Timing Belt: Removal
- Disconnect negative battery cable. Remove accessory drive belts. Remove cooling fan, fan shroud and water pump pulley.
- Remove outer bolts retaining crankshaft pulley. Remove crankshaft pulley. It is not necessary to remove center bolt from crankshaft pulley. Raise vehicle and remove skid plate (if equipped).
- Remove timing belt cover and seal. See Fig 1. On 16-valve, ensure timing marks are aligned before removing timing belt (camshaft sprocket timing mark "E" is aligned with notch in valve cover and crankshaft timing gear punch mark is aligned with arrow on oil pump housing). On all models, remove tensioner spring and tensioner stud. Loosen tensioner bolt. DO NOT remove tensioner bolt.
- Push tensioner plate upward, and remove timing belt. If removing crankshaft sprocket, remove retaining bolt, crankshaft sprocket, key and timing belt guide (located behind crankshaft sprocket) from crankshaft.CAUTION: DO NOT rotate either camshaft or crankshaft with timing belt removed, piston/valve interference may cause component damage.CAUTION: Note direction of timing belt guide installation. Concave side of timing belt guide is toward the oil pump.
- If removing camshaft sprocket, remove valve cover. On 8-valve, insert a .35" (9 mm) diameter rod in hole of camshaft to hold camshaft during camshaft sprocket removal. See Fig 2. On 16-valve, use Camshaft Sprocket Spanner Wrench (J-41840) to hold camshaft during camshaft sprocket removal. On all models, remove retaining bolt and camshaft sprocket.