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Timing belt double marks off

21K views 16 replies 5 participants last post by  s202 
#1 · (Edited)
Here is my issue, pictures worth a thousand words...but what the heck. Engine has always ran perfect, it is un-modded.

I went to line up the marks today at TDC(crank sprocket is right at 12 o clock) the single marks on all the side covers look right on, except the double marks are off, about a half line on the rightside (passenger) but the leftside is way off.

It takes the crank sprocket line about half-a-tooth clockwise past the TDC line for those double marks on the cam gears to line up perfectly.

Whats going on here? Counted teeth and its spot on from line to line all the way around. Is this normal? because the car's always ran perfect, but I'm just taking notes here before I remove the belt and this seemed very odd to me.
 

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#2 ·
they are supposed to be offset just slightly on both sides. the bottom picture is how they should look on both sides. When we set a timing belt here at the dealer we get two people to double check those marks. The bottom pictures is on the money, middle one is off a hair.
 
#7 ·
So if I re-index all these marks and line them up identical vertical/horizontal to the the cover markings and even the double marks, once the tensions on they will almost never line up perfectly?

I have to service the heads and I haven't even tore into the motor when I went to align these at TDC. The dealer serviced my engine @44k when I bought it, and its got 83k on it now, car has always ran perfect - but again this didn't seem right. So you're saying the left side is actually off?



I am sorry you get scared so easily....
 
#8 ·
This doesn't make sense, why would they put marks on the belt and can sprockets to not have them line up? Isn't that the whole purpose of putting the lines on everything in the first place?

I followed meaty's timing belt guide to do my belt and didn't see anything about not lining the marks up?
Maybe I'm missing something..?
 
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#9 ·
I looked at meatys as well, he does mention all the markings being lined up - double marks too. At least on his youtube videos, even some other examples and all the double marks were lined up perfectly. It does seem like the left side is off a tooth, but the cars always ran perfect. I drive the car like an old lady so I would be amazed if it jumped timing.
 
#10 ·
as long as the top timing marks line up exactly to the cover and the left and right marks line up with the cover the 2 marks at the bottom dont make a difference, but they are always offset when we install them and i work for a subaru dealership. Done about 5 in the last 4 months including my own motor and havent had any problems.
i dont think it jumped timing or anything, the double notches just sit offset for some reason.
 
#13 ·
Since its on topic of heads now, anyone ever hear of reusing head bolts.
When I was gonna do my rebuild I've looked into it and one Subaru master mechanic said that if you bring your engine in for head gaskets then chances are they reuse your head bolts.
The process of stretching new bolts seems like the hardest job of the rebuild that's what made me swing towards the JDM swap.

Was just curious about it, any insight to this?

Good luck with your head project as well. :)
 
#15 ·
Yup you can re use them, just make sure the torque yield is not overstretched, put some oil on them, and on the washers and they're drop in.

You can skip the pre stretching steps, i.e 180 degrees twice back turns, and just straight torque them on in the 3, 4? step intervals.

I'm going with ARP's so I wont be re using them.
 
#16 ·
Thanks for clarification.
I still would feel uneasy about doing head gaskets myself if the time comes to do mine.
I've read alot about the process of them but I guess you actually don't know if you did it right till a few hundred miles of driving after doing it.
More power to you guys! :p
 
#17 ·
I sort of have egg on face and a bit of bad luck. Just did an expensive 6MT swap 5x114.3 and all that, had the engine sitting on a engine stand for a month, didn't even touch it except bolt a new clutch on and fix a leaky valve cover.

I should have known the swap procedure went all to 'swimmingly'.....put the engine back in and it started building pressure in the cooling system, trouble shoot'd it for a week with 0 luck, and refused to believe it was HG related but it looks like it is...(it better be at this rate) bunch of bad luck, pretty surprising at least, but I did not notice it prior to the swap.

On an engine with 83k, car had valve issues when I bought it at 46k, dealer warrantied it so roughly 40 thousand on these head gaskets(I know they replaced them, doubtful on the head bolts)

What was unbelievable, yet believable - is one of my plastic cams was all chipped up from the tool they used when they obviously did the job last...not to mention I've found 6 missing bolts that are just mia which is even more laughable. Not sure if it was at the time of the valve train fix, or several years ago when Subaru had that massive recall on the fuel injector lines because that's where they were missing from....on top of some others..

I was pretty hell bent on not paying someone $2000 to do the job so its a 'full measure' tear down on a budget. $75 for head machining, plus gaskets, timing parts and studs. pita, but all well, hopefully it all works out....(lmfao)
 
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