Hi guys,
I hope i'm doing the right thing by carrying on with this thread. (I have been working away from home for quite a while so only got chance to start up with things on the car again last week).
Ok, after a good long think I decided to buy a timing tool, some camshafts as mine were a bit worn and pitted on a couple of the cams and oil filter and oil just for the hell of it.
After collecting all my bits over the months, I started last week with checking the timing. First of all I took it for a spin to the shops and back to warm the engine up and make sure she still starts up (not moved for a while).
After letting the engine cool till there was just enough heat to add a little warmth to my hands I took off the cam cover and found TDC exactly on the pulley, bolted on the timing tool to the head and the pins would not locate 🙂 ,
Just like Vocky and AtomX said I got the cams lined up with the tool, put the pins through, tensioner out, turned the crank back a little so I could slip the chain over 1 tooth on each cam sprocket, turned crank forwards to take up the front slack on the chain and put the tensioner back in. Job Done!
Or so i thought, with the tensioner back in I rotated the crank a few times to make sure everything stayed as it should and when I put the crank pulley at TDC the cam sprockets still needed to rotate a fraction more for the tool to line up :problem: I checked on the crank pulley and the mark was about 5 mil out when the sprockets were aligned.
So I decided to bite the bullet and give it a whirl, I turned it over by hand a few more times, then with the key but no coil pack, then with the coil pack and it started seemed a lot smoother but the EML was still on.
So I put the laptop on and cleared the codes P0340. Took it for a spin and all seemed good, turned the engine off and started up again and as soon as I pulled off the EML came back on. cryb..
As soon as the light came on it started to idle rough again so I decided to check the timing and throw the camshafts in as well. Cam cover off again and checked the timing but nothing had moved, so I put the new cams in which was a piece of cake with the timing tool and put it back together.
The engine seems to run better now, a bit smoother and the engine sounds quieter (had a tiny rattle before at top revs,
6000rpm and up, which i think was from the cams) but I keep getting the same error code P0340. I'm thinking maybe the chain has stretched which would explain why the cams are a tiny bit out with the timing tool. So I'll be ordering a kit in the next dew days after a compression to rule out the pistons or valves.
Anyway just thought Id pop in and give an update in case any ones interesed.
Also wanted to thank vocky and AtomX for the advice. :thumbup: