At 06:04 PM 6/10/01, Terry Redinger wrote:
>OK, now I'm in trouble!  I am in the midst of a t-belt replacement on my '89 S4.  I have installed the new belt, and turned the crank slightly to TDC, but the cam sprocket marks don't line up.  The driver's side one is at about the 9:00 position (should be at 12:00), and the passenger side one is at about 8:00 (should be at about 12:30).
>
>I did make an error in not setting the engine at a specific position prior to teardown.  It was sitting at about 20-some degrees BTDC.

Should have been at 45 deg.

My suggestion is to:
1) Slowly and carefully turn the crank to the 45 deg mark, stopping instantly if you detect any signs of piston/valve interference.
2) Take the belt off.
3) Turn the cams to a point 22 1/2 deg off of the TDC marks. If you are really, really lucky, you will find that a prior mechanic has marked the cams at this point.
4) Install the belt.
5) Slowly and carefully turn the crank to the TDC position, and check the cam positions. If they are one tooth off, you can very carefully loosen the belt, and walk it one tooth - that is, get enough slack to make a hum in the belt on the appropriate side, and put that point one tooth off and walk the hump around the pulley, so that the belt move, but the pulley doesn't. Then retighten the belt, rotate the crank two turns and recheck the cam positions.

Next time, move the crank to the 45 deg position, and mark the cam sprockets at that position. Then, when you change the belt, you can install it at the 45 deg position, where there is no danger of piston/valve interference.

Wally Plumley
928 Specialists