Timing belt replacement - Bent valves?

[lovemycountour]

Hi,

I'd first like to thank all of you who've helped me with my car. This forum has answered a lot of my questions - even though I just finally got around to joining. This is going to be long. but feel free to skip to the end if you're just interested in the question...

My Contour is a 99 SE, 2.0 Zetec w/ 5-speed. It's utterly stock, and has been the most reliable car that I've ever owned. It has 186K on it, and has had only routine maintenance on it during that time - with the exception of an alternator replacement at 85K. The engine had been running flawlessly until after I recently replaced the timing belt.

I purchased the requisite "timing kit", consisting of the flat metal plate to align the camshafts and threaded to align the crank. I followed the "revised procedure" that Ford put out in theirTSB.

The process was pretty routine - aside from some major grief getting the bolt on the harmonic balancer to come loose. When I put the engine back together again, though, it would not start. It acted as if it was getting little if any compression.

I checked the compression (not very precisely) and found roughly the following:

1 - 100 psi
2 - Neglegible
3 - Neglegible
4 - 150 PSI

This just about *had* to be a valve problem, so I took everything apart again and I went through the process one more time - trying to be extra careful. This time, I checked the compression *before* I put everything back together. The results were pretty much the same as before,

By now I was really scratching my head. With the special tools, there really didn't seem to be much of any way that I could set it up wrong. After all, putting the pin/plate in place were supposed to guaranty that I had everything set up correctly. The only way that it could get messed up was if that assumption was wrong.

I had been relying on the combination of the mark on the harmonic balancer and the insertion of the pin to know that I had the engine at TDC on #1. To check this, i used the old trick of sticking something in the spark plug hole on #1 and visually checking when it got to the highest point.

What I found was that TDC was *not* where I had thought it was! I put the pin into the side of the block, and it went in just fine here as well.

What I learned was this:

1) There was more than one mark for aligning the harmonic balancer. The on that I used was *not* the one that I should have used.

2) Contrary to what the instructions imply, the alignment pin will fully insert in locations *other* than a TDC! It works as a "stop" at the correct location, i.e. you can't get the engine to turn any further than TDC, but you *CAN* fully insert the pin quite a bit further back than that. A FULLY INSERTED PIN DOES NOT GUARANTY THAT YOU'RE AT TDC!

I seem to have set up the engine with the crank roughly about 7 degrees before TDC on the previous attempts. I suspect that I may have bent the valves on at least cylinders 2 and 3 while set up that way, but there was no noise, etc. to indicate that this might have happened.

Has anyone had bent valves on a Zetec? It's supposed to be an interference engine, but I've read a number of accounts of people fixing engines after a timing belt/idler failure on these. None of these mentioned valve damage, so I'm a bit puzzled.

I'd love to hear from anyone who can give me alternate explanation for what I'm seeing, but bent valves is my best guess at this point.

Thanks.

[mcgarvey]

No, the zetec is not an interference engine. People have claimed that in some cases of extreme wear, the pistons have come into contact with the valves when the belt snaps, but I do not think this has any basis in reality, and I know I've never seen it myself. As a result, I doubt your valves are bent. Did you rotate the crankshaft a few times after changing the belt to ensure that it maintained the correct alignment? It sounds like its either out of alignment or your belt tension is way off.

Maybe someone else can second this about the interference/non-interference issue.

Good luck!

[TourDeForce]

lovemycontour, you have a PM coming. Stand by.

McGarvey, there is some history behind bent valves. I have seen posts about it more than once in the old forums. It is rare, but it has happened. Clearances are very tight, so at high rpm it can happen.

[TourDeForce]

Iringtwice just had a similar sounding problem that turned out to be a head gasket. Have you checked for that??

[IRingTwyce]

Yes, I had similar compression. 90, crap, crap, 90. Oh, and a fountain of coolant from 2 and 3 with the plugs out while testing.

[lovemycountour]

Thanks for all the input. I'll try to answer all of your questions in one post.

I did rotate the crankshaft a number of times after changing the belt. There is a slight variance that shows up as soon as you release the camshafts, but I attribute that to the tension from the VCT exhaust shaft. (I noted roughly the same variance - the exhaust cam looked to be slightly in advance of the intake cam - before I removed the old belt.)

I agree that it sounds like it's either out of alignment or belt tension is way off. Aside from the bad location of the crank on the first pass, though, I can find nothing indicating that either of these might be the case. It looks just fine - aside from the lack of compression on number 2 and 3, that is.

I was also skeptical about bent valves, which is why I asked about it in the first place. I've only turned the motor over on the starter, so "high speed" is definitely *not* a factor!

Aside from the compression test, I've done nothing to specifically test for a blown head gasket. I have ra number of easons to doubt it's blown, though.

I *just* changed both the oil and the coolant - both were uncontaminated.

There was nothing on the plugs to indicate any coolant might have gotten into the cylinders.

Most telling, though, is that the engine had been running *very* nicely right up until I tore it down for the belt replacement.

I short, I can't *swear* that the head gasket ain't blown, but I don't have any evidence that seems to point to it, either.

TourDeForce sent me an alternate set up method, which involves putting #4 at TDC after locking the camshafts with the bar. Has anyone else seen and/or used that method? Is seems to have worked for him.

Thanks again.

[jd2-98s]

Hmmm. I've done this job 3 times. The way I like to do it, is as follow. Loosen both intake and exhaust cam sprockets. Do this as.

1. timing belt can be on or off. Remove your locking bar (so you don't put pressure on the cam ends or head surface) You will note a spot in the cam that a wrench will fit on, iirc it's around 24mm or so, adjustable might be ok but will be a big one.

2. Have a helper hold the wrench on the cam. Then use a 55T bit on a 1/2inch drive breaker-bar. Push with your palm of your hand on the bar where the bit is installed to help prevent the torxs from trying to slip and push the bar with other hand to loosen the bolt.

3. The exhaust cam is done the same, however it is a oil-plug you are removing. You will then need a 12point 16mm deep-well socket to loosen the bolt inside the exhaust cam sprocket.

4. Now I do like to stress the 2.0L Zetec locking set for like 22bucks or so. It has both cam and crank locking. With the engine locked up, crank is stopped against pin, cams locked with bar. Start the belt on the right side of crank gear. Going up over the exhaust cam gear, and over the the intake then back down with tensioner and back to crank.

5. Then set the tensioner. Now the tricky part. Really you don't want to use the locking bar while tightening the cam bolts back up. Even with someone holding a wrench on the cams, the bar will get pressure and stuck.
Pull it out and tighten. Then check, it might take a few tries. After spinning it over by hand 2 times, reinstall crank lock, and then cam bar. you might find that the cams seem only a hair off and the bar just barely won't go back into the slots, the engine is close enough.

Just some ref pics. Hope this info helps you. There is lots of good info, but will take some searching.

[TourDeForce]

I don't understand why you loosten the cam sprockets. What purpose does that serve. I didn't have to, and I never came across a procedure that suggests it until your post.

I'd also like to know why you had to do this job 3 times...

[Dec1000]

That is one of the most important steps. All the Haynes deals with the Pre 1998. Don't even mention the VCT Solenoid. That is done to get your tension set right. Most people that skip this step, usually have the problem of their timing belt walking on the pulleys or get the P1381 or P1383 code.

[jd2-98s]

I'd also like to know why you had to do this job 3 times...

LMAO I'm not going to read into your post too much, but kinda cocky... 3 different contours, the last one being MATT-R who is one of the mods. He drove from NY to RI just to have me do it, that and I offered my service for free. And DEC1000 is also someone who I offered this advice to, and was very happy with the out come.