So yesterday, my sister asked my buddy and I to take a look at her '00 legacy GT 2.5 before she took it on a little 4 hr road trip to Kansas. Looked at the oil, looked at the coolant, belts etc. Saw that the serpentine could use replacing.. thought, heh lets have a look at the timing belt.. there's 160 some odd thousand miles on it, why not? Pop open the cover to find a (very) cracking belt. ok, no big deal, go over to checkers and get a timing kit (tensioner, pulleys), and also pick up a water pump. Since the belt was still there, we lined up the marks all around for ease of timing.

 

Pull off the belt and notice the passenger side Cam has a lot of spin play, you can turn it almost 3 teeth without a wrench - compared to the driver side, where its not as easy to and defiantly need a wrench if you needed to turn.

 

I was thinking that since it was TDC, #1 would be open for the intake valve? and thats why its hard to spin between the "peaks" of the cam? and that the passenger side is on the "lows" of the cam and why its easier to turn? (at that point at least, we didn't sit there and spin it to see.. My buddy was thinking it was maybe a stuck valve?

 

 

any ideas? There isnt any noticeable performance difference.. put the belt and everything on there and it fired up like a champ.

 

 

-Justin

When doing a Timing Belt on a Subaru of that vintage the drivers side cam is under load (or the drivers top/intake on a DOHC) and the passenger side is not.

 

Also ironically when a belt breaks usually the other side's valves get bent first.

The drivers side is "loaded" and takes some power to move. And will spring around.

 

The passanger was more free to spin.

 

That was from my experience doing a belt on a 2.2l.

I figured it was something along those lines. I just thought to check to be sure.

 

 

thanks!

 

 

-Justin

I was thinking that since it was TDC, #1

 

Incorrect. When aligned for timing, the crankshaft sits 45 degrees off TDC. Also the passenger side cam is positioned in a way that none of the valve springs are pressing on the rockers. Without the spring pressure of the rocker arms the cam will spin quite easily. If you were to spin the drivers cam 180 degrees there is a spot where it will feel the same.

my 98 motor bent passenger side valves when the timing jumped.

Edited May 11, 201213 yr by Ricearu
gram-arrrrr

my 98 motor bent passenger side valves when the timing jumped.

 

Yea - that's what usually happens.

 

Usually hte folks with a 2.5 try cam sprockets forst - thinking that's the problem.

 

I now sell a used "dreamers kit". Both R cam sprockets for the DOHC, a used timing belt and a used idler of you choice (incase the cogger idler failed).

 

I figure they will need the cam sprockets in the end anyways.

I now sell a used "dreamers kit". Both R cam sprockets for the DOHC, a used timing belt and a used idler of you choice (incase the cogger idler failed).

 

I figure they will need the cam sprockets in the end anyways.

 

LOL. I should start doing that. I've got quite the collection of 25D's now. Like you I swap them for 2.2's on an alarmingly regular basis.

 

GD