Ok guys, I really think I'm missing out something big, because I still cannot get this damn timing belt on correctly.

This time I'm updating pics so I can be as explicit as possible with my dilemma, and with your kind help, I hope I can get this car on the road by the end of labor day weekend.

I tried to install the belt the way the instructions provided by Blau said (with the camshaft sprocket rotated about 1/2 tooth towards the drivers side) the belt went on just right, tense on the right hand (mid-shaft to cam) run and loose on the tensioner run. But when I started the engine I still got that clicking sound. Now, someone replied and said that this could go away after a while... Is this true? I have not kept the car running for too long when I get this sound as I don't want to risk messing anything up. Please clarify this for me?

Now, when I try to install the belt with BOTH marks already in perfect alignment (as basically every other tutorial and write-up says to do) this is what happens (sorry for the crappy pic quality but my cellphone is all I had):

>>I annotated everything into each picture, all nice and color-coded so you guys can spend more mind-time helping me than deciphering my pictures ^^. BTW, I should disclaim that in no way am I insulting your intelligence, I am just making it as easy as I can for you... I am helping you help me, if you will.

>>>By the way, yes, in FIG. 3 ALL the tension is off AND the golden push-plate on the tensioner has been removed. And also yes, throughout all this the crank is aligned with its TDC marks.







So, is it supposed to be this hard?

I'm at a loss right now. Every tutorial says that the marks have to be perfectly aligned to begin with... But this is not working for me, it is impossible for me to manually stretch out the belt so much as to make what I say in FIG. 3 happen.

If I try to run the belt starting from the tensioner, then things get really tight up top of the cam and I end up in the same problem, needing way too much force to install the belt.

Please... PLEASE help me!!!

 

might be a shot in the dark but did you take this new belt and put it up along side the old belt just to make sure they were the same size?

im not sure which way you are trying to install the belt, but in figure 1- the sprocket is off half a tooth clockwise, try making it so that its half a tooth counterclockwise from the blue line instead. it almost looks like thats your problem in figure 3 but the picture is too blurry and colored over to tell.

i really dont know what would be 'clicking' if the belt is off by one tooth or less, it would take a few teeth to hit valves so that shouldnt be your problem. how loud was it? where was the noise coming from? it may not even be anything to do with the belt, could just be something that happened to start making noise because you disrupted it while you were in there.

if you get it back together and its still making noise, run it for a minute and try and find where its coming from. as long as you arent several teeth off on the belt you shouldnt damage anything. maybe even scan it and see if theres any codes.

 

In figure 3 I'm installing the belt with the cam sprocket on TDC... Figure 1 is just to show what Blau says to do (and what I would have to do to make Fig. 3 fit, since I can't stretch the belt anymore, I have to turn the cam to meet it.)

The only way that I can make the belt fit when on TDC (Fig.2) is by having the loose run be on the mid-shaft/cam run. However, this causes the cam sprocket to turn counter-clockwise from TDC by about 1 tooth once tensioned, and my engine to click.

Do you really think that the clicking might not have anything to do with both marks not being perfectly aligned to themselves?? (most of the tutorials warn about how things MUST be PERFECTLY aligned) that's why I was assuming the clicking had to do with things not being TDC aligned.

What else could the clicking be? I really don't think I disturbed anything... All I did was a complete timing belt change + new A/C & accessories tensioners + water pump + thermostat + oil seals + replaced most bolts for new ones (obtained from dealership, I made sure they were the exact ones as the existing, so no problem there). I never really touched anything I shouldn't have or didn't know what I was doing with, no accidents or nothing "out of norm".... What could it be though? I'm open to other alternatives, if I can drive around with this clicking (say to take it straight to a mech and get it checked) then that would be awesome...

The clicking is loudest when you're on top of the engine, around the area to the right of the 3-4th top-most spark plugs. You can't hear much from under the engine, or from inside the car, and nothing from the rear (I also got a borla, so that makes it hard to hear anything when you stand back there anyway) BUT the exhaust sounds normal.

I also replaced the spark plugs.

I did not check if both belts were the exact same but the little box that the new belt came on has the correct year/model listed... I will check today anyway.

Please help???

 

Just a shot in the dark, and I hope I don't sound like an idiot, but the injectors click (which mean they're working). Is it possible you never noticed this before, but now that you're listening carefully for any signs of a problem, you're mistaking the injectors for something else? Injectors don't click very loud, and I can't hear them on my car unless I'm right over the engine. Just a thought...

 

ok i have a quick question.. the timing belt issue... is that with ALL audi's or just the turbo models?