300tdi timing

hello, im doing the cam belt on my 300tdi and im using the manual as a rough guide but it keeps saying i need all these special tools, which i dont really have. more specifically the one to put in the slot in the flywheel, do i need to put something in there? or can i get away with just using the timing marks on the pump, cam and crank pulleys etc? this is the first timing belt i have done as you can probably tell hence my earlier question about removing the fan. which in the end i managed to do just by leaving it on the timing cover and taking the whole lot off after a few rounded off bolts and some skinned knuckles. any help is much appreciated!

If its the slot I am thinking of then you can get a spare plug, and then drill into the middle of it, and then use a drill bit alinged through the hole to hold it in place. If its not the slot I am thinking of then just use a drill bit to lock it in position anyway.

Hello, thanks for the reply. so its essential to have this timing pin in? its the one where you have to remove a blanking plug then it slots into a timing hole on the flywheel. saying about the timing marks on the crankshaft gear, i cant actually see any it says that there should be an arrow that lines up with the crankshaft key, but all i can see is a little indent thats a bit to the right of the gear with a little mark that i cant see what it is. very confusing! should the crank key be facing straight upwards? because its at an angle, whilst the other marks a lined up. thanks again!

ok scrap that question, found the arrow. turns out that the crank is a tooth out, would that cause smoking?

im amazed it even starts!

ormus said:

im amazed it even starts!

Click to expand...

Me too! I always start a tdi without the front cover on just to get it to fire. The first one I did I got it all back together and THEN found out it wouldn't go. And no, you don't absolutely need the pin in the flywheel through the bell housing though if you had had it in you wouldn't get the crank a tooth out.

And be warned! The torque on the crank bolt is very high, and unless you have the correct tool to hold the crank you will not be able to get it tight enough. Remember that the rotation of the engine will tend to loosen the bolt which is one reason for the very high torque setting. (80 Nm + 90 deg). If the bolt comes loose you can start saving for a new crankshaft.

hmm im worried by you saying it should be really really tight. it was pretty easy to undo. just put it into gear, put a socket on it and put a bar on the end of the wrench and it came undone. the outer crankshaft pulley is worn where the woodruff key slot is and the key is buggerd. when it was going it sounded like a heap! is that just that the keyway had gone? you could move the pulley a about a cm in either direction.

Whats the correct tool?? this job would be so much easier if had someone who knew what they where doing to show me what to do at least i'll learn if i brake something, because it will cost me a bomb.

The LR tool is part no LRT-12-080. Churchill made the original but Difflock sell one (at an outrageous price). If you know someone with a large lathe you can make one. The measurements are as follows, basically it is a large pipe 70mm long. The od is 90 mm and the id is 60 mm. There are four 8mm holes drilled through the pipe at 75mm centres 90deg apart ie they are symmetrical. There is a big bar welded around the outside of the pipe (the inner must be left clear to get a 27mm socket in there). The bar goes against either the chassis or the p/s box. I also use a 27mm x 3/4" Impact socket and a 3/4" drive t-bar with a pipe on the end to get the correct torque.

If your bolt was easy to undo and the damper has stuffed up the keyway and the crank then the palooka who did it obviously did not have the special tool.

Dunno if it's exactly the same but this is the one I made and worked OK.


To tighten the bolt up I borrowed a Torque converter which is like a gear box that goes between the torque wrench and socket, you just work out the ratio of the converter and relate it to the amount you dial in on torque wrench.

So you put bolts in the holes and put your tool on the top? I have seen one made from thin pipe with four tubes welded to the inside for the bolts. Anyway it doesn't matter as long as you can get the bolt very tight.

We have had vehicles in which had their cambelts changed by the stealers. After much hassle I get the tool on to find the bolt is hardly tight. This shows that their mechanics are more interested in getting the job out and the cash in than doing it properly, as all the dealers have the tools for the job. Of course this doesn't happen any more as no-one would take a 300tdi to a stealer now.

Thanks for the measurements! Im doing my city an guilds in welding at the moment so my college workshop will have all the bits i need to make one, wether or not they'll let me use it for making one is another question. If not then my local landy garage will let me borrow one, fat chance. Thanks for the help

Whereabouts are you?

Good ol' Devon

right well i got it all timed up and thought id give it a try! but no luck for some reason. i turned the cambelt about 5 full revolutions by hand just to make sure it all stayed exactly right (which it did) could this have filled the cylinders with loads of diesel? would that cause it not to start? took the glow plugs out and they're covered in gritty oil ,lovely, then turned it over a few times just to see if would help, but it didnt. somethings not right. any ideas??

Devon! Thats near France int it? Any old how, Gritty Oil? don't like the sound of that! What states the fuel filter in? What state is the air filter in? What state is the engine oil and filter in?

Check your timing again. If you have the pin in the injector, go look in the bell housing for the crank timing slot. If the crank timing is one tooth out the engine will never start. You don't need to take the cover off to get the timing pin in.

Glow plugs are normally oily, especially if they don't work. While they are out check them with a battery and a set of jump leads. They must glow red right at the ends.

Its nearer to the country of Cornwall. I made a pin to go in the flywheel and even after turning it on the key about 5times it still lined up perfectly. The glow plugs don't work, well the two i checked didn't, the battery started to die so i gave up last night but will try again later!

right well after a few hours playing i still can't get it to go. None of the glow plugs are working so that can't be helping. But it started before i replaced the belt.

In that case it is timed wrongly. Put the pin back in the injector and look through the hole in the bell housing to see the slot. If it is not dead right the engine will not start. The camshaft timing matters less, the engine will start if it is one tooth out it just won't run so well. Diesels are very finnicky on their timing, not like petrol engines

well i just got it started, i think i rotated the pump through 180degrees and didn't realise. It didn't half smoke though! and it took a long time to get it going, ive probably destroyed the starter. I have a feeling that when i undid the 3 10mm bolts on the pump gear i moved the gear timing hole out of line. Is it actually possible to do that? i figure if i try and start it tommorow morning and it starts easier than it did today then its not the timing but if its as difficult as it was today then its more than likely the timing. does that make sense? also, when i do get it running is likely to cause any harm because i have no radiator/water in the system? i guess its ok for a short period of time?