Changing a Timing belt

[shtbxr22]

So here goes. this will be my attempt at a write-up for replacing your timing belt. I used an 04 wrx as the car, but if you learn how to do this, you can apply it to all the DOHC subarus. the only differences being the automatics. they don't have the belt guards, so ignore it if you don't have them.

before you do this you should get:

2 gallons coolant
10mm socket
12mm socket
14mm socket
22mm socket (1/2"in. drive)
5mm allen socket
2x10mm allen sockets
small prybar x2/flat tip screwdriver x2
3/8 drive ratchet for 10/12/14 sockets
3/8 breaker bar
1/2 breaker bar
pliers
bungee cord
15"x 30" cardboard
small needle nose vise grips
2x small folder clips
mirror
"grenade pin" or suitable cotter pin for tensioner
torque wrench (make sure it has 0-100 ft. lbs. in it's range)

now, i'm sure you can substitute certain things here and there, but this is what I used .

let's start!

First, drain the coolant. use either the petcock on the lower passengers side of the radiator, or remove the lower radiator hose from thermostat housing.

disconnect radiator fans:

(passenger side)
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1254.jpg

(drivers side)
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1255.jpg

Remove 2x 10mm bolt/nut holding belt shroud:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1253.jpg

Pull and hold out of the way with the bungee:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1256.jpg

Remove overflow tank:
quick removal by pushing in here, and sliding it out. note some may be held in place by 2x 10mm bolts

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1258.jpg

Remove upper radiator hose:

10mm here
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1261.jpg

and here
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1263.jpg

remove these two hoses at passenger end of radiator:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1264.jpg

here, you can remove the radiator with 2x 12mm bolts on top, or these 5 10mm bolts, and just remove the fans. depends how much room you want/need.

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1265.jpg

[shtbxr22]

here is after removing fans:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1266.jpg

then insert cardboard to protect fins/tubes:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1267.jpg

loosen this 12mm a few turns:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1274.jpg

this 12mm too:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1275.jpg

then adjust this 12mm down far enough to get the power steering/alternator belt off:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1276.jpg

break this 12mm loose, and loosen a half turn:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1277.jpg

adjust this 12mm up far enough to take the tension off the A/C belt:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1278.jpg

remove these two 12mm bolts, and set aside tensioner and remove belt:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1279.jpg

[shtbxr22]

here is how you should look:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1280.jpg

route crappy belt like so, and break loose and remove crank bolt w/ 22mm socket on 1/2 inch breaker bar: (note there are several ways to hold crank while breaking loose/torquing)

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1281.jpg

if crank pulley does not come off very easily, try LIGHTLY prying it from behind with two flat tip screwdrivers/small prybars. warning that the timing cover may crack if you over do it.

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1282.jpg

after getting the pulley off the crank, remove the timing cover bolts, then the covers.

set all timing marks where they need to be by either putting the crank pulley on and trying to muscle the engine to crank over to set marks, or you can put the bolt back in, and crank it that way. note also the double marks line up more or less on the sprockets in the center.

crank-
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1293.jpg

driver upper-
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1302.jpg

driver lower-
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1303.jpg

passenger upper-
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1296.jpg

passenger lower-
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1301.jpg

[shtbxr22]

remove guard with 10mm (automatic transmission cars do not have this):

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1284.jpg

loosen 3x guards, w/5mm allen. note: there is one on each sprocket except driver's upper.

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1287.jpg

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1288.jpg

take this here "grenade pin"

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1305.jpg

put it in the tensioner:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1306.jpg

while pulling slowly and easily up with breaker bar with 14mm socket here, attempt to insert the pin while twisting to get into and through the three holes (if the bolt starts to tighten, you are going too fast/hard:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1307.jpg

should look like this:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1309.jpg

remove the 12mm from the small idler, and remove idler:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1310.jpg

[shtbxr22]

remove the tensioner w/ 14mm socket (be prepared for the sprockets on the driver's side to unload):

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1311.jpg

if they don't unload, then kudos to you. you got lucky. be very slow around them.

remove the belt.
at this time, you should look around for leaks, check the pulleys for excess play, and pay close attention to the cogged pulley. it is usually the first one to give up. spin the idlers, and listen. they should be silent, but if not, i highly recommend replacing them. otherwise, you might as well start the countdown to destruction. in addition to the pulleys, now is the best time for the water pump to be replaced. it's just a couple of 10mm bolts. if replacing, make sure to torque to 9 ft. lbs. and use a new gasket.

with new belt (OEM of course :lol:) position so you can read the words. place small dots at the crank:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1313.jpg

hold very lightly with needle nose vise grips:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1314.jpg

position driver's side sprockets so they stay still with marks lining up, and route the belt over them holding them in place with folder clips:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1316.jpg

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1317.jpg

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1318.jpg

put the 2 breaker bars with 10mm allens in like so:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1320.jpg

slowly rotate both together clockwise until there is no longer tension from them:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1321.jpg

[shtbxr22]

now with all the slack you can route the belt the rest of the way around all the idlers and passenger's side sprockets.

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1324.jpg

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1322.jpg

now turn the driver's sprockets back together counter clockwise to where they take up all the slack in the rest of the belt.

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1323.jpg

there should now only be slack where the tensioner is going to go. so put it in:

torque to 30 ft. lbs.

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1326.jpg

now you can put the small idler back in torque to 18 ft. lbs.:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1327.jpg

double check all the timing marks again, then pull the pin:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1328.jpg

take a little piece of the timing belt box, rip a piece off and fold it in half. this will be your shim for the timing belt guards (make sure you get all 4):


http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1329.jpg

use like so while just slightly pushing the guard, and tighten the bolts after shimmed, you should be able to slip a single layer of the paper between the belt and guard freely:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1330.jpg

same for the crank:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1331.jpg

[shtbxr22]

now, you can put all the timing covers on. then put the pulley on, with belt setup again, or whatever method you want, and torque to 95 ft. lbs.

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1332.jpg

so now, you pretty much do the rest in reverse order to finish up. for the tensioners on the other belts, you can just go back to the spot they were. you should be able to see where they were adjusted to prior to removal. then fill coolant, burp, and hopefully enjoy another 90-105k miles of driving.

any more details you need clarification with, feel free to PM me. any suggestions are welcome too. enjoy! :up:

[itsmy04wrx]

10/10 nice write up :up:

[Gearhead Geek]

Awesome write up man. Now I see why you said your brain was toast after doing it :lol:

Just curious, at what point in those steps would you recommend changing the water pump if doing so?

[Mike]

Well since it is driven by the t-belt I'd assume the best time is after the old belt is off. I've never done work on a Subaru engine but from the pics it looks like it will easily pop off without pulling anything else out.

[batorr]

well done sir, well done

[squeethebee]

Once my 105k comes around I will be replacing my just replaced water pump, and possibly my brand new oil pump as well, since they aren't that much $$ and you are already right there. You should have gone over testing the rollers and such too :hide:

But overall, good write up, did you have Kyle take the pics?

ed

[shtbxr22]

Awesome write up man. Now I see why you said your brain was toast after doing it :lol:

Just curious, at what point in those steps would you recommend changing the water pump if doing so?

whenever you get the t-belt off, it's easily accessible. a few 10mm bolts and it's off. the cogged pulley is attached to it.

Once my 105k comes around I will be replacing my just replaced water pump, and possibly my brand new oil pump as well, since they aren't that much $$ and you are already right there. You should have gone over testing the rollers and such too :hide:

But overall, good write up, did you have Kyle take the pics?

ed

i can include that. i used my p.o.s. point and shoot for pics. :lol:

and thanks guys, i appreciate the comments. :up:

[shtbxr22]

adjustment has been made. i will get the torque on the small idler and water pump on monday.

[squeethebee]

You da man.

ed

[shtbxr22]

should be all set now. :D

[jmb1983]

nice duder!

[Bu11dogg2]

sweet!

[Antihero]

nice write up, but you can just gently pull the throttle cable clips out of the belt shield and remove it instead of bungiecording it out of they way.

Either way, damned good write up :up:

[shtbxr22]

I agree. there are a few things to be done differently. it's all a matter of preference. :) and thank you much.

[Andrew3776]

You are THE MAN!!!! How long would this take a rookie mechanic like myself?

[-nessa05]

first time, while looking back and forth from instructions, plan for 4 hours +/-. the fastest i've done a SOHC-28 minutes, DOHC-1:13.

-shtbxr22

[Andrew3776]

I think for this job, I'd probably just pay one of you guru's to help me out. I don't want to screw something like this up.

[shtbxr22]

I like money. :D

[Andrew3776]

I like money. :D

I think within the next year or so I'll be hitting you up for a timing belt job. How much $ would you want? I've got a buddy about to hit 100k so I can set you up with a side job. He asked me to help, but I don't know what I'm doing lol.

[shtbxr22]

pm........

[shtbxr22]

I'd like to add this picture to the mix:

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/Cranksprocketmarks.jpg

I've had 3 people ask me what is where on the crank because of the nose of the sprocket. on SOHC, cam sprockets are @ 12:00, and the crank is like ^

[Berge56]

:hide: Great write up Eric!

[hiprsha666]

I did this on my legacy. Pain in the ass really. Patience is the key. It is not worth rushing and then ****in up.

[LeeScorseby]

Great write up. Two amateurs completed this on an EJ255 in 5 hours. With an hour of that spent fighting rolling cams while trying to mount the belt. Think twice before you attempt this yourself. Reading on the forums and looking at pictures is entirely different than being inside your engine compartment. This project tedious and not for the faint of heart. Happy wrenching.

[shtbxr22]

glad to have been some help. :up:

[SicRedGt]

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m194/star91281/timing%20belt/100_1327.jpg

An observation in my T belt changes. On very high mileage cars i have seen the pin above the tensioner,.... that the tensioner plunger pushes against,.... can wear pretty significantly. I have seen 1-2mm worn off the said pin onm the block. So those of you putting on shaved heads beware because this can affect how well the tensioner can take up slack.


Great walk thu here. I use the t-belt box trick for spacing the guides. IDK if you mentioned this but the manual trans cars have the belt guard over the crank gear, auto trans cars do not.

[shtbxr22]

the pin on the tensioner itself wears pretty good too, also i did not mention the crank guard being ommited from the auto cars. thanks for the reminder.

[Demetry]

the pin on the tensioner itself wears pretty good too, also i did not mention the crank guard being ommited from the auto cars. thanks for the reminder.


Trade you a black lug wrench for the labor on a timing belt install??

[shtbxr22]

of course! let's get to it.

[SicRedGt]

I had two short blocks apart last winter, mine (5 speed) and a customers (EAT) side by side. I looked for the freaking crank belt guard for two days reassembling the auto motor before I realized there was never on on there.

I also keep a used cam belt as a tool if you need to remove the cam gear bolts. Those things are freaking silly tight on the DOHC motor.

[shtbxr22]

if you put torque on it while holding it with the tool, then a quick brrraaappp with the air hammer, and it usually lets go. I know they are a ***** though. many people in the shop have ended up destroying the sprocket/bolt.

[javasti2004]

nice job

[boxer3maine]

I have a question about belts...

there is two types, one shrinks to heat.. the others just set and forget.

one of the types has a "break in period".. and do not know if its the regular solid old fashioned belt or the newer heat shrinkers...

and they are elusive... the heat shrinkers claim "effective length" in theier parts description, and do not state anything else otherwise.

this leads me to gates and ac delco .. they are non-shrinkers. I just do not know which design the belt has the break in run, sometimes 500 freakin miles.(car will sound retarded during that time)

[-boz]

Well judging from the idlers and the shape of the belt grooves and the belt construction that is a Mitsubishi OEM belt in the pictures.

With the Mitsu belts on a DSM just set the tension and you are done. I assume this belt is the same way.

I would not mess around with an aftermarket belt, a $1500 plus head job is a lot more expensive then the $80 you will pay for an OEM belt.

Unless you do a Power Enterprises belt as those are reinforced with Kevlar.

[shtbxr22]

I have a question about belts...

there is two types, one shrinks to heat.. the others just set and forget.

one of the types has a "break in period".. and do not know if its the regular solid old fashioned belt or the newer heat shrinkers...

and they are elusive... the heat shrinkers claim "effective length" in theier parts description, and do not state anything else otherwise.

this leads me to gates and ac delco .. they are non-shrinkers. I just do not know which design the belt has the break in run, sometimes 500 freakin miles.(car will sound retarded during that time)

Sorry, these "silly EJ engines" don't require breaking in of the timing belt. Never heard of it actually, sorry.

Well judging from the idlers and the shape of the belt grooves and the belt construction that is a Mitsubishi OEM belt in the pictures.

With the Mitsu belts on a DSM just set the tension and you are done. I assume this belt is the same way.

I would not mess around with an aftermarket belt, a $1500 plus head job is a lot more expensive then the $80 you will pay for an OEM belt.

Unless you do a Power Enterprises belt as those are reinforced with Kevlar.

Let's get one thing straight. I will NEVER work on a mitsu!!!!! EVER!!!!
And sorry if i'm being a dick, but why would i do a write-up on a mitsubishi on this subaru forum?

[-boz]

Sorry, these "silly EJ engines" don't require breaking in of the timing belt. Never heard of it actually, sorry.



Let's get one thing straight. I will NEVER work on a mitsu!!!!! EVER!!!!
And sorry if i'm being a dick, but why would i do a write-up on a mitsubishi on this subaru forum?

You're not a dick but I just have NFC what you are talking about.. Someone has a question about the stretching of the timing belt and I answered it. Who said anything about doing a write up on a Mitsubishi? I specifically stated the Subaru timing belt and idlers you're using in the pictures are manufactured by Mitsubishi.

[shtbxr22]

ok, so they aren't idlers made by mitsu either. mitsubishi may just use the same idlers as subaru. the companies that make the idlers are:
Koyo
NTN
NSK
:D

Also, Unitta makes the older timing belts, and I have heard gates makes the newer ones. The closest thing i found would be the alternator/P.S. belt being made by the company mitsuboshi, not mitsubishi. :shrug: sorry.

[Jaketips42]

Eric. If I see you in the parts room going nutso one more time... ;)

[Bu11dogg2]

looks like subaru is switching to chains.

[shtbxr22]

I hate chains

[boxer3maine]

I hate chains

has that fb engine shown up anywhere?

[DHGurs]

has that fb engine shown up anywhere?

It's been in the 2011 Forester since last October.

[boxer3maine]

It's been in the 2011 Forester since last October.

any member here have one?

curious for that one.

[SicRedGt]

I hate chains


Subaru is taking the gravy jobs right out from under you.:lol:

Just think, when they hit 100K the chains will slapping around, broken chain guides in the pan, mmmmm lots of slurping to be done.

How do the chains hold up on the six's?

[boxer3maine]

Subaru is taking the gravy jobs right out from under you.:lol:

Just think, when they hit 100K the chains will slapping around, broken chain guides in the pan, mmmmm lots of slurping to be done.

How do the chains hold up on the six's?

just give it a real oil filter.

I would love to at least see one.

the boxer and the chain is horizonatal,chance for even flow.. the craziest I can remember was my very last inline four (never to own any variant again) gm, corsica.. what a mess.

that plastic type stuff they can ride on would be a nuisance, unless they are tighter than appear to take a load off. The pictures make it look like it is real dependent on the guides.

[shtbxr22]

Subaru is taking the gravy jobs right out from under you.:lol:

Just think, when they hit 100K the chains will slapping around, broken chain guides in the pan, mmmmm lots of slurping to be done.

How do the chains hold up on the six's?


Yeah, T-belts are definitely a sweet job. I have yet to see a chain failure on any six cylinder. I had recently done a bunch of work to a 150,000+ mile 03 outback 3.0 that went more than 22,000 miles on the same oil. no oil on the dipstick, and still ran great. I think the 3.0 is our bulletproof engine, but the jury is still out on the 3.6 liter.

[Antihero]

Weird, I've seen two chain failures on 2006 Tribecas due to lack of oil.