New to this forum. I am a mechanic that recently got a '91 960 wagon from a client. The water pump had gone out & it had jumped time & bent the valves. Another mechanic removed the head & had it fixed. When he reassembled it, he could not get it to start. He gave up on it, so it was brought to me. I checked compression & it has 180-200 PSI in all cylinders. & also checked for fire & 2-6 plugs are firing. I suspect #1 may have a bad coil.

I removed the timing cover to check the timing. When I lined up the timing marks for the cam gears, I could not see a mark on the crank gear. I removed the tensioner & rotated the crank & found a notch between 2 teeth, in the valley. I though that might be the timing mark, so I set up the belt & tried to rotate it by hand, but the valves hit the pistons, so I know that is wrong. The piston is near BDC when I use that mark, & I am reading here that it should be near TDC.

I have read that the timing mark can be a notch on the a gear tooth, or a notch in the valley, so I dont know which it is for a 91. I do not see any other marks on the crank gear. Can anyone help me to know where the mark is & maybe show a GOOD picture of it? I have seen plenty of bad pictures, but I need a good one so I can set the timing up correctly.

Also, should the piston be exactly at TDC, or before TDC when the marks are lined up? Any help would be appreciated.

 

I did the belt on my '97, not sure how different they are. Mine has a knotch on the tooth and I have also seen a knotch on the top of the crank where the serpentine belt rides.

Timing belt replacement instructions on a 1997 Volvo 960

 

One would think, if you got good compression then the timing must be on, but maybe it is not. I enclosed a picture of the crank mark taken from the back side.

If it still does not start, then check for spark on an odd number cylinder, the power stages that control the coils are divided by even, odd cylinders.

DanR '94 964 356,000 miles (122,000 on the new engine)

 

Thats exactly what the mark on mine looks like. When I used it, though, the piston was at BDC & the piston hit the valves when I tried to rotate it by hand.

What year is yours? A '94? So the '97 has it on the tooth, while the '94 has it in the valley. Anyone got a '91 that they did?

 

How about the relationship between the cam gear & the camshaft. I was told thata the cam gear can go any way on the camshaft & there are no markings to show the correct way?

Also has anyone used the locating tool for the crankshaft? Can I just use a drill bit or something to position the crank, or do I HAVE to use the tool?

 

I think all was same until '96 with the OBii diagnostics, then there were some big changes, until then the only thing that really changed was the timing belt getting wider.

I never needed any special tools to time the crank. The cam gear can only go on one way, so that info is just plain wrong. If all is well with the marks, I am thinking your cam(s) is out of time. With the crank on it's mark none of the pistons will be at TDC, it is designed so if the crank is on it's mark, the cams can be turned without interference.

Maybe you are using the wrong mark on the cams, I know the factory marks are rather slight? Or is it possible the timing belt is not routed the correct way? A idler pulley in not correctly placed?

Maybe the cam gears were removed the cam ends and not reattached correctly, the exhaust and intake cams were swapped? The cam gears can be rotated if out of phase.

I am just guessing here, but when you were told it would not start, was it meant that it would not crank? Or did it crank and not fire up?

DanR

 

My mistake, this car is a '93, so I think the mark is the same as a '94.

Actually, the cam gears can go any way. I removed one, & not only can I put them on any of the three holes, the holes are slotted so I can index them a few degrees forward or back.

The last mechanic that worked on it did not have the tools to hold the cams in the valve cover, so he just put them in the head & bolted the valve cover in. It will crank, but wont start. I have checked the crank gear & the only mark on it is the notch between 2 teeth. The #1 piston is just above BDC when that mark is lined up, but the rest of the pistons are sitting so that I can rotate the cams without the valves hitting them, so I am thinking that that mark is correct. That means the cams are timed wrong, so I am going to buy the tools to install them correctly & also to index the crankshaft. That way I know it is right when I reassemble it. I have found the tools online for $200, so thats not too bad, so I guess thats my next step.

 

Don't buy that tool yet, I have heard of some people with the same problem and fixed it without the tool.

The cams at the back of the head have a off center slot, that slot fits the cam tool, the only thing I do not know is whether the off center side is up or down, but do know that they match from cam to cam, so that the heavy side is the same for both cams, and that slot is in the same plane, so there you just have two choices. Trial and error?

It is odd that the timing would be so close to where it needs to be to allow for the engine to crank but not destroy those new valves.

DanR

 

Well the owner of the car is going to pay for the tools, so I think I would rather have him buy them. If it is wrong, & I bend some valves, then I am screwed, so I think I would rather have the tool.