Lessons from the Shade Tree

[Scott Fisher <sefisher@cisco.com>]

Someone to whom Robert Houk was responding said:

   I can't find my remote starter switch, so I can't get it 
   positioned to what I can be certain is 0degTDC. 

I recently had to align the cam and crank on my '83 CGT after replacing
the water pump, and I used the method I first learned while setting the
valve clearances on an Old British Sports Car back when my CGT was
probably still on the showroom floor.  It works as well on Old German
Coupes, even those with five cylinders and overhead cams; I presume it
will work for Old German Coupes with Three Differentials as well.  It
requires no special tools, neither remote starters nor 27mm sockets for
the crank pulley.  

An assistant will be required for the following procedure.  It also
assumes that the front timing cover has been removed (should be just two
or three 6mm Allen bolts, of which one or more may be missing.) 
Furthermore, if the person in front of the car is smaller and/or weaker
than me, it may be necessary to enlist the aid of a large, sturdy friend
to help pull the car.

1.  Make sure there is a clear space of 3 to 6 feet (1 to 2 meters) in
front of the car before beginning.

2.  With engine off, have assistant place car in third gear and remove
parking brake.

3.  Locate the timing mark on the crank pulley.  It's a small notch on
the rear circumference of the pulley.

4.  Roll (pull) the car forward, observing the alignment of the timing
mark.  Line up the timing mark with the right-hand edge (that's the
driver's right, not the "doctor's right") of the projection on the front
of the oil pump.

When it lines up, have your assistant apply the brakes, then set the
parking brake, to keep the car from moving. 

5.  Check the cam alignment by looking through the viewing hole at the
rear of the cam cover.  Cam alignment is correct when the mark at the
back of the cam sprocket lines up with the top of the cylinder head.

If alignment is off, loosen the timing belt and turn the cam until the
alignment is correct, then reinstall and tighten the belt, taking care
not to turn the cam sprocket during installation.  Be sure to check cam
alignment after belt installation.

If alignment is correct, continue with whatever procedure had you check
this in the first place.

This is literally a two-minute procedure -- maybe three if the previous
owner of your car, unlike mine, has taken care to keep all of the 6mm
Allen nuts that hold the timing cover in place and you have to remove
and replace more than one.  In fact, resetting the cam timing was the
thing I was most afraid of when I started my water-pump replacement a
couple weekends ago, and it ended up being the simplest part of the
whole procedure.

Note: if you have a very high-compression engine, this procedure can be
easier if you pull all the spark plugs first (it was nearly impossible,
for example, to turn the engine on my EP race car without pulling the
plugs, and that was only about 11.5:1).  On my '83, which had an 8.2:1
CR when it left the factory and has who knows how much of that left
after 16 years, it was easy to roll the car.  If you use 2nd gear, the
engine will move farther with less rolling of the car, but will require
more oomph if your compression is tight.  From what I recall of the
ur-Q's turbo-friendly CR, you should be able to leave the plugs in
place.  

If you do pull the plugs, make sure you can identify the wires when it
comes time to reinstall -- my CGT has a metal shroud through which all
five plug wires are threaded, with holes that align with each plug, and
it would be impossible to mis-install them, but if you don't have this
shroud, mark the wires.  You can use nylon tie-wraps to mark the plug
wire -- one wrap for #1, 2 for #2, etc.  Barring that, a Sharpie or
other permanent marker works on light-colored plug wires, or you can
wrap a piece of light-colored tape around the wire and mark that.

We won't bother with the Rule of, er, Eleven, since it's easy to tell on
an OHC car which cam lobe is pointing straight up.  

Hope this helps!

--Scott Fisher