So we did the timing on my car a few weeks ago after the headgasket blew... My buddy is the mechanic... Usually seems pretty good at what he does as we have been doing the 4g63 for years. This is gonna come off kinda stupid but it's what he tells me and u just have a hard time believe this...

So where the lines are on the cam gears (the dashes) are like way off I can probably get a picture later... I have driven the car a the car a few times. I said to him the marks on the gears arnt lined up at all... He says that they won't be lined up and that the motor adjusts them once it's running? I just kinda find this crazy but maybe he's right... The car runs drives. Making a little over 700 to the wheels. He recommended a solid timing tensioner as well which we installed.

So my question is... Should the timing marks always line up? Or does the motor adjust them once it's started like he said?

Hope this makes some sense to you guys i feel dumb for asking but it doesn't make sense to me! feedback would be great

 

don't let that guy touch your car again. ever. assuming you understood him correctly.

either fix it yourself, if you have the tools (it's not too hard), or take it somewhere before something bad happens (i.e. bent valve, etc).

out of curiosity, is it a 2.4L?

 

Timing marks should always line up. The engine does not automatically adjust them.

 

probably a silly question but are you checking timing marks with the engine at TDC or just after turning off the engine?

but no the engine does not automatically adjust them.

 

I wouldn't muck around with a built motor, if you stuff around with the cam timing you could cause many $$ of damage, take it to an evo shop and get it checked.

 

Keep in mind they don't line up on every rotation of the crank/cams!

 

The way it should work is the marks should line up when Cylinder #1 is at Top Dead center on the compression stroke. That only happens once in 4 rotations of the crank. WHen the engine stops it will stop in a semi random spot. So you have to manually rotate the crank and within 4 full rotations all the marks should line up.

 

It's a 2.1... However it does have a kia head... The question arose when i shut the car off one day and the intake cam mark was right in the middle where it would be when you would normally line the gears up. The exhaust cam was all the way spun around like the mark on that cam was facing towards the radiator... Idk what ever happened or how it still runs. I'm almost certain when we did the timing we lined the gears up at TDC... That's really the only thing I haven't attempted by myself is timing... He did say it takes a few rotations till they line up but the way he put it is it will like center it's self out which kinda made me raise an eyebrow... Thanks for the input though guys! I appreciate it and I think I'm gonna attempt the job solo... Just shocked how those are so far off and t runs still!!

 

One cam should not be 90* off from the other. Get that thing looked at.

 

i can't believe your car is still running. hopefully you aren't still driving it. any updates? i'm curious to know what happened.
and how does a guy install your cam that far off and tell you it's normal. that's just cray cray

 

I deff will... We installed a new qm the other week and took it out last weekend and now my trans is "growling" under decel in 3-4 gear... I can't seem to win... I will keep u posted and after work in the morning I'll take a pic it doesn't look right at all... And honestly don't know how it even still runs from what u guys say.. It's good to have this forum and people who know what's up! I'm gonna have a talk with him because I got to much into this build to be screwing around. And any thoughts of maybe what could be wrong with the trans? Dropped the fluid out of it and found a nice inch long tooth which isn't good. Probably the problem but seems to shift and drive fine. And I haven't been driving it once I realized the cam gears being WAY off!

 

what is a "qm"?

yeah, you busted the tooth off of a gear. that is a serious bummer, dude. i can't think of anything you guys could have really done to make that happen unless you guys took the trans apart? ran it low on fluid? used the wrong fluid, maybe?

damn, man. what a run of terrible events.

 

quarter master

 

That growl on decel is expensive I just bought a brand new trans from shep stage 2 with the hardened output shaft hope you have an extra 4k laying around. BTW props for doing the KIA kead I was using one myself until SpecOps Motorsports destroyed my engine and trans. Keep in mind the marks on the valve cover will not line up with evo cam gears

 

Has anyone noticed he drives an X.