I am new here and worked at a volvo shop for years, I was wondering about one thing i have read on here about the s60 timing belts.....why do you need to turn the engine 90degrees past the marks and then turn it back...?
I have changed hundred of belts on these models and have never done that and never had one come back...
What difference does it make whether you go past the marks and back again or just turn to the marks and stop?
It obviously doesnt make a difference as I have never done it and was wondering if I had been doing it wrong all these years! I have thought about it for hours and cannot think why you would do that..... maybe to avoid the VVT pully from springing back when you remove the belt..? This has happened once or twice but its not a problem, I just turn it back and it stays there.
Also, when replacing the VVt pully and having to lock the cams at the rear, if you did turn the cams past the mark and then back, the VVT cam would be out of align as the VVt pully would not bring the cam back to its mark.

Someone please put me out of my misery! thx!

 

The manual says to turn it counter-clockwise 90 degrees then loosten the gear bolts, then turn it by the gear until its 1 1/2 teeth before the timing mark on the vvt cam. All it's doing is getting the bolts in the far left side of the slots in the timing gear. When you then pre-load the vvt by the center plug it usually goes a little past the timing mark and then you can move the gear counter clockwise until the marks line up. Then you tighten the bolts. You only have to do this if you remove the vvt to replace the seal. The manual is pretty confusing.

 

I re-read your question and I think I understand it. I think they tell you to do this to get the vvt and cam in the correct position and gets the slack out of the belt before you remove it. By going back then forward it gets the vvt gear in the forward position. I think I read that the vvt on the s40 stays in position and won't spring back. Where people get in trouble is they don't realize that the vvt gear can spring back. You were doing it right the manual tells you what to do without explaining why you're doing it.

 

Volvo's manual was more confusing with the D24 engine and setting the injector timing.
Ed