# Timing belt Replacement New Guy to Water cooled*



## lolaz28 (Jan 27, 2007)

Hey guys im new to the site but have used it for a great resource 
but now that i cant find something i have a question
I Bought a 8v Scirocco yesturday and the timing belt is cracked up pretty bad
I picked up an idler pulley and a new belt 
1. Wondering what is all involved with changing the timing belt( hhings to look for)
2. If there is a step by step procedure that is Known of replacement
3. If you have any tips from replacing yourself with problems and things to look for
thanks alot and im new to the water cooled stuff and just want to be safe and know what im doing before i jump in to this timing belt
-Rooster


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## TheMajic86GTI (Aug 9, 2009)

*Re: Timing belt Replacement New Guy to Water cooled* (lolaz28)*

First i would invest in a repair manual(bentley or haynes) its going to be ur best friend!!!!!!
and for timing belt change....
1)put ur motor on TDC....#1 piston should be all the way up remove green cap on tranny and u should see the V pointing to the dot on the flywheel








2)After this check ur cam sprocket...dot on inside of sprocket should be even with the front of valve cover like this...








3)remove distibutor cap make sure rotor is pointed to #1 in firing order like this(ull see a small line on edge of distributor, rotor should be like an 1/8 to the right of it.








4)put on new tensioner and belt and tighten everything....after everything is tight double check all ur marks from above to make sure nothing moved while tightening ur tensioner as the intermediate shaft has a tendency to move


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## lolaz28 (Jan 27, 2007)

Wow thanks for the reply i was suprised i couldnt find any info on it 
It definatly makes it more clearer and seems easier than it looks 
If anyone else has any input Please share since i wont be attacking this for the next couple of days 
-Rooster


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## Fat Rabbit (Nov 18, 2001)

*Re: Timing belt Replacement New Guy to Water cooled* (lolaz28)*

You shouldn't have any problems aligning the timing marks and getting it running -- if you do run into problems I'm through Fort on occasion as my grandson plays football for Whitewater HS. 
Some thoughts -- Pull the whole plug out of the transmission -- it just screws in -- so you get a panoramic view of the flywheel timing mark. It usually takes me a couple of trys to get everything lined up and tightened down on the marks. The idler pulley likely has a couple of small holes for a tightening tool. I use a bicycle bottom bracket wrench but have used a couple of nails and a screwdriver to tighten it. I've used slip joint pliers -- an air cooled lug nut/alternator nut wrench and have even made a metal removal tool with a large bolt and nut -- once I even made a tool out of wood to fit the plug. FR


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## lolaz28 (Jan 27, 2007)

Wow thanks For the Tips 
I Should be trying it this weekend or maybe labor day
so i will let you know how it goes and if i run into any problems
thanks alot
-Rooster


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## vr2jetta (Dec 16, 2007)

*Re: (lolaz28)*

If all the stock covers are there you are going to have to remove the crank pulley. I usually leave all the covers off when I do the belt the first time so it makes it easier to do it again later, or if I have to work on the motor again. Depending how your roads are and where you live its something to think about.


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## TheMajic86GTI (Aug 9, 2009)

*Re: (vr2jetta)*

OH yeah i forgot about the plastics......havent had them on my car in such a long time i forgot they even come on the engine....


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## ABA Scirocco (May 30, 2001)

*Re: (TheMajic86GTI)*

For those people who live in areas where snow and ice are common during the winter months or if you live somewhere with a lot of dirt roads, it's probably best you run with the timing covers in place, just to be on the safe side.


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## TheMajic86GTI (Aug 9, 2009)

*Re: (ABA Scirocco)*

paved roads and the sunny south Florida weather........no need for plastics.......


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## ABA Scirocco (May 30, 2001)

*Re: (TheMajic86GTI)*

Most people that drive without a timing cover even up here in the Great White North, never have any problems because of it. However, I'm LITTLE paranoid about it because we once bent the valves in our race car when the timing belt pickup up a small stone while driving through the unpaved pits at our local track.


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## lolaz28 (Jan 27, 2007)

Ya As far as the plastics and covers im probabaly going to keep those on just to be onthe safe side seeing that this car will be driven all year round 
ecpecailly my road the county can take up to 3 days to get to it with a snowplow!!


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## lolaz28 (Jan 27, 2007)

Ok so Im Sitting in the garage Right now and cant figure out why i cant get the Crankshaft pully... I Dont have an Impact so Im jsut using old elbow grease
Its the Main large Nut 19mm
thanks
-rooster


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## TheMajic86GTI (Aug 9, 2009)

*Re: (lolaz28)*

Dont remove the 19mm bolt......its not necessary.....All u have to do is remove the 4 allen bolts and the pulleys should come off....if the pulleys are stuck u can use a puller or lightly tap on them with a piece of wood while jerking the opposite end........if they havent been off in a long time they can be a pain to get off..............


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## lolaz28 (Jan 27, 2007)

Oh ok well they have been a pain in the rear... but good to know that i dont need to pull that off and just the allen head bolts 
thanks 
-Rooster


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## lolaz28 (Jan 27, 2007)

I got he crank shaft pulley off and test fitted blet and turned camgear to where it is suppose to be 
an other question is 
the green plug procedure is that doign the same thing as lining up the tick ont he crankshaft pulley and the dot on the intermedite gear??
thanks and sorry for all the questions just want to do it right the first time
-Rooster


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## ABA Scirocco (May 30, 2001)

*Re: (lolaz28)*


_Quote, originally posted by *lolaz28* »_
the green plug procedure is that doign the same thing as lining up the tick ont he crankshaft pulley and the dot on the intermedite gear??


The method with the crank pulley assumes that the distributor is properly positioned, provided no one have messed with the position of the distributor, the two methods give the same results.


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## lolaz28 (Jan 27, 2007)

Ok so im pretty sure that i got all the (marks, arrows, and ticks) lined up but when I put everthing together... when I Cranked it over it made a thump thump thump sound with a hissing sound... Its makes a Compression sound but doesnt want to start
trying to figure out what it is and am hoping someone recognizes what the problem is and maybe a solution
thanks
Brandon


_Modified by lolaz28 at 8:57 PM 9-9-2009_


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## TheMajic86GTI (Aug 9, 2009)

*Re: (lolaz28)*

Double check all ur marks...sounds like the dizzy is off but close to its mark if ur getting sputtering....... might be off a tooth or 2........


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## lolaz28 (Jan 27, 2007)

I pulled it all back apart and made sure that the engine was on TDC on cylinder 1 and the rotor was pointing towards that mark on the housing and all the dots and everything were all reset how they are suppose to be
I cant figure it out
thanks for the help
Brandon


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## TheMajic86GTI (Aug 9, 2009)

*Re: (lolaz28)*

crank on TDC(make sure V is on the dot on flywheel)......
dot on inside of cam sprocket even with the front of the valve cover.... 
and
rotor pointing an 1/8 to the right of the mark on distributor housing......
Just like pics above......
Reassemble everything and make sure all intake boots and vacuum lines are secure or motor wont start......


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## lolaz28 (Jan 27, 2007)

Ya im guna go through and do it one more time making sure that i havent looked over anything and see how that goes
thanks alot for the advice TheMajic86GTI
Brandon


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## LT1M21Stingray (Sep 14, 2006)

*Re: (ABA Scirocco)*


_Quote, originally posted by *ABA Scirocco* »_For those people who live in areas where snow and ice are common during the winter months or if you live somewhere with a lot of dirt roads, it's probably best you run with the timing covers in place, just to be on the safe side.

It does look nicer with the cover on IMHO.


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## lolaz28 (Jan 27, 2007)

Oh ya update thanks to all you guys that helped with tips and tricks but i got to the point that i decided to hand it to a local vw shop to do he said it will only be $60 so I cant go wrong with that
And ya I agree with Mtl-Marc they do look cleaner with the covers on and i Dont want to risk it coming off b/c something flew up into my engine bay!


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## Phantom59 (Mar 5, 2008)

*Re: (lolaz28)*

Got in on the topic to replace the belt on my 95 2.0 
Got everything back together ok but I was wondering about alignment of the intermediate shaft. I think it moved a little when I was replacing the belt but I didn't see a way to set it.
The car does run but it seemed to idle a little rough.


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## TwoForTripping (Mar 6, 2008)

I was reading in a manual to line up the marks from the crank pully and intermediate shaft like they were touching, the I read to line them up so if you had a string thread across you would make a cross. Which one is it. and also how to you like up the two when the cover is in the way?


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## ABA Scirocco (May 30, 2001)

*Re: (TwoForTripping)*

These images are from the VW Cabriolet Scirocco 1985-1993 Bentley manual. When replacing the timing belt, the cover getting in the way isn't an issue since the cover needs to come anyways. If you're setting the cam timing with the cover on, turn the engine to #1 TDC, position the cam gear as shown in the first image and turn the intermediate shaft so that the distributor rotor is centered on the #1 mark as shown in the second image, then after tensioning the belt, start the engine and use a timing light to double check the ignition timing. 


















_Modified by ABA Scirocco at 12:46 PM 9-26-2009_


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