The inline five's back.

[Ed Birch]

John Larson wrote....

> Yup.  From the tone of your message, it appears you don't believe me, but
> that's OK.  The tech simply breaks the chain, attaches the new chain to
one
> end of the old one, and turns the engine over by hand until the new one
> emerges from the other side.  The tool assists in guiding the chain and
> keeping tension.  We've had it for 15 years and have yet to encounter a
> problem in it's intended use.  Made and marketed by Technics Tools in
> Camarillo, CA, but also sold by companies like Baum Tool.....

Must be a very expensive tool! Keeping a tight tension is tricky. Does it
work on Diesel motors with the mechanical injection pump and driven vacumn
pump gears??

> On the subject of VAG's design of the timing elements of the VR6, I have
> nothing to give you.  Remember, some of these cars are approaching 6 years
> old, and many are in the 150K mile range....

150K miles on a single row chain, using a good synthetic oil and frequent
oil/filter change is very possible, but I still don't understand the logic
of placing the timing chain near the flywheel assembly.

BTW, I recently visited my local MB dealer and noticed a very large number
of new-unsold cars on the lot. In past years, this same dealer carried only
several models in stock, as demand for a MB was high.  This could be a sign
of a continual weakening economy, or everybody wants a SUV.

Ed Birch, Pennsylvania
(Mandatory Audi content: Every second Audi registered in Western Europe and
Germany in year 2000 had TDI.)