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How to change your timing belt!


5523Pathfinder
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OK, I think I got it. I will also be replacing the water pump, thermostat, tensioner, belts, hoses and spark plugs. Not sure about the cam seals. I’m afraid to mess with the cams any more then I have to and from what I’ve been reading they seem like they can be a pain. They seem fine anyway but any advice on getting the number 6 spark plug? I can’t see or even feel the thing, all the other were a breeze.

 

Thanks again for the help! I've always done work on my cars but nothing this intense. With sites like this I'll be able to keep my fleet running well without the need to empty my pocket at the dealer or elsewhere!

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Success!! Finished the job early this morning and my pathfinder runs fine. I'd like to thank this forum for all the information since without it I would have been stuck and probably would have had to pay someone. A special thanks also to Precise1 for the assistance while I was up to my elbows in grease, Thanks man!

 

After replacing the timing belt, water pump, thermostat, bypass hose, upper/lower radiator hoses, belts, and spark plugs I spent around $300 in parts. I figure I saved around $700 for the same job at a shop since I was getting quotes for around $700 for just the timing belt and water pump.

 

My advice for anyone attempting this project is to TAKE YOUR TIME. This is not a difficult job but it was definitely tedious and time consuming. I started last Friday and just finished today (Thursday) working 2 to 5 hours in the evenings. Do your research up front on forums like this and take plenty of pictures for reference. The service manual is helpful but lacks procedural detail so be prepared to think things through.

 

For parts, definitely shop around and ask for any and all discounts. I found that simply inquiring saved me a lot. Also, I'd like to give credit to O'Reilly auto parts for loaning me tools (which they regularly do) which saved me from buying a crank pulley. Good luck!

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Good job buddy. I did mine with the help of this forum too. I'm doing the headlight and foglight relay upgrades now. Just waiting on my parts to come in off ebay. This forum has really helped me gain confidence in working on my pathy as well. Good Job! :itsallgood:

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Success!! Finished the job early this morning and my pathfinder runs fine. I'd like to thank this forum for all the information since without it I would have been stuck and probably would have had to pay someone. A special thanks also to Precise1 for the assistance while I was up to my elbows in grease, Thanks man!

 

After replacing the timing belt, water pump, thermostat, bypass hose, upper/lower radiator hoses, belts, and spark plugs I spent around $300 in parts. I figure I saved around $700 for the same job at a shop since I was getting quotes for around $700 for just the timing belt and water pump.

 

Congrats Man!! It feels good to do it yourself, doesn't it?? :aok:

You are welcome, of course. I had questions also when I dove into mine so I'm actually obligated, in my book anyway, to help if I can.

 

Yep, thats probably an accurate estimate of savings and certainly nothing to sneeze at either!! The best part is that now you are set for another 100k miles!! Well, for that part of maintenance anyway... ;)

 

B

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Hello and what a great post. Been very helpful but I wanted to ask a question and I hope it don't sound to stupid. I have got everything back together and I won't to be certain the timing belt tension is correct. What is the best way to know that your close to the correct tension? I read here that twisting the belt was a good way to tell but I would just like to be certain of the steps to take to know it is gonna be ok. Thanks for the help, Jeff

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I did the twist method too. If you can twist past 90* its too loose. I gave it my hardest twist after setting and got maybe 85* You could hear it hum over the pulleys when it ran but as the belt broke in it got quieter.

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^ This is good info. I reset mine 3 times before I was happy, and I also errored on the tight side figuring the belt would stretch a little.

 

Don't get to carried away though!! If it audibly whines when it runs, it is too tight, perhaps damagingly so. I know of a few members who reported a whine and each of them experienced cam or tensioner stud failure. On the other side, don't be paranoid because it only happened to a few people over many years.

 

B

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I know of a few members who reported a whine and each of them experienced cam or tensioner stud failure.

 

 

I found one in the yj like that not too long ago. I was looking for a tensioner for another project and I found one with broken stud. It looked brand new and so did the belt and water pump.

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  • 2 weeks later...

So I just replaced my timing belt over the weekend (173K miles and i have no idea if the previous owner changed it, so in went a new one). I'm glad I read this because when i set the marks on the belt and turned it a few times, it never re-aligned. So, that post about it helped ease my nerves. Also the belt tension with the 90* thing helped too.

 

I have one tip for the auto guys (or anybody really) for torqueing the crank bolt (and removing) with no air. I took the starter out, and put a 1 1/16 short socket in there. Worked great! Broke easily enough and torqued to 112 lb-ft just fine. Thats my tip!

 

Jose

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  • 2 months later...

Changed my timing belt this weekend, as well as waterpump, cam seals, hoses, etc.

 

I couldn't find the bypass hose at any of the autoshops, or at the dealer. The dealer said Nissan does not make the part anymore and that I could call a few other dealers to see if they had the part in stock. I ended up finding a hose from Autozone that had a 90* bend and was the same diameter, and it seems to be working just fine.

 

I took off the crank bolt by using the old A/C belt, connecting it to the P/S pump pulley on the crank, securing it with vice-grips and wrapping on the old water pump. To attach it, I put it on the A/C compressor since I didn't want to break the new waterpump and the A/C looked stronger. It worked like a charm.

 

Now, the engine is quieter and I can hear the exhaust leak better. :(

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  • 1 month later...

Belt tension question here.

 

Got my new belt on ( VG30E ) and think I have it tensioned properly...can just get 90* when twisting and the allen hole on the tensioner is at about the 5 o clock position. After tensioning and rotating the crank and getting back up to TDC, I noticed my L/H cam and crank marks line up, but the R/H cam is between 1/2 to 1 tooth off the mark to the left. The teeth count on the belt between marks on the cams and crank work out ok, 40 teeth between cam marks and 43 teeth between L/H cam and crank marks. Is the R/H cam off just from tensionig the belt? Does that mark matter anyways if the other two line up like they're supposed to, and all were lined up correctly when I started? Just checking to see if this is normal once the belt is tight.

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  • 4 months later...

Any suggestions on what brand of belt to buy as well as tensioner?

 

I can order them from Factorynissanparts.com, but they are cheaper on rockauto.com, just curious if anyone has used anything aside from factory parts for this job.

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People have used all kinds of parts for this job. Personally (and I've done A LOT of timing belt jobs on VG motors) I've never used anything but Nissan parts. To me, it's too important to worry about saving a few bucks on parts, especially since I'm already saving money by doing it myself. I'd stick with Nissan stuff.

 

For Nissan parts, pm Alkorahil (Rob) who has gotten parts for lots of members on the board, to rave reviews.

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 2 months later...
  • 3 weeks later...

This video might help someone. So ill post it here.

 

check out when he finds the exhaust leak on the 3rd vid at the end lol.

 

Edit: i forgot about this one

 

Edited by ACEX2
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  • 4 weeks later...

So I thought I would note a few things I have learned. Though the vehicle I did this write up on was not my pathfinder(my brothers QX4) most of the stuff I do is the same. So, I just finished changing my timing belt for the second time. I as very curious how things have held up from when i installed the belt at 113k miles(I now have 209K). I found that my cam seals held up fantasticly. If you ahve changed your belt, Im sure you have found the right cam seal leaking. I did nothing but spray a little bit of silicone spray on the seal to help with installation. I changed them all out again just because. I had also replaced the waterpump during the first belt change. I had applied this stuff called "Gasketcinch" on the gasket and on the pump. This was nice because when I went to pull the pump, 95% of the gasket came off with the pump. Even peeling the rest off was very easy. If you have ever replaced your pump, you know that sometimes the old gasket can be a pain to remove. Everything else was routine. No abnormal leaks or issues. I used quailty coolant that as supplied by my old work. There was no abnormal deposits or build found, which is a good thing. Good stuff went back in. I changed a lot of stuff again, but nothing was in bad shape. Its nice knowing that purchasing quailty parts pays off.

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  • 3 months later...

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