Camshaft belt replacement
I have owned a 2008 Ford Focus MKII 1.6 petrol with the Duratec 100PS engine from new. In view of the vehicle’s age and the recorded mileage of 45,000, I feel it would be prudent to replace the cambelt. In the past, I have changed cambelts on various vehicles, each time using paint marks for reference. It may be that this method is not appropriate for my Focus and that the engine must be locked at Top Dead Centre.
My concern about using the ‘quick method’ is that the crankshaft sprocket may turn independently of the crankshaft once the pulley bolt has been loosened. As the crankshaft pulley bolt will be very tight and might need renewing, is it necessary to lock the engine via the flywheel? If I do need to lock the engine, I will have to purchase a timing pin and camshaft setting and crankshaft locking tools, then change the cambelt by the book.
Also, could you advise me regarding replacing the two auxiliary drivebelts? As there are no tension adjustments regarding these belts, how difficult is the procedure of stretching them onto the pulleys using the special tools provided? Eifion Wyn Jones As you correctly observe, the crankshaft pulley is freewheeling on the crankshaft, so the quick method of marking the position of the pulleys with a dab of paint is not possible on your Focus.
The tools required are a flywheel locking plate (part no 303-393), a crankshaft setting pin (part no 303-748) and a camshaft locking tool (part no 303-376B). The crankshaft pulley locking tool (part no 205-072) and belt tensioner locking pin (part no 303-1054) will also make the job easier, although the new cambelt tensioner should come supplied with the locking pin.
The basic steps of the job are to undo the camshaft cover and timing covers, remove the bung at the left-hand side of the engine block (this has a 10mm head) and turn the engine to around 10° before TDC, checking that the slots in the rear of the camshaft are almost level with the face of the head. Fit the crankshaft setting pin from where the bung was removed and gently rotate the engine clockwise until the crankshaft stops against the pin.
Now fit the locking plate to the flywheel – this fits at the rear of the engine on the same side as the crank setting pin. Loosen the camshaft bolts and then lock the camshafts using the locking tool. Do not use the tool to lock the camshafts when loosening the bolts. Next, undo the crankshaft pulley bolt – this will be tight! The engine can now be supported and the mounting and lower timing belt cover removed, followed by the timing belt. The crankshaft pulley should be slid off and cleaned, ensuring that it rotates freely on the crankshaft.
With all the pulleys free to rotate, the timing is easily set when fitting the new belt and tensioners. A new crankshaft pulley bolt must be used and don’t forget to replace the lower timing cover before fitting. There are normally two different lengths of crankshaft pulley bolt supplied, so ensure you use the correct one and tighten it to 45Nm + 90°. The camshaft pulleys should be tightened to 60Nm. All locking tools can now be removed and the engine rotated 720° before rechecking the timing. The rest of the ancillaries can now be reassembled.
Fitting the stretchy auxiliary belts is quite easy with the tools. Slowly turn the engine by hand with a socket on the crankshaft pulley bolt, while pushing the belt into position.