2.3L ('83-'97) Filthy under timing cover

[mdiiorio]

Hello,

I am in the middle of a timing belt job on my 1995 Ranger 2.3L and am wondering what might be the cause of this. The timing belt broke while driving after 40,000 miles (about 3 years) and at first a chalked it up to a cheap kit (it was a DNJ kit) but once I pulled the timing cover I noticed it id FILTHY under there. I’m honesty surprised the belt survived that long, and there is no way this didn’t contribute to the break. The timing belt itself had nasty black grime on it and the tensioner screws were barely even visible. Filthy all the way from the crankshaft to the top of the cover. Before this break the truck ran perfect and did not burn oil, no coolant leaks either. Any idea why it might be so dirty order there? Every timing belt I’ve ever done has been dusty under the cover at most. I don’t work on cars very much so I hope someone with more experience might be able to give me some ideas…thanks!

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Sounds like there was an oil leak. I'm not familiar with the 2.3 so cant say the most likely leak area.

 

[scotts90ranger]

A slight oil leak would make any dust stick pretty good and make a mess... the most likely front oil leaks are valve cover gasket (bolts like to back out so check that first), cam bolt (it's straight threads that hold back oil pressure, on my '90 I took off the timing cover a while ago and there was a puddle in the bottom of the cam pulley... it was bad) then there's the cam seal itself

 

[DandysRanger]

Could be the cam seal. I know mine is leaking like crazy from there. I am going to tackle it this coming week.

 

[racsan]

I had a bad cam seal on my ‘88 years ago, made quite a mess. Even worse was that it was right after I had rebuilt the engine and it “ was” clean & painted up.

 

[scotts90ranger]

This is the caliber of oil leak I was dealing with on the '90 from the cam bolt... that pool in the cam pulley shouldn't be there... fixing that and the turbo oil drainback tube solved at least 90% of the oil leaks on the thing... it's still a mess, I'll pull the engine and reseal the externals this winter maybe...

 

[DandysRanger]

I replaced my cam seal but I think the problem lies from the groove around the cam from my "refurbished" cylinder head. When I reinstalled the cam seal I used some yamabond around the outside JIC. Something tells me I'll be going back in...

 

[DandysRanger]

So I went back in and checked if the cam seal is leaking again and surprise, it is. Has anyone used a speedi-sleeve on the camshaft to address this. The cam nose is tapered a bit so not sure one would work.

 

[scotts90ranger]

I can't imagine it not working, it's just the seal surface so not much to go wrong.

 

[youngmanwithapickuptruck]

under my timing cover is full of layer of grease and dust....
i had a power steering leak for like two years, so i take it its just that, ya?
i also noticed whenever i would move the steering wheel hard when the car was off, PS fluid would shoot out of the cap. i take it thats where all the oil came from?

last question: none of the timing belt guides mention replacing the "cam shaft seals"
i am at 300,000mi so it seems like i should swap it out anyways,
but on the other hand
-i am a novice mechanic
- i dont have any problems losing any significant amounts of oil (maybe 1/2 qt every 1000 miles)
-i read you need specialized tools
-id rather not move any pulleys around while the timing marks are lined up and pully off
-if it aint broke, dont fix it.

welll... this looks like the most recent timing belt thread so here are some other questions:
how do i go about removing the spring for the pully tensioner? which bolt should i loosen first? should i expect the spring to come flying off? I am worried it might damage the tips of the thread as i unthread the last bits of the bolt while there is still tension on the spring.

does crank shaft position sensor need to be unplugged before doing timing belt replacement? if so, then why?

is the timing belt procdeure the same for rangers 2.3l 83-97 and rangers 2.5l 98-00?

 

[JoshT]

It's possible that it is a result of a PS leak, but being inside the timing cover I think it more likely to be a seal on the engine. Maybe a camshaft seal, maybe a crank or aux shaft seal, maybe even a valve cover gasket. That's not something we can really tell you from the other side of a computer screen. You're going to have to get in there, clean, and inspect to figure it out.

Timing belt replacement guides wouldn't mention the camshaft seals. It's not a part of timing belt replacement. If the seal is leaking, during a belt change is an excellent time to replace it. If you need to replace the seal and the timing belt is old, it's an excellent time to do it since the belt has to be removed anyway.

A novice mechanic could pull off a timing belt change no problem. Basic hand tools plus possibly a few rented from an auto parts store.

Specialized tools? Maybe a pulley puller for crank pulley and cam pulley if you need to replace seal. Large socket for crank pulley bolt. Long pry bar for tensioner. A timing light if yours has a distributor. Other specialized tools exist, they might make the job easier, but are not required.

Don't worry about moving the pulleys they are keyed and will only install one way. Just put them back on, align the timing marks and reinstall the belt. Only thing you have to really watch for is that your distributor is lined up on #1 if you have a distributor.

Biggest difference in procedure between early and late years is whether the engine has a distributor/camshaft synchronizer or not. Earlier ones did, later ones did not. That needs to be taken into account for getting/keeping the ignition timing set right.

Having said all of that, my 2.3 experience is limited, so somebody will probably jump in and tell me I'm wrong.

 

[scotts90ranger]

Belt tensioner is easy, take a pry bar (a claw hammer works nifty too) between the spring and pulley to release tension on the spring then remove the small bolt now release tension on the spring and it's just there, the spring center bolt will come out fine...

The only thing you have to know about pulling the cam pulley is you need some thread sealant on the cam pulley bolt as the camshaft is hollow...

 

[youngmanwithapickuptruck]

additional timing belt question:

someone mentioned there should be a big flat washer after this 'sprocket' to keep the belt from 'walking off'... i dont recall seeing one. is this bad information

 

[racsan]

I think Ive seen one on all (3) 2.3’s Ive owned. I’ll have to see if I have a picture somewhere.
Edit: here it is, on my ‘94.

 

[youngmanwithapickuptruck]

yeah, looks like it was removed from 2.5l