Hi guys,

I just bought a '98 A6 with a bad water pump. Everything is removed (bumper, core support, etc.) to get access to the timing belt and water pump.

About this cam lock tool... Yes, I've read up about it but I still don't understand why everyone insists on using it and that your timing will be off if you don't. I do understand the need *IF* you have to remove the cam sprockets for any reason (i.e. cam seals) since they are not splined or keyed. I am not going to be replacing cam or crank seals. So, as long as I mark both cams at TDC and they do not move I should be fine. Now I do understand that when you release the tensioner, the slack of the timing belt might cause one side to be off a tooth or two. If so, I'll just compensate for that by rotating the neccesary sprocket and retension the belt.

I will also count and record the number of 'teeth' on the timing belt between all the sprockets to double check my work.

So really really, why all the fuss about this tool when you dont need to replace any shaft seals?


Thanks
-Paul

 

When folks give advice in regard to replacing the TB, they assume the person would need to replace the seals. That's why they recommend using the lock bar. I don't think anyone made indeed a fuss about it.
On the other hand, the locking bar is pretty useful for someone who DIY for the first time. Better safe than sorry... if you don't know what you're doing.
If YOU are a seasoned mechanic, then the discussions about the tool may indeed appear as a fuss from your perspective.

 

Technically you dont, but the people who have sucessfully done it, that I know about, I can count on one hand...

 

The cams will move.

 

The fuss is = it's just easier to use the tool.

 

It is not about whether the cam will move or not... Most times than not it will not. But the tension on the timing belt will be uneven, 100% of the time, if you don't remove the cam sprockets to install and tension the belt. Uneven tension is what causes the misalignment down the road.

Yes there are a handful of people who did without the lock bar and worked out fine. But there are countless people who did the belt without the lock bar and their timing went off.

 

Isn't the tool rental dirt cheap ($15 bucks or something) from blau? Might as well spend the extra little bit and toss in the cam caps and everything.

 

Blau charges a real high deposit some might not have.

 

LOL -- The old cam tool argument again!!

As said over and aver -- some folks get lucky, change the belt without the tool, and everything is OK -- but the majority of people that try it end up having problems.

I bought the damn thing for a bit over $100 when I did my TB just to be sure there would be no problem. It looks great on the peg board behind the garage workbench and everytime I enter the garage I get a pang of satisfaction remembering that I saved a bunch of money..

 

Because its a pain in the *** to get the belt on without moving one of the cams. By the time you stretch the belt around the crank, both cams and all the tensioners you will turn one or both cams. I've done it without the bar before, but damn i really don't like to.