Dirtbuster1

How much time & trouble is it to change the timing chain tension assembly on the passenger side of the engine. What are the required parts to change, & what needs to be removed. I talked with a Ford Service Manager, & he suggested thats probably where my knock is coming from. He said it would be obvious when the covers were removed.

torkum

Its not a bad job for someone who is comfortable doing timing chains on "interference" motors meaning: zero clearance between the valve and the piston. If you get the timing off a valve can get bent quick. There are a few OTC tools needed like the cam holding tool and the crank holding tool so the timing doesn't change during assembly. Good news is that its the passenger/right side so you would only be removing one chain.
Sorry I only had a driverside/left pic but you will see what the tensioner looks like. The passenger side has a "R".

Dirtbuster1

Thanks for the reply. Will the chain & timing mark on the camshaft always repeat for alignment purposes. I'm assuming that there is a 2 to 1 ratio from crank to the camshaft rotation.

1. Will it be obvious when I pull the timing cover to see if there is a problem with the assembly?
2. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the chain guides & tensioner can be replaced without pulling the front cover on the motor?
3. Are the tools really needed to lock the cam down while removing the camshaft sprocket, or can you use anything else to lock it down?
4. Does Autozone or O'reillys loan out these type of tools?

Just trying to gather some intell.

torkum

To answer the question about crank to cam rotation you need to get detailed instructions on setting the timing.
Question #1
As for obvious problem when pulling the cover, I would say too much slack in the chain on the passenger side vs. the driver side.
Question #2
You will have to pull the cover to gain access to the chains and tensioner.
Question #3
I'm sure you can find or make something to hold the cam, I have the tools so have never tried anything else.
Question #4
I don't think the parts stores have these tools for loan.

OTC Cam holding tool:

Dirtbuster1

Can I just change the tension assembly, without removing the chain? My plans are to remove the valve cover & front right timing chain cover. Then check chain slack, crank engine then remeasure chain slack. Hopefully after the covers are removed I will be able to identify where the knock is coming from.

Dirtbuster1

I finally got around to removing the front cover. What a pain!. After the cover was removed I noticed the the driver side chain has slack in the bottom part by the crank. The passenger side tension looks good. Should I go ahead and remove the chains, guides, & the tension assembly, or play it safe and just replace both tensioners. Not trying to be cheap, I just don't want to screw up the timing marks & have more problems.

Suggestions!

torkum

I would replace the chains, gears, tensioners, and guides sense you have went this far. Warning, if you are not sure what to do don't go it alone. You only have one shot to get it correct. If its not correct you could trash the motor.

Dirtbuster1

I changed the tensioner, and found that there was still to much slack. I tried to align the timing marks by the manual, & the passenger side appears to be off. I don't think that the chain could have slipped while doing this. At this point I am going to head & pull the motor so that I can inspect everything. The knocking noise that I heard was coming from the chain slapping the guide plate. I could duplicate this by hand. I still have a few more bolts to break the engine loose at his point. I am missing one somewhere around the starter. It was a good move by going ahead & removing the engine. 4 bolts that held the transmission to the engine were missing, along with several loose brackets that Bubba tie wrapped.

The Ford manual says that the RH side of the engine should be at 11 O'clock & the LH at 12 o'clock. Is this correct?

torkum

Maybe this will help

Dirtbuster1

Thanks for the pic. The passenger side looks more like 10 o'clock to me. The pic looks closer to what I have. My timing kit will be in tommorow, & hopefully it will have the proper markings on it to help me confirm the correct location. Today I took the changes the plugs out, & I can not rotate either cam sprocket. Does this mean that the number 1 & 5 pistons are at the top? Just trying to gather all possible info. Also should I put any type of lubricant or sealer on the plugs before they are installed. The ones that came out must have been the original ones. The gap looked like 100 thousands on most of them. The good thing was that they all looked good by color.

Any other suggestions before I put the motor back in tommorow would be helpful. I plan on leaving the intake off to gain access to the top of the transmission. What type of antifreeze would be best for this engine?