Ok, what started as a "simple" water pump replacement has turned into much more. I do a fair amount of work on my other vehicles, little engine work though and have done very little on this truck.. Not sure if I can handle what is staring me in the face...

I have a 1994 f 250 with a 7.5 engine. Had coolant seeping from the timing chain cover - top left - between cover and block. I am assuming this is a gasket/sealant failure????

I have every thing removed except for the timing cover and am not sure what I will be getting into.... or how to proceed.. so, some questions..

I notice that I have to take the crankshaft pulley off to get the cover off. How is this accomplished? By taking the crank shaft pulley off, will I affect the timing and need to reset this upon completion?

Since I will have the timing cover off, how will I know if I should change the chain? Truck has about 148K. I am assuming with such a change the timing will definitely be effected and need to be reset.

Oh, by the way, I also broke off a bolt when taking off the water pump - the one that goes al the way through the timing chain cover and into the block. Thus, I will need to take the cover off anyway and try to drill it out. Tried heating the bolt first, but I guess it did not work!!!!

Any suggestions, cautions and words of wisdom would be great. Thanks

 

I had this same problem when I replaced my water pump. You will need a harmonic balancer/steering wheel puller to remove the balancer. This won't effect timing because it can only go on one way. Once it is out of the way you can unbolt the timing cover. It bolts to both the block and the oil pan. Inspect the cover for damage and corrosion. Dorman makes a replacement cover if yours is beyond repair.

The timing chain is checked by measuring the deflection on the chain between the sprockets. I don't know this spec myself unfortunately. More than so much slack and it needs to be replaced.

 

I think there's a puller that makes removing the harmonic balancer easier, but it is a bit of a pain to get at.

There are 2? 4? oil pan bolts that thread into the bottom of the timing cover. You need to take those out before trying to get the timing cover off. When putting it back together you have the option of taking the pan all the way off and putting a new gasket on it or cutting the old gasket at the front of the block and just resealing the pan to the timing cover. I've never done it that way but people say it works. Oh, and if you have the rubber gasket you might get away with not doing anything special but just putting the timing cover back on, I'm not sure about that though. And by the way, taking the pan off and replacing the gasket is a pain with the engine in the truck. I think you need to loosen a motor mount and raise the engine a little.

When you put the water pump back on, use thread sealer on the threads of the the bolts that go into the water jacket. That will help keep the bolts from getting stuck for next time. Putting anti-seize on the rest of the bolt isn't a bad idea either, but thread sealer on the threads is the main thing.

 

1/2" chain deflection calls for a new timing chain.

The simplest question to ask yourself, is it worth going that far and not replacing it? You did say it has 140k miles...

 

Any suggestions on getting the broken bolt out? this is one of the bolts that go through the water pump, cover and into the block. Drill out and try to use a bolt remover and back it out????

 

I've dealt with same problem but mine were on a stand.

Lots and lots of heat, working the bolt back and forth, with PB Blaster or Kroil.

Question I didn't ask, is if it broke flush with the block...

 

Don't know yet. Need to get puller to get everything off the crank shaft. Thinking it is flush. Any tricks to the trade to getting the crank bolt out? Not enough room for an impact. Saw on you tube where a guy positioned a breaker bar such that when he turned over the engine ever so briefly the bolt started to turn. Dumb idea?

Thanks for your comments and also the other comments as well...very much appreciated.

 

Very dumb idea. Get a socket and breaker bar. That bolt is easy to remove.

 

Tried a little bit with socket and breaker bar and nothing. cannot get much torque on it as it spins. might try some heat and see if I can figure out if there is a way to stop it from spinning. Thanks.

 

Pull a spark plug and shove a bunch of clean rope into the cylinder. This will keep the crank from turning. Or, buy one of these.

 

You can also remove the inspection cover at the bottom of the bellhousing and jam a prybar/screwdriver in there to prevent the engine from turning. You can both hold the flexplate and loosen the crank bolt at the same time if you're even a little bit coordinated.

You shouldn't need to apply heat the the crank bolt to get it out, and I'd probably recommend that you don't..

 

I've done both methods.

The rope trick is safer, but the screwdriver wedge works in a hurry.

 

I forgot to add, make sure the cylinder is on the compression stroke before shoving the rope in. You wouldn't want it getting caught in a valve.

 

Ok, back at it. Got the Fly wheel off and can see the key on the crankshaft. I am assuming the key will come out with a little prying?? Also, behind the flywheel is another fly wheel of sorts that appears to be a balancer. How does this come off? It does not appear to have much to hold on to. Do I use a puller as well...but I will not be able to pull it evenly on both sides.

Again, thanks all for walking me through this!

 

I have identified the part - Crankshaft Damper Spacer, Counter Weight. Any ideas on how to remove this? I have to get the key out first.