Timing belt tensioner for 91 Legacy

[Rick Grant]

What is the best technique for compressing the timing belt tensioner in preparation for reinstalling it prior to installing a new timing belt? I am working out of my garage with limited resources,any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

[Matt Monson]

I use a really large C-clamp that I can screw down. The FSM says something about a slow press that takes 5+ minutes to compress it. I just sit there and very very slowly crank down the C-clamp until I can slip in a jeweler's screwdriver to lock it in place. It's a little tricky, because even if your C-clamp has a swivel head, the piston wants to spin in the housing and knock the holes out of alignment. You need to physically hold the piston in line with the hole in the body so it doesn't rotate as you compress...

[dzx]

I use a vice.

[free5ty1e]

Shop vice, slowly

[Rick Grant]

Thanks for your help Dan and Matt, I plan on going to Harbor Freight today after work and picking up a vice.Who knows maybe someday I will have a day off from work and I can actually get the car running!

When installing the timing belt should I count the teeth on the belt or are the white marks on the new belt accurate normally enough that I can trust them? Also on the crank I have been told that their is an arrow and a mark, where is the mark located that I have to use for reference? I plan on putting a whie index mark on it once I locate it. Thanks, Rick

[eph]

i know it's a little late but here's an ODD technique that actually worked.

i usually have all my tools in my car incase something happens, considering that i have problems every weekend or so... it's a requirement for me...

i also have an alluminum floorjack (purchased at the local harbor freight tool store)

what i did was i used the rear tow hook and the floor jack along with the weight of the car to slowly compress the tensioner... worked like a charm... im sure the stock jack will work as well, maybe even better considering you have full control of the jack and how slow you want to compress the tensioner... i couldn't use my stock jack because i broke that one along time ago.

[subawhatsubawho]

If you do a search on the board I am sure you can find plenty of threads that will help you with your timing belt install.

or click here:
http://www.bbs.legacycentral.org/search ... de=results

[Rick Grant]

Finally finished my timing belt reinstallation but now shes running rough! Hopefully just from skunk gas that has been sitting in the tank since August.Thanks for all the help y'all, the shop vice idea worked out perfect for compressing the tensioner and now I have a vice for future projects. Now that the car is going I found out the speedo and the heating fan are not functional, are these tough repairs? My guess is I will have to take part of the dash out on the pass side for the fan. A broken cable is hopefully causing the speedo not to work and not a broken gear in the trans.

thanks again,
P.Reynolds

[eph]

as far as the speedo, i would most likely lean towards broken cable... mine broke randmoly...

fan, could be a number of things, the ground under the dash, the relay, or just a dead fan... good luck

[subawhatsubawho]

If you have an AT chances are it is the transmission end that broke. The good news is it is easy to replace and cheap. Bad news is it is a dealer only part. I think I paid about $14.00

There have been plenty of threads started about this exact problem. Josh (Legacy777) helped me with mine.

[Rick Grant]

I will check the connection point of the speedo cable as it is auto trans, how will I know if it is the trans (the $14 part) and not a broken cable?

The heater fan makes a noise but it doesn't seem to be from the fan itself,more like a vacuumn noise coming from behind the dash,my guess is the blower motor is dead.

[subawhatsubawho]

remove the speedo cable from the transmission. You should see a little metal tab extending from the end that rests in a slot in the tranny. If it is broken off and is stuck inside the slot you will need to remove it with pliers and replace the end piece. There is a small metal colar holding to the cable itself. Take all of 10 minutes to do.

I will supply pics if needed.

[Rick Grant]

Thanks subawhat for your advice on the speedo cable,hopefully it is as simple as you say.All I need to do is get the car idling good again then I can focus on the driveaxles,brakes and the rest of some petty stuff.Still not bad for a $200 car!

[sammydafish]

I thought my speedo cable broke... turns out I just tugged on it a bit from the engine side and poped it out of the cluster. You can actauly reach it from under the dash without taking anything out. It's a tight fit, but you can snake your hand up there.

[subawhatsubawho]

My speedo is unplugged at the moment and I tried getting my hand thru there. I must have giant hands because that wasn't happening.