Good Morning. Long story short....Had the MCS at a shop for head gasket, when finished idling rough, was told needed timing chain. Couldn't afford them at the time, towed it home for DIY. Crank and cams timed, installed new chain, guides, exhaust gear, crank gear, and all bolts, rotated by hand two revolutions, cam lock tools dropped on, everything right. Put all back together, car started right up, idled the same as before (low and rough). Drove good just no idle. Rechecked crank and cams, cam lock tools dropped right on, but "etching" is on the bottom, so cams are 180 off?? I don't understand how it changed. Any help appreciated! Thanks, Don

 

4-cycle engine basics --- crank turns twice for every cam revolution. As a result, crank locking tool will engage as desired when checking timing, and also engage as you describe. Absolutely normal! Just rotate the crank one more full rev, then try the cam tools again.

Your brief description of putting it back together doesn't mention the chain tensioner tool. Not using it properly could result in the problems you describe.

 

Good afternoon, and thank you, OBW. I should explain...I pulled the spark plugs,turned the engine (by hand) clockwise until #1 was coming up on compression stroke, brought to T.D.C. then turned it Counter Clockwise until all pistons were equal height, then locked the crank. Then turned the cams until the "etching" was pointing up, then installed the cam locking tool, then changed the chain and all, then removed all the locks, rotated the engine two turns clockwise, locked the crank, then the cam locks dropped on to the cams. Don

 

Still no mention of a chain tensioner tool. Did you use one? With the usage sequence described in the Bentley manual?

 

OBW...Sorry, yes, I used the "dummy" tensioner. While keeping the "slack" to the left side, installed the cam gears (bolts loose), installed "dummy" tensioner per Bentley manual, then torqued cam bolts accordingly.... Don

 

I happened with me twice on the same car while doing the timing chain. it ended up being the vanos on the back clogged with dirt. i replaced it and everything was fine.

 

Check the vanos first,

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...solenoids.html

then made sure the engine is in time.

 

Thank you both, MiniToBe and ECSTuning......I am in the process of re-checking the timing. I will also remove the Vanos Solenoid, and clean it as well. Don

 

Welcome.

 

Well, after a while, I finally found out what was driving me crazy. I don't think that anyone else caught it, because most Mini's have the "crank Lock" locator hole...this one does not. Two years ago,(do to affordability) I did a DIY on the clutch. We Bought a complete clutch set, with a steel flywheel that would replace the Dual Mass flywheel, from a very reputable company. Everything was doing fine, until the car blew a head gasket in November. Wow, so much oil in the water, but no water in the oil. Well after almost 4 months because of employee problems at the shop it was at, and also problems with the machine shop that was doing the head, it was running, but idling very rough. The shop called and said that it needs to r&r the timing chain. Next day the shop calls and says that it will be an additional $2000.00 beyond the chain, because it will need a new flywheel ! It seems that when I did the clutch, the flywheel did not have the lock tool hole, so they could not "guaranty" the job, without the "lock hole"! Well, not having the funds for that, I paid up there, and had the car towed to my house. I called the the company that supplied the flywheel, and they very graciously explained how to time the crank and supplied the You Tube video as well. I did come up with my own way to "lock the crank", and made my own tool for the crankshaft hub, so loaded with the info, and the good Lord helping me all the way, I got it done. It started right up, but was still idling exactly the same as it was, before the chain. With no equipment to check for any codes, I trailered it to the Dealer...well $500.00 later, they "think" it is out of time and has an intake leak, but need another $400-$500 to be sure. Nope, already in for $2000.00 now, tow it back home. I did replace the intake gaskets (I think the old ones were fine), and from info from fine people here on N.A.M., pulled the Vanos Solenoid, cleaned it, reinstalled it....car is running Fine!! Thank you all, Don P.S. The reason I thought that I had the timing off 180, (which we know, it won't run), is because when I re-checked my timing, I was thinking #1 was on "compression stroke" NOPE, just 90deg. BTDC ! Sorry for the long write, had to get it out there.

 

Good to hear you finally got it running. For future parts, check http://www.rmeuropean.com/ i had trouble accepting the fact the the cheapest exhaust valve was around 30 dollars a piece. I was amazed when i found this site, i stacked up on valves since MINI's are know to have the chain failure.

I know this may not be the right thread, but, someone reading my be able to help me. My issue is with DSC module. I have replaced it and programmed it with WINKfp, calibrated the Steering angle sensor and the adjusted the DSC senor. however, the light is STILL on (Break, traction, ABS). when I tried to code it with NCS Expert, it cannot communicate with the module. any ideas?
The module is replaced with a matching part number (used)

 

Happy to hear you got it running. I too have a flywheel without the locking hole. Would you share your "time the crank" info and video link?

 

Thank you OBW. The video is of the same engine, but at a Peugeot shop. The engine that they are working on Does have the "lock hole", but you can get the idea. I will be more than happy to write the step by step, of how I did it, what I used, and how I locked the crank, if you like. Here is the link for the video
Let me know about the step by step, and if it is OK to post it here. Don

 

Nice video, thanx --- too bad it's not in English. The process shown is done well enough that audio isn't necessary. Since it shows the crank locking tool being used, I'm guessing the main feature you used was adjusting pistons 1 & 2 to the same height, then doing the cam / chain things. Keeping the crank from moving would be process you developed.

I'll leave it to someone else to ask for the step-by-step process. If I ever need to set timing again, I can use a scrap OEM flywheel. To just check timing, I can figure out how to lock the crank. Hopefully, I won't need to.

As for being OK to post it here --- seems like a good idea to me. If it's in the wrong forum section, I'm sure a moderator will let you know. Isn't there a "how-to" section someplace?

 

OBW, I will tell you that I actually brought #1 to TDC, then made 4, 3/8" dia. hardwood dowels, cut to exactly 12". Insert one dowel into each cylinder, turn the crank back (ccw) until all the dowels are at the same height. Checked this with a straightedge set on top of the dowels. Now, with careful figuring and measurement, I drilled and tapped a hole in the bottom of the bell housing, inserted a 3/8" heli coil, and snugged a 3/8" bolt up to the "edge" of the flywheel. Then I fabricated a tool to hold the "crank hub", so I could remove, install and torque, the new crank bolt, and complete the "timing" procedure. I hope this will help anyone in this situation. Any more info needed, I will be glad to help. Don P.S. I would suggest that you do use a "hub" tool, I know that my bolt was holding great, but I don't know if I would trust it for the 180 deg. torque on the crank hub bolt!