help please

[ave07]

Which marks are perfect? The one that matters after you rotate twice is the marks on the two camshaft sprockets pointing inwards at each other and the crankshaft pulley mark that points down @ dead centre. The marks on your belt will no longer line up with those marks when you do the rotation twice.

Did your tensioner pulley move as described in the how to section?

[avguy]

... I got all the marks and my marks to line up. Applied tension. Turned the crank twice, relived and reapplied tension. ...

I have a feeling you're not tensioning correctly because that last item is definitely not correct. The correct sequence is best described as 1) "over" tension (pointer to the right of other pointer); 2) Turn 2 full revolutions; 3) reduce tension to final correct setting (pointers match up). All tensioning operations are done by turning the water pump. If what I wrote is not what you've done, then DO NOT start the engine until you've had a chance to study this further and learn the correct method (or at least make sure that the pointers line up). DId you also replace the 2 pulleys and the water pump?

[ave07]

I have a feeling you're not tensioning correctly because that last item is definitely not correct. The correct sequence is best described as 1) "over" tension (pointer to the right of other pointer); 2) Turn 2 full revolutions; 3) reduce tension to final correct setting (pointers match the water pump. If what I wrote is not what you've done, then DO NOT start the engine until you've had a chance to study this further and learn the correct method (or at least make sure that the pointers line up). DId you also replace the 2 pulleys and the water pump?

I replaced everything, waterpump, tensioner, idler pulley, and belt. I put so much torque on the water pump, I thought I was going to break something. The tensioner did not move at all. I did start it, she runs good. with one flaw, whenever i come to a complete stop the rpm drops for a quick sec then everythings fine again. I don't want problems down the line. With that said should i disassemble and reassemble? Will i need a new water pump seal? It seems to me that the tensioner pulley is designed to tension the opposite way. I cranked on that thing so hard that the channel locks were bending. What do you suggest? Thank you for your help.

[Aveo5_boy]

Ok that's what I meant...so that's good....whats the deal with the tensioner, its got to be the worst engineering I seen in a while, it doesn't even work....

Do you have the water pump bolts loosened when you are tensioning the belt? If you've snugged the bolts to the waterpump the tensioner will not work. They need to be loosened a bit. Follow this link for a better read on how to do the timing belt and waterpump: http://www.aveoforum.com/forum/f94/t...rite-up-10284/

[avguy]

I replaced everything, waterpump, tensioner, idler pulley, and belt. I put so much torque on the water pump, I thought I was going to break something. The tensioner did not move at all. I did start it, she runs good. with one flaw, whenever i come to a complete stop the rpm drops for a quick sec then everythings fine again. I don't want problems down the line. With that said should i disassemble and reassemble? Will i need a new water pump seal? It seems to me that the tensioner pulley is designed to tension the opposite way. I cranked on that thing so hard that the channel locks were bending. What do you suggest? Thank you for your help.

There is a special water pump wrench which turns the pump much easier than regular pliars. Yes, the channel locks can work, but they are not as narrow as the tool. I can tell you for certain that the tensioner will turn and the pointer will move when the water pump is turned. What could have happened is that the sides of the pliars didn't have enough clearance somewhere, and were hitting something which prevented them from turning the pump.
In any case, what you should do now is check to see if the 2 pointers are anywhere close to lining up. If they are not close, you should retension the belt. Hopefully the WP gasket will not be out of shape yet. Just watch carefully for leaks for a period of time.

[ave07]

Do you have the water pump bolts loosened when you are tensioning the belt? If you've snugged the bolts to the waterpump the tensioner will not work. They need to be loosened a bit. Follow this link for a better read on how to do the timing belt and waterpump: http://www.aveoforum.com/forum/f94/t...rite-up-10284/

That's the link I used, the bolts were loose.

[ave07]

There is a special water pump wrench which turns the pump much easier than regular pliars. Yes, the channel locks can work, but they are not as narrow as the tool. I can tell you for certain that the tensioner will turn and the pointer will move when the water pump is turned. What could have happened is that the sides of the pliars didn't have enough clearance somewhere, and were hitting something which prevented them from turning the pump.
In any case, what you should do now is check to see if the 2 pointers are anywhere close to lining up. If they are not close, you should retension the belt. Hopefully the WP gasket will not be out of shape yet. Just watch carefully for leaks for a period of time.

I tensioned from under the car, which allowed for far greater clearance I drove it around yestetday for a few miles. I'm going to get a new gasket and retension the belt

[avguy]

Do you own a mechanic's mirror - the telescoping type? If not they're fairly inexpensive in the box stores. Although I've never actually tried this, I think it may be possible to squeeze one of those mirrors down far enough to see the pointers. If they happen to be lined up now, it would save you doing the retensioning.

[ave07]

Do you own a mechanic's mirror - the telescoping type? If not they're fairly inexpensive in the box stores. Although I've never actually tried this, I think it may be possible to squeeze one of those mirrors down far enough to see the pointers. If they happen to be lined up now, it would save you doing the retensioning.

I mean if it was off, not incorrectly tensioned it would be running rough or not at all, right? I think I'm being paranoid but I think there's a little more vibration than there was before. I'm about to find one on craigslist and see if it vibrates and makes the same engine noise. As of right now she runs excellent. Secondly if its inproperly tensioed I run the risk of it failing. Could improper tension cause vibration?

[avguy]

I don't have any first hand experience with a mis-tensioned belt, and can't give you an answer on the vibration. But I don't think the tension being off would affect how it runs, as long as the 3 pullys stay in synch on the belt. And that's what I think mis-tensioning would lead to. Sooner or later something bad is going to happen: either one of the pulleys jumps off the belt if it's too loose; or the belt frays and eventually breaks if the tension is too tight. But again, you may have gotten lucky and tensioned it ok - the pointers will give you the answer to that question.