Lower chain and chain tensioner replacements for the TDI

Little b****r has beaten me. Got off to a reasonable start even if I did have to knock up a chain wrench using the old chain:

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Locked and torqued the counter balance shaft:

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Heated the crank sprocket to 220 C:

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Could I get it one fast enough working flat on my back under the car? Nope!:

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I have a cunning plan to fit the sprocket but I'm short of two M16 nuts. Currently on order.
 
Thanks for this. I really like the picture based how to guides on here.

Don’t be afraid about egg sucking - there are plenty of mechanical numpties on here (ie me)! ?


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As I'm stopped again thought I would refill the cooling system. Read somewhere on A2OC that these engines can form air locks so decided to try a device I bought years ago to refill a mid engined car. It never did the job, spent days bleeding and burping.

Connected it up and blew some air through and created a vacuum, possibly a little too much:

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Hoses collapsed nicely and vacuum held for 15 minutes while I tried to establish the cooling system capacity:

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Mixed coolant and connected to valve:

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Opened valve and coolant flows into engine etc:

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Apparently air lock free :)
 
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Now this is what happens when give-it-a-go mechanic heats something to 220C and attempts a delicate positioning task with pliers just inches away from his face:

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Look at the state of that burr! There is no way that sprocket was going on. There is a fair amount of feel required to align that sprocket correctly and that's not happening at 220C while working under the car. On a bench it could be aligned by sight.

Thankfully the crank is fine and I have all the components for my alternative fitting plan. Done a, well I think anyway, good job with the Swiss files and ready to try again tomorrow. If it burrs again its a new one,

Fully fixed the hand brake at long last :)
 
Does the end of the crank have a screw thread in it? Just wondering if you can temporarily attach a boss that is a slide fit on the sprocket ID that will help to guide the sprocket on square to the crank.

Simon.
 
Spent most of the day getting some new tyres for my wife's car so not had long on the A2 but pleased with the progress. Knocked this tool up using the old sprocket while heating the new sprocket:

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Handled the hot sprocket in a cloth, much easier to get the positioning right. Pushed on nicely and it wasn't long before the new chain was installed:

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One of the consumables I had to buy. Sealing the crank front seal housing to the block:

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Set the timing again:

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Fit the timing belt and test the timing, reset the timing and test the timing:

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Strangely the tension in the tension pulley increased slightly while resetting the timing. Apparently nothing to worry about.

Sump back on tomorrow and time to turn the ignition key
 
Great work Phil and sharp photos too. In some of your earlier pictures there is like a sandy orange stain on some of the components - I've seen this on my engine too, any idea where it comes from?

Simon.
 
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Thank you Simon.

A camera can play tricks with colours depending on how rubbish it is and background light etc. The only yellowing I noticed was to old joint sealer and and the chain guide and tensioner. I suspect they live in a harsh environment, hot oil and combustion by products results in something that causes the yellowing. I've had the car from new and nothing other than fully synthetic oil, diesel and whatever they become when you burn them could have got there.
 
Somebody once suggested what I thought was a good idea. Employ a few longish finger tight studs studs (or decapitated bolts) to act as locating pins to bed the sump spot on first time and secure with remaining fixing points. Whip out studs and complete the job. Dry run and refine before.

Andy

Great idea and I did make two studs but a dry run indicated they were not required. The sump has a plastic sump within the sump called a baffle plate by Audi. It's quite a tight fit in the sump so it is impossible to get the sump in the wrong place.
 
Hi Phil

Great write up Its a job I now realise I must get this done but will have to pay some one else to do.

I really envy the fact that so many forum members fix there own cars.

I appreciate there are descriptions and pics on the forum, but you cant beat having hands on experience.

It would be fantastic if the forum mechanics or mods could organise some regional "how to" seminars where semi mechanical owners like myself could come along for a morning maybe and learn how to say replace drums / disc pads etc or perform maintenance replacement of parts, I would love to be able to maintain my own A2 and save a fortune on labour in the process.

In fact I would be happy to pay a fee and even provide the chocolate biscuits to be shown what to do, I`m sure mechanics on this forum could benefit £££ if say 3+ people attended the same seminar session.

If any enthusiast /mechanics near me are interested providing some tuition please get in touch.
 
Enjoyed doing it and creating a record for others. It's beer o'clock here; just this second turned the key and it fired immediately. A little rough at first then oil pressure built fully and then it ran lovely and smooth.

I'll post today's work and my thoughts on the job later.

Phil
 
This picture shows the orange staining on the pulley and the belt edges;

Screenshot-2018-3-22 Lower chain and chain tensioner replacements for the TDI.png


Simon.
 
Got off to a prompt start yesterday and did a sump fitting dry run. Discovered the sump is impossible to misalign due to the baffle plate, actually its quite a tight fit. The main risk is smudging sealant against the baffle as the sump is offered up. Got my positioning right and it slid on nicely.

Cleaned the mating surfaces with brake cleaner and further wiped it all again to remove all traces of brake cleaner. Got all my tools together, set torque wrenches, gathered all components and then applied the sealant:

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Access to two screws is not direct and square on so to avoid the risk of crossed threads a ball end allen key will be required to run the screws up untill a 10mm 1/4 drive socket can be got on the screw heads to finish the job:

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Sump went on fine and torqued up very quickly, well within the 5 minutes allowed in the manual:

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Yes I know my turbo pipe clips are missing.

While waiting for the sealant to cure I fitted the dipstick tube (which I had positioned and secured a little high before fitting the sump, connected up pipes and fitted the engine mounts. The engine mounts were easier to fit then they were to remove as I positioned the components from under the wheel arch.

Fill with oil and turn the key. Slightly rough at first, oil pressure builds quickly and for a its running smoother than I can ever remember. Chain done :)
 
Did I need to put myself and the car through this?

The metal chain components that came off were in surprisingly good condition, old and new compared:

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There is wear but it is minimal. I don't think in that condition there was any risk of their immediate failure, however the engine has improved.

When I looked closely at the guide and tensioner though the slip pads these are quite badly worn.

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Looking at the tensioner pad it appears to wear smoothly, then when it wears to depth, that I haven't measured, it starts to break up. The tension pad only has about 1 cm of smooth slip pad left and the rest is rough and breaking up including chips from the edges. That roughness could be the source of the rattle I could hear.

I think I was fairly close to a failure of the tensioner; yes I did need to do the job. The full chain assembly was probably also right for me as I have a long term commitment to the car. However I have thought that just the tensioner / guide would probably have been sufficient to get all the miles I'm likely to travel in the car.
 
Costs, first the necessary ones:

A manual or access to one, I think I paid about £10 for one in pdf form that now sits on my hard drive.

Chain kit £101 delivered:

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Part number Febi Bilstein 43667

Sump sealer £7.70

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Use once only screws £19.00


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Timing belt kit With items:
T10060A. Locking pin for auxiliary belt and counter balance chain tensioners.
T10050. Crankshaft stop, for locking crankshaft position.
3359. Camshaft locking pin, locks camshaft position.
T10115. Timing belt tensioner locking pin, friction dampened.
£7.54


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3415. Counter hold tool, holds crank timing belt sprocket it while a retaining bolt is removed £32.90

T10172. Sprocket wrench, adjusts camshaft drive sprocket / belt tension £24.99


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T10061. Removes bolt from end of balance shaft. M14; bit, £5.00 delivered:


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A bearing puller is also required if the crank chain sprocket is to be removed. Also the components to knock something up like this is a good idea if working under the car:

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A big socket, some threaded rod and three nuts? As I had the bearing puller (not expensive) and a genuine bush puller I can't advise the costs.

I've not added the figures up accurately, and assuming you have a reasonable tool kit already, this job can be done for around £250 including job specific tools.

Time to do the job £???, well I spent more time waiting for bits and being held up by other jobs on the car etc etc than I did working on the car. Get everything together first. Then as a DIY job rolling around on the floor I would suggest starting Friday evening I would expect the car to be ready for Monday morning.
 
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