First off thanks again to Turbo Tim and Keith at GDE for their input on changing by timing belt.

My first question is how have you guys held your cam sprockets.

Tim used a screw driver and leveraged behind the sprockets and tightened it up while Keith recommends using VM.1085, the cam sprocket locking tool. (not that Tim has any issues with the correct tools, he just used what he had on hand.)

I have 112K on the jeep right now and in two weeks I am taking it on a 1,000+ mile trip to New Orleans and back(if any locals have any suggestions on what to do or see please PM me). As of right now the tool set at GDE has a waiting list, so I ordered the tools from http://millerspecialtools.spx.com, but when I got my order confirmation it stated "Estimated Ship Date 11-01-2010" so I called them and cancelled my order. So my second question is would you use a method of holding the sprockets other than VM.1085 just to be able to change the belt before I go on the trip, or just wait until I can get the correct tools even if it is after my trip?

In order for anyone to know if they're local to you they must first know where you are in this world

You have not put your location in your signature.

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Atlantic Blue 06 CRD Limited (his)
Joined by a 2000 XJ Classic (hers)

What I meant is any New Orleans locals, as in stuff to do on my vacation.

I bought the timing belt and the serpentine belt from another member and the belts came with the camshaft locking tools all for $125.00 then I went to a local Chrysler/jeep dealer that the all knowing Obama administration thought needed to be closed so they could sell more cars when things turn around and borrowed the belt tensioner tool for free. All they needed was a copy of my drivers license and phone #s. Nice little tool for adjusting the timing belt tensioner for removal and reinstalling.

I was just looking into ordering this tool as well as the camshaft pins(vm.1052,1053) and the fan pulley spanner tool with adapters.Tried to get the dang fan clutch off yesterday and couldn't get it off for the life of me.I jammed screwdrivers in there,a wedge of wood,prybar,yada yada yada.
After beating the pulley up some good,I decided to look into getting the tool,and wasn't about to try and bother Keith anymore.Sucks that this stuff is on backorder that dang long.


I'm from New Orleans and allways good for a place to crash.
1000+ mile trip sweet.Rest assured...if you break down,you can park it right next to mine.
I will send a PM.

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Bub
06 Inop Edition CRD Silver
06 Inop Edition CRD Green

Did you try to use a 15mm wrench, nut, bolt, and washers trick? That worked for me, with a bit of mechanical advantage(cheater bar) on the fan nut. I was pull as hard as I could about 3 feet out from the nut on the breaker bar and it still would not budge. I ended up banging on it a bit with a hammer(now I know that is a no-no), and when it finally came loose, I though I broke something, I really did not think I was going to get it off.

Now that I have the GDE tune, I should be able to make it from east Tennessee to New Orleans on one tank of fuel.

Some other members have written in and said that you can use allen wrench keys to hold the timing sprockets, in the same fashion that the flywheel is locked with an allen wrench key. I can't remember the size they recommended, but I'm sure a search of the site will give you this information.

Good luck, I've got one of these jobs coming up in 19,000 miles.

I have seen where others have done that, but the more I thought about it, the more I started to want to use the correct tools. With the time between now and when I could rent the tools from GDE, I bet I will have about 115K on her. I am starting to think that I should just wait on until I can get the tools from GDE and not worry about putting a couple thousand more miles on the belt.

Someone else here went ~150K miles before changing the belt. My goal is 120k-130K. She's got 108K now, so sometime this winter or spring I'll get it done.

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Manure green 2005 CRD sport4x4, GDE Hot tune, Cat Gut, OE skids, Draw tight hitch, Duramax lift pump, 160K on multiple varieties of fuel, XM radio, Escort live with Redline, fog light mod, GPS, Icom IC7000 all band radio call sign KC9QPF, Grabber AT2s on Soft 8s, FIA grill blanket.

I would be tempted to do the same, if I had a typical engine that could be found in any junkyard in America for $500. But not with a $5,000 italian turbo-diesel. A timing belt change for this engine is very cheap insurance.

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2005 Stone White KJ Limited CRD 4x4
Off-Road Pkg
Trac-Lok
Emu 790s/948s
Skyjacker H7088s rear/Bilsteins front
15x7 Black Rock Lobos/31x10.50 Firestones
GDE HOT Tune + TCM Tune
Euro TC
CB radio
Thrush Turbo muffler
AEM DryFlow filter

X2, I will be sourcing parts when mine hit 95K.

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20 year owner of Libby CRD!
2006 LTD Bright Silver loaded with all the needed mods, CCV intact.
Equipped with HDS thermostat, plenty of heat, faster warm-ups, increased fuel mileage.

I will probably just use this:

and what is that?

My VM1085 tool.
You just lock it into the spokes(?) of the cam sprocket when you undo the center bolt.

And what does that do for you? I don't really understand what VM.1085 does other than distribute the load when torquing down the cams. Why do you need to hold the cam sprockets when loosening them, just keep them from moving?

The cams are held in place with the pins.
The pins are probably not strong enough to hold the cams in place while you loosen the center bolt.
You want the center bolts and sprockets loose while you adjust the new belt so that they can freely move while you align the other sprockets.

The cam sprockets are not keyed, so it doesn't matter where they sit with respect to the cams.
The cam sprockets (I would imagine) are a tapered fit so as you tighten them, they grab tight and won't slip after the pins are out and you are running the engine.

I get it now, I had not thought of the load that you will be applying to the cams when you loosen the bolts. I can't tell from that picture, but is the distance between the bolts adjustable ? And what size are the bolts?

What happens when you have one loose, isn't the load of the second one going to be on the cam pin instead of the loosened sprocket? Or do you tighten the first one back up enough to hold the load?

Sorry for all of the questions, I just don't want anything to go **SNAP**

Sorry, but I haven't done this job yet. The tool was made for my Audi. If I need longer bolts, I will just go to my bolt bin. If I need to drill a new hole closer or farther.... well you get the idea.

Put the tool in one cam sprocket and loosen the bolt (don't remove the bolt), put the tool in the other and loosen the bolt. Both sprockets should still be tight. You will need to hit them a few times with a rubber mallet to jar them loose.

You should now have wiggly cam sprockets with the bolts only turned out a little.

edit: The pins only have any large force on them when you are trying to crack the center bolt loose.

Why would you want to loosen the camshaft pulley or sprocket when changing the timing belt. I thought that's what the camshaft locking pins were for. Plus the tool for loosening the tensioner pulley.

Squeeto, Thanks I get the picture now

kccrd, there is inner plate that is between the belt and the engine. To remove the water pump the inner plate has to be removed, and to remove the inner plate the cam sprockets have to be removed.