Possum114251

Yes mate, was one of the first things I changed and wasted 50 squids on a new set of them when originals worked fine Considering I bought the car with an oil-related problem that I thought Id remedied (evidently not) the timing chain being the culprit makes much more sense than Id like to admit Currently at the point where the crankshaft pulley bolt needs to come off which will be great fun having almost lost a finger on my dominant hand last week ice skating 😭

How on earth do you get the alternator out of the way of the timing cover?? Ive got the two 13mm bolts but I cant for the life of me reach the battery lead or another 8mm bolt which I think is also holding it in

Yeah when I first saw that I must admit I had to do a double take Feels like way too much even though it is a pivotal part I have an engine support beam as well as all the locking tools so decently equipped on that front Ive had a little trouble sourcing new crank and camshaft pulley bolts since my local could only sell crank bolts in packs of 10 and cam bolts in packs of 5 That second one made me chuckle because then you have 2 sets of 2 and just 1 knocking about as a spare 😅 Although having said that what use would I have for the other 9 of those big ones either 😆 But anyway, fingers crossed tomorrow I can pick some up off VW from slightly further afield, and much cheaper Since the compression was all decent and I did use a cheap little mobile phone linked borescope that seemed to show that everything was at least in the right place, Im absolutely going to give it a go Ive got a whole week off college and the reason I bought it to begin with was as a project to learn from, it just turned out that I got half a year of running out of it as well Not sure it liked the peak district though

Alright thats not the end of the world to be fair I'll just have to move the car a little Ive just read a thread that mentions there being different sealant types for the sump and the timing cover... is this true? I must admit this is another topic that I have very little knowledge on, am I able to just use something like this? https://www.halfords.com/motoring/tools/garage-equipment/head-gasket-and-exhaust-repairs/granville-instant-gasket-40g-174675.html

Im going to order a new timing chain kit and give it a go next week when Im off from college, is there anything very important that I should know beforehand? Ive got enough space to get under the car but would struggle to jack it up to remove the offside front road wheel and lining which Haynes says I should do, is that completely necessary or just for ease of access? Also, any recommendations for gasket sealant? Ive seen posts here there and everywhere in which people have used a proper gasket or just sealant on its own and my plan is to use the latter Anyway, fingers crossed this solves my problems and I will actually have something to drive 😅

So they should always be parallel with one another even if not at TDC? Thats the left one (best photo angle I could get) And thats the right one Very much not parallel with one another

Crikey I wasnt expecting such detail thank you I might as well buy a full timing kit then and replace the whole lot while Im at it Ill use that parallel test at the weekend just to be certain of things because it would be gutting to take that cover off and find that somehow everythings fine

I replaced the cam and crankshaft position sensors which sadly achieved nothing Ive confirmed that all 3 cylinders are getting fuel, healthy spark and decent compression which Im fairly certain does leave me with the result of a jumped timing chain Assuming that its only a minor jump and nothing is noticably damaged could I get away with only replacing the tensioner? Ive seen posts saying the sump would have to come off to replace the whole shabang and since I currently cant get under the car that would be rather difficult Any advice on tackling this would be greatly appreciated I have 3 weeks of mock exams and then a week off which is when I plan on giving it a go I guess if its any consolation the new battery meant the offside rear door now unlocks when it didnt before... hooray.

Should add, currently fishing for the crankshaft position sensor with limited success

Alright so compression test is done Result was an even 12.5 bar across all three cylinders Also got 0 fault codes (other than radio antenna and A/C) on a proper dealership piece of kit

Yeah its currently -4 degrees where I am I appreciate its taking some time but nobody is more irritated about it than I am I also have a new battery which Im yet to fit as well due to the weather

All three cylinders are getting a spark In line spark tester wouldnt fit (1.2 things I guess) but I took each plug out and reconnected it to the coil and cranked it from there Attempted to run with easy start but all that would do is make it pop a bit Havent had a chance to compression test as battery died again so that will be done tomorrow Upshot is, battery is a problem but likely not THE problem

No I was only changing the plugs on mine and it had ran pretty great (albeit a little rough) up to mid November when this happened Really I shouldnt have messed with it but I have no recent service history and I still hadnt changed them since buying it and sorting it out Hindsight is 20/20 though

Oh I just remembered that when I crank the engine for probably a bit longer than necessary I get a beep and a red oil pressure light Is this indicative of anything or just something to be expected when cranking for too long?

Yeah Ive been attempting to eliminate everything else before biting the bullet and accepting its the timing chain It seems the battery may be on its way out as well as it drops to 9.2V and the negative lead is a bit loose also but sadly I dont think those would stop it sparking since it still turns over Ill find spark and compression testers one way or another (likely after Christmas) and then see what they tell me