Well, thanks to you guys, the e30tech forum and my Bentley manual, I successfully changed my Timing Belt and tensioner pulley.
The whole procedure took me about 5 hrs, but I had alot of cleaning to do as I have a leaky valve cover gasket and there is gunk all over the engine. I did not remove the hood as it is a P.I.T.A to put back on and then make sure it is all aligned right..amhik ;-) I did remove the radiator though and the kidney grill. This gave me lots of room to get at bolts and stuff and see what I was doing.
Changing the belt itself and the tensioner pulley were very simple. I was a bit concerned with the TDC alignment and all(having never done that before), but once I was in there, it all made sense.
I also changed the water pump and the alt and power steering belts since I was already in there anyhow.
The only problem was with one of the hoses. The water hose from the expansion tank to the water pump I had tightened the hose clamp too much and not quite in the right place. Once the system got up to pressure, it split and spewed coolant everywhere.
Not having a replacement on hand and no shops around with one on the weekend, I just cut off the split piece and clamped it back onto the water pump. This seems to have worked for now, but I will have to order a new one very shortly. (I'm sure the dealer will have one for about $100!!! but I think I may call Patrick at BMA).
Anyhow, if anyone is hesitant about doing this NECESSARY job, save yourself a couple hundred bucks and just do it yourself. It is messy, but not very difficult.
Cheers to everyone.
Brian
The whole procedure took me about 5 hrs, but I had alot of cleaning to do as I have a leaky valve cover gasket and there is gunk all over the engine. I did not remove the hood as it is a P.I.T.A to put back on and then make sure it is all aligned right..amhik ;-) I did remove the radiator though and the kidney grill. This gave me lots of room to get at bolts and stuff and see what I was doing.
Changing the belt itself and the tensioner pulley were very simple. I was a bit concerned with the TDC alignment and all(having never done that before), but once I was in there, it all made sense.
I also changed the water pump and the alt and power steering belts since I was already in there anyhow.
The only problem was with one of the hoses. The water hose from the expansion tank to the water pump I had tightened the hose clamp too much and not quite in the right place. Once the system got up to pressure, it split and spewed coolant everywhere.
Not having a replacement on hand and no shops around with one on the weekend, I just cut off the split piece and clamped it back onto the water pump. This seems to have worked for now, but I will have to order a new one very shortly. (I'm sure the dealer will have one for about $100!!! but I think I may call Patrick at BMA).
Anyhow, if anyone is hesitant about doing this NECESSARY job, save yourself a couple hundred bucks and just do it yourself. It is messy, but not very difficult.
Cheers to everyone.
Brian
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