the threaded part maybe the locktite does keep it from loosening? -

SRHeer said:

I did my son's 2000 Golf TDI TB without replacing the motor mount stretch bolts - how critical would this be later on? Where is a good place to just buy the 4 mount stretch bolts? - the one for the lower roller came in kit so that was replaced - has anyone noticed what part of stretch mount bolts fail? I wonder if it is the threaded part maybe the locktite does keep it from loosening? -

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Stop by the local dealer and get part numbers by your VIN.

if the local place will charge what you think is too much, tell them you need to shop around.

sometimes another local dealer may sell for half the price, or you can google up the part numbers.

It isn't about them loosening, they just break. If you're lucky you notice it before both break and the engine or transmission drops on that side.

A friend of mine bought an '04 that was kind of a basket case and had some obvious sketchy maintenance done to it. He had the transmission side fall out. We ordered a new mount the bolt kit from ID parts and we got him fixed up without any permanent damage.

http://www.idparts.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=1213

There are some that say that the biggest problem isn't reusing the bolts, but that the threads in the mount pull out and that causes just one bolt to hold the engine on. This one breaks and when people see the broken bolt, they assume that it's because it was reused.

Something else that is odd is that everyone screams to always replace the engine mount bolts, but there is never the same screaming about replacing the transmission side bolts whenever a transmission is removed.

That's what I have heard and seen. Take it for what you paid for it.