[jd1828af]

I just bought a haynes repair manual and some of its directions are confusing. it says i have to take off all kinds of stuff to get the belt off but i just have to take enough off to remove the belt, right? It also says that i have to make sure the balance shaft has its weighted portion on the bottom. what does that mean?
Does anyone have any tips for me? Ive never done this before so any advice will help.

 

[MrDSM]

My advice on that balance shaft thing is don't even bother putting another one back on. Just leave that belt off and your done. Reduced rotational mass, greater reliability - i cant see a downfall. You will notice a slight increase in engine vibration, the things we do for power.

 

[jd1828af]

does the balance belt do anything else but reduce vibration. the drawings in the book i have looks like it does something more.

 

[jd1828af]

i read more about the balance shaft belt and it look like it is mostly useless. so do i have to bother with removing it by the book or can i just cut the thing off.

 

[ginsu417]

If you want to take the motor out, you can remove the shafts completely and plug the oil passages with JBWeld. Otherwise, just cut the belt.

 

[fast1.8sohcDSM]

Haynes has some really stupid crap in that book, and Chilton has some typos. I say we make a 1.8 Performance booklet, make a few bucks, and go out to eat.

 

[Blackboost]

Otherwise, just cut the belt.

One question...
Won't the engine vibrate a lot/ run too roughly because the balance shafts are out phase since they weren't removed??

On the 2.0 engines you have to al least remove the rear one (the front one can be left in:short route) in order to do it correctly. I think that the 1.8 should work the same way as the 2.0 in this aspect. Or not??:dunno:

 

[ginsu417]

Unless the rear balance shaft is actually out of phase (incorrect timing), removing the front balance shaft belt won't cause any intolerable vibration. On a lot of the 1.8s I've worked on, the front balance shaft belt was never changed in the 14 years since the car was built, and was broken long long long ago. The owner didn't even notice. I've removed the shafts from both balanced and unbalanced 1.8L rotating assemblies with no ill after effects. They're pretty useless if you ask me. Makes your car run nice and smooth, but not worth the trouble.

 

[jd1828af]

what about the timing belt. is there a lot of chances for me to screw this up or is it easier than the book makes it look.

 

[ginsu417]

With your balance shafts out, the only thing you need to do is line up all the timing marks and slip the belt on. With your balance shafts in, it's just the additional steps of the front balance shaft and belt, and getting the rear balance shaft in sync by removing that plug in the rear and sticking a screw driver in it.

The shaft will lock against the screwdriver when you try to turn it, and if you're 180 degrees off, the timing marks won't line up when the screwdriver is in the hole. If the balance shaft binds when you turn it in either direction, but you lines up on the mark in that range, you're good. If it binds but won't line up with the mark, take the screwdriver out, rotate the sprocket a full turn and put the screwdriver back in again. It's not that difficult. And if you get it wrong, you don't have to worry about busting valves. There's a timing faq on this board.

Don't forget to take the screwdriver out and put the plug back before you rotate the crankshaft. Ruined some nice screwdrivers that way.

 

[jd1828af]

I think ill just go with out the balance belt. from what ive read it doesnt make much of a differance. The haynes book i bought makes removing the timing belt look very difficult. What exactly do i have to do to get the timing belt off?

 

[ginsu417]

Even if you remove the front belt, unless you remove the rear shaft, you still need to time the rear balance shaft, or your motor will vibrate like crazy.

remove the driver's side motor mount
remove the upper timing cover
turn the cam to top dead center - use the timing marks (17mm)
break the 4 bolts on the water pump pulley loose (4 bolts - 10mm)
(you'll thank me later)
remove the pwr steering accessory belt (14mm)
remove the alternator belt (12mm)
remove water pump pulleys (4 bolts - 10mm)
loosen the AC pulley (14mm)
loosen tension and remove the AC belt (14mm)
remove the AC tensioner assembly (two bolts - 12mm)
remove the AC crankshaft pulley (4 bolts - 10mm)
remove the lower splash sheild (4 bolts - 12mm, 2 snaps)
remove the main crank shaft pulley (4 bolts - 10mm)
remove the lower timing cover (5 bolts, 10mm)
loosen the tensioner nut (12mm)
remove the timing belt
turn the crank to top dead center (19mm)
loosen the front balance shaft belt tensioner (10mm)
cut and/or remove the front balance shaft belt

The front balance shaft belt was made to be installed with the outer crank sprocket off, and it won't come out easily without taking the sprocket off. So I just cut it. To install a new front balance shaft belt, you have 2 options.

1.) Remove the crankshaft sprocket like the book says (ha! 93 foot pounds my ass!)

2.) "Grind" the belt into the groove by laying it in the groove and turning the crankshaft until it draws the belt under the pulley. This will not hurt the belt.

Installation is the reverse. And yes, I've done this so many times, I can remember the socket sizes. 3 hours max. 45 minutes after you've done it a few times.

 

[jd1828af]

please tell me that this is easier than it sounds. If i do this wrong am i going to break anything? do you have a good picture of the this side of the engine, the haynes book only has crappy drawings and it is difficult for me to visualize everything.

 

[ginsu417]

If you time the engine wrong, it will run poorly. That's about it. Once you get everything apart, you'll see the timing marks. It's not that hard, just line the dots on the sprockets up with the marks on the engine. The only exception is the rear balance shaft (which runs off the oil pump). When you get it apart, you'll understand it all.

 

[jd1828af]

so even if i cut the balance belt off i still need to set the timing for the balance shaft?
I know these must be stupid and annoying questions but i really like this car and i dont want to break it.

 

[ginsu417]

Cutting the front balance shaft belt isn't going to eliminate the rear balance shaft. You still need to time the rear balance shaft. You won't break it if you fukk the timing up, it just won't run right until you do.

 

[jd1828af]

ok now i have no idea what is going on. the drawings and pictures in the book dont say anything about a front and rear balance shaft belt. all i see is the timing belt and one balance shaft belt.

 

[fast1.8sohcDSM]

Alright, this is simple. You notice that your cam and crank are in the same areas Well this is what we will do, we will not move them. The oil pump will let you know when it is in sequence. It will be able to move backwards on its own after you turn it... It will be as if you turn it and all the sudden preasure is let off and it can roll backwards. Just don't move your crank, and you should be fine. If you move your crank and cam gear, put the little dot at the top, and put the crank at the timing mark in the book. My other 1.8 though didn't work very good with that little dot since my points were different it seemed like. I had to go my intake stroke and TDC, and that may be because it is a JDM engine.

 

[Blackboost]

Unless the rear balance shaft is actually out of phase (incorrect timing), removing the front balance shaft belt won't cause any intolerable vibration. On a lot of the 1.8s I've worked on, the front balance shaft belt was never changed in the 14 years since the car was built, and was broken long long long ago. The owner didn't even notice. I've removed the shafts from both balanced and unbalanced 1.8L rotating assemblies with no ill after effects. They're pretty useless if you ask me. Makes your car run nice and smooth, but not worth the trouble.

FTR...
This is why I mentioned that we can't remove the belt on the 2.0 without removing the rear balance shaft:http://www.dsmtalk.com/forums/showthread.php?postid=558715#post558715

I have worked on a few 1.8 that had their balance belt broken and the engine did vibrate a lot. Other lost their timing belt when the balance belt broke. Just my $0.02

 

[jd1828af]

the only thing that is still confusing me is the balance shaft belt. people keep talking about a front and rear balance shaft belt. the repair book i bought only shows one timing belt and one balance shaft belt.