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[terry paget]

Again...

The ecu codes are because both cams are out of position because you forced the vvt.

You need to reset both vvt units AND retime the engine.

If this does not clear the codes, then you need to replace the vvt units.

Simples

You say I forced the VVTs, but all I did was turn them in the same way as the cam belt turns them Or have I missed the point?

[Viral_Jim]

Have a watch of this...

https://youtu.be/5QEZ8YGgQ_4

Thanks, Doc. I've had a watch of that. I'm a little wiser. I'm still not sure what sin I have committed. You infer I should not have rotated the camshafts slightly with the belt off to align the setting marks precisely using the internal Torx sockets, right? That is how I have fitted dozens of belts on Omegas. If it was unwise on VVT engines I wish Haynes had mentioned it.

This is the relevant bit Terry. I suspect that the cams were precisely aligned. By that I mean precisely aligned where they needed to be according to the VVT unit. By aligning the marks independently of moving the crank you've taken it out of time.

You may also have damaged the VVT unit by 'overtightening' the cam by using the torx bolt to rotate the cam.

Haynes should have a procedures to reset the VVT, maybe under the section for changing the head gasket as presumably you have to do it when the head comes off.

[terry paget]

Here is the crank setting. Not far out,is it?

[terry paget]

Thanks Jimmy 944. There is a procedure for setting the VVT system for the 1.4 petrol and the diesel in Haynes, but not the 1.6. Haynes does not specifically  instruct me to set the cam timing marks together and in line with the cam centres, so that's what I presumed. Mistake? I till do not believe I could have overstressed the VVT units with the Torx bit, the socket was too shallow for that. My first photos showed the original setup, which seemd way out. Question is - what should I do now?

[henryd]

If you have pics of before you removed the belt Terry why not go back to that setting?,after all there were no problems then !

[terry paget]

If you have pics of before you removed the belt Terry why not go back to that setting?,after all there were no problems then !

Good suggestion, Henry.

[Nick W]

You say I forced the VVTs, but all I did was turn them in the same way as the cam belt turns them Or have I missed the point?

Look at them again:


the VVTs are bolted to the cams
The belt pulleys are attached to the VVTs, and move in relation to them.


You used the centre bolt to turn the VVTs, when you should have turned the pulleys or the actual camshaft. This will have changed the relationship between the pulley and the VVTs, and is what the ECU is flagging with the fault codes. It may have buggered the mechs too; considering that pattern parts for these are readily and cheaply available because they get very noisy, I would think it likely. This mechanism changes the valve timing between the crank and the cams, so if you get it wrong, or mistime it from the start you can end up with dramatically incorrect valve timing - easily as much as several teeth out.


You normally and sensibly ask questions when you find systems that are new to you, yet didn't in this case. That seems rather out of character.

[terry paget]

Silly me.
 It appeared to me in the pic (reply 28) that the plate with the torx socket in it was directly attached to the pulley by 5 screws. I imagined that the VVT machinery connected the camshaft to the plate.

[Doctor Gollum]

Re watch the video I linked to. It appears briefly, but there is an exploded view of how the vvt units attach. The parts you turned are a cover screw for the actual fastening bolt. So by turning them clockwise you have rotated the whole mechanism.

[Entwood]

Re watch the video I linked to. It appears briefly, but there is an exploded view of how the vvt units attach. The parts you turned are a cover screw for the actual fastening bolt. So by turning them clockwise you have rotated the whole mechanism.

At this point I'd risk turning them back by the same amount you turned them forward ....  what do you have to lose   If already FUBAR it'll make no difference .. if not FUBAR it might well solve the problem ?

[Doctor Gollum]

Re watch the video I linked to. It appears briefly, but there is an exploded view of how the vvt units attach. The parts you turned are a cover screw for the actual fastening bolt. So by turning them clockwise you have rotated the whole mechanism.

At this point I'd risk turning them back by the same amount you turned them forward ....  what do you have to lose   If already FUBAR it'll make no difference .. if not FUBAR it might well solve the problem ?

That would simply slacken the cover bolts 

[Entwood]

Re watch the video I linked to. It appears briefly, but there is an exploded view of how the vvt units attach. The parts you turned are a cover screw for the actual fastening bolt. So by turning them clockwise you have rotated the whole mechanism.

At this point I'd risk turning them back by the same amount you turned them forward ....  what do you have to lose   If already FUBAR it'll make no difference .. if not FUBAR it might well solve the problem ?

That would simply slacken the cover bolts 

A tyre lever, or similar long bar, across the tails of the studs on the periphery ??  If the torx screw allowed a small movement it shouldn't take a lot of effort to move them back the other way We are only talking a very few degrees I believe ?

[terry paget]

The torx socket did not rotate within the body of the VVT sprocket, I simply used it to rotate the whole sprocket. So no need to reverse the rotation.

[terry paget]

My thanks to all for interest and advice. My current plan is to reset the VVT sprockets as near as possible to the original positions as photographed, i.e. timing marks level with each other and 1.1/4 teeth above the line between cam centres, turning camshafts with spanner on the flats. Please feel free to comment!

[Doctor Gollum]

Re watch the video I linked to. It appears briefly, but there is an exploded view of how the vvt units attach. The parts you turned are a cover screw for the actual fastening bolt. So by turning them clockwise you have rotated the whole mechanism.

At this point I'd risk turning them back by the same amount you turned them forward ....  what do you have to lose   If already FUBAR it'll make no difference .. if not FUBAR it might well solve the problem ?

That would simply slacken the cover bolts 

A tyre lever, or similar long bar, across the tails of the studs on the periphery ??  If the torx screw allowed a small movement it shouldn't take a lot of effort to move them back the other way We are only talking a very few degrees I believe ?

The torx screw visible only connects to the cover. The mechanism needs removing and refitting correctly, with the cams locked. This can only be done with the cam cover removed as the locking tool fits the back of the head, not the pulleys... The pulley locks stop the pulleys from turning whilst the cams and crank are correctly locked.

The video I linked to quickly, but clearly shows how the complete lock kit works.

The vvt mechanisms can only be corrected with the cams and crank locked and the belt off