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Old 08-31-2010, 10:00 AM
v8volvo v8volvo is offline
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Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Montana, USA
Vehicle: '86 745, '83 764
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Quote:
Originally Posted by hvguy View Post
you said it, its not rocket science...

IMO its simple as... pie? i would mark the old belt and count the teeth then put on the new belt with the same marks... just dont turn anything... especially for the cam timing, it may bend valves if done improperly...

btw, use the search button before asking questions............
This information is wrong.

The purpose of this forum is to provide correct info so that people are able to keep their Volvo Diesels on the road and running well. Telling someone to do it this way will have the opposite effect. I would guess that half of the Volvo Diesels in the US ended up in the junkyard because of sloppy, incorrect timing belt installations. If you use the method described above, your car will run like crap, if it runs at all, and will not live long. The "mark and pray" method is the technique many careless mechanics have used over the years on VW and Volvo diesels and at best, it results in an engine that runs bad and at worst, it can wreck the motor completely.

Changing the timing belt on a Volvo diesel is not rocket science, but you do have to be aware of the correct method, and of the stakes involved if you do it wrong. It takes several special tools that you *cannot* do without. Timing (cam and injection pump) is absolutely crucial on these motors -- if you get it wrong, the engine will go from a good runner to a hard-starting, smoking, rattling, low-power mess, and may also sustain major internal damage.

I believe that the way diesels got their bad reputation in the US is not because the engines were crappy, but because the mechanics who worked on them didn't know what they were doing and turned them into the smoky, noisy, slow engines that they have the reputation for being. Those of us on here know that when a D24/T is in good condition and tuned properly, it is smooth, quiet, peppy and smoke free... but that all changes if you screw up the timing belt. Take the time to learn the proper method and do it right, and you will be very, very glad that you did. Do some reading on this forum and you will find all the information you need to get the job done properly. If you have any questions, just ask.

Good information about these engines and how to work on them is hard to find, and I am not trying to dump on anyone here. However, I do suggest that you only provide an answer to a question if you know it is the right answer, especially if it is about something critical like a timing belt. Giving the wrong information is much worse than giving no information at all. It hurts more than it helps, and it defeats the purpose of a board like this. We all want to see as many Volvo diesels stay happily on the road as possible, and the key to that is good information and no misinformation... so let's try to keep the quality of our guidance as high as possible. Hope that makes sense.
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86 745 D24T/ZF 345k lifted 2.5"
83 764 D24T/M46 155k
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