Still can't get the cam sprockets off

[jfm2112]

I pulled the rocker covers and got a 1" wrench on the flats of the cam. Still can't break loose the bolt that holds the sprockets on. I'm using a 1/2" breaker bar with a short length of pipe. These things are way over-torqued from the factory. Started to twist the cam in the 1" wrench!!!!!! I'm running out of ideas. Maybe cut the timing belt to fit the diameter of the sprocket, and then put a chain vise grip on it. Any better ideas, I'd appreciate.

[ShawnW]

1/2" drive impact wrench is the ticket. You need to spin them hard and fast. It would do wonders to smack the bolt head with a ball end of a ball peen hammer, then tighten the bolt slightly and then try to loosen it. This should break the threads loose. If your inner plastic is broken, break it further so you can get behind the gear and put some penetrating fluid in there.

 

The other thing is you dont want to turn the cams and therefore valves with the crank pointing anywhere except straight up as you can bend your valves, assuming this is a 2.0, 2.5 or late model 2.2.

[BigMattyD]

I found a website that contains all the subaru special tools. There is a camshaft sprocket wrench that will hold the sprocket from turning while you go after the bolt. This way, You won't bend the camshaft.

 

You could try to make a similar tool at home, or you could try a chain wrench wrapped around the sprocket with the belt like you described.

 

Here is a link for the subaru tools web site. In case anyone wanted to see what is available:

 

http://subaru.spx.com/detail.asp?partid=499207100

 

Matt

[tomson1355]

In my very humble and possibly erroneous opinion, I think you are better off with a wrench on the flats of the cam than you are with any kind of sprocket wrench arrangement. I'd worry about breaking a sprocket, and think it would be very hard to break or bend a cam.

 

The flats of the cam have protrusions on two faces so avoid those faces. I used a fairly short wrench on the flats and rested it against the sidewall of the engine compartment. I've used a 1/2" drive 17mm(?) socket and adapted out to a 3/4" drive breaker bar. I remember it as being tough, but certainly doable.

 

Maybe somebody used some red loctite.

[Midwst]

I recommend holding the sprocket with a strap wrench or chain wrench. Maybe put a piece of timing belt around it first, fasten with duct tape, to prevent damaging the pulley. also put the penetrating oil. Then hold it still and hit it with a 1/2" impact gun. May also want to instal the new timing belt to prevent damage from the cam shaft turning out of sync with the engine. Just temporarily till you get the bolt loose.

If that doesn't work....I don't know if it is wise to heat the pulley, and then maybe even replace it after you get it off. That sounds pretty extreme.

The impact should do it. always works for me. May have to remove the radiator to get in there with the impact gun.

[jfm2112]

Radiator is out. Unfortunately the condenser is still in the way. Got both off the right side now. Neither one off the left. Can't get the chain wrench around the sprockets because they are too close to one another. Protrusions on the cam are preventing me from getting a good bite on it. I'm thinking of building my own strap wrench with the old timing belt. Cams have been moved. No way to avoid it with all this wrestling. I'm bringing home a borescope from work to assess any potential damage. Boy, Subaru missed the mark with this 2.5 DOHC. I just wanted to fix a few leaking cam seals, and it's turned into a huge fiasco. Maybe I'll get the 2 L/H ones tonight.

[jfm2112]

They're off! A combination of everything finally did it. Impact wrench on the intakes followed by chain wrench on the exhausts. Thanks for all the input guys. Red Loctite on the bolts. 60,000 miles and they appear to never have been off before. I'll go back together with blue.

[svxpert]

<<Boy, Subaru missed the mark with this 2.5 DOHC. I just wanted to fix a few leaking cam seals, and it's turned into a huge fiasco.>>

 

 

Its funny how everyone who tries to do a project with the wrong tools and very little experience blames Subaru on poor engine design. There is a reason Subaru sells service manuals and the correct tools. Here is a pic of tools you will/would need to get the cam sprokets off.

[99obw]

I welded a 2-3/8" 3/4"-drive socket to a piece of angle iron after breaking one of the sprockets. The hex on the sprocket is 60mm, and this home-brewed tool works great.

[Midwst]

Subaru special factory tools cost $$$$$!!!!! Thats why people don't have them. who wants to pay $60 or $120 for a tool to do just one job every 60K miles.

[Midwst]

Jim, if you don't have a 1/2" impact gun and compressor, you can rent one relatively cheaply for a few hours. I would recommend using a strap wrench over a chain wrench. Less chance of damaging the sprocket. Should have recommended this option before.

[swooshdave]

Subaru special factory tools cost $$$$$!!!!! Thats why people don't have them. who wants to pay $60 or $120 for a tool to do just one job every 60K miles.

 

Because: uber-special Subaru tools < paying mechanic to use his tools.

 

And if you screw up with homemade improvised tools = paying mechanic to use his tools + paying for parts you boogered up.

 

Simple math.

[seanliu]

I saw a tool from thetoolwarehouse.net for holding the cam sprocket, costing $27.00. i am not sure if it works on subaru.

 

 

 

Because: uber-special Subaru tools < paying mechanic to use his tools.

 

And if you screw up with homemade improvised tools = paying mechanic to use his tools + paying for parts you boogered up.

 

Simple math.

[svxpert]

<<Because: uber-special Subaru tools < paying mechanic to use his tools.

 

And if you screw up with homemade improvised tools = paying mechanic to use his tools + paying for parts you boogered up.

 

Simple math. >>

 

 

yes!

[Al_SemC]

<<Boy, Subaru missed the mark with this 2.5 DOHC. I just wanted to fix a few leaking cam seals, and it's turned into a huge fiasco.>>

 

 

Its funny how everyone who tries to do a project with the wrong tools and very little experience blames Subaru on poor engine design. There is a reason Subaru sells service manuals and the correct tools. Here is a pic of tools you will/would need to get the cam sprokets off.

 

 

That's the crankshaft pully hold-down tool and has nothing to do with taking off the camshaft sprockets.

[avk]

The forked tool in the photo is in fact a camshaft sprocket wrench 499207100 although I'm not sure if it'll work on the 2.5 l engine in question. I have one (and a crankshfat tool) and believe it was worth the money.

[svxpert]

<<That's the crankshaft pully hold-down tool and has nothing to do with taking off the camshaft sprockets.>>

 

wow, i guess I screwed up all 30 timing belt jobs that I have done in the past 5 years! LOL, nice to resurect an old post.

 

 

<<The forked tool in the photo is in fact a camshaft sprocket wrench 499207100 although I'm not sure if it'll work on the 2.5 l engine in question. I have one (and a crankshfat tool) and believe it was worth the money.>>

 

yes, at the time of the post i wasnt sure if he had a SOHC or DOHC engine. thanks

[DerFahrer]

Guys, loosen the bolts on the cam sprockets before loosening the tension on the timing belt

[Subaru_for_LIfe]

I bought a similar tool from Harborfreight. It was dirt cheap and worked on both Subies and Hondas.

 

By the way, if you've done a couple of timing belt and fuel filter changes on Honda Accords, anything and everything on Subies would seem like a walk in the park.

 

Pye

[hohieu]

 

By the way, if you've done a couple of timing belt and fuel filter changes on Honda Accords, anything and everything on Subies would seem like a walk in the park.

 

Pye

I second that.

[a97obw]

For future reference anyways.......

 

1) Remove the valve covers and using a LARGE crescent wrench hold the cam by the flats that are cast into it (that you will only find once you remove the valve cover!) and hold that dude while you break the bolts loose on the cam sprocket. But before you do this,

 

Rotate the engine with the timing belt still on in the correct location until all the marks on the cams and the crank line up in their respective proper positions. With the marks lined up, the pistons on all 4 cylinders are at about mid stroke...i.e. you're not going to crash a valve into a piston by turning the cams IF and WHEN the crank mark is lined up to where it is supposed to be for a timing belt change. Leave the belt on to aid in breaking loose the cam sprockets.

 

I think that you'll find that at least on the 4 cam 2.5 engines the cam sprockets are made of plastic---and a very BRITTLE plastic at that! Should you attempt to hold the sprocket by the flats on the plastic sprocket itself in order to break the sprocket bolt loose, you're going to wind up with a handfull of broken plastic and a bolt that still isn't loose. If you're lucky, you might even hear it break apart in its destruction! And I don't think you'll manage to bend the camshaft by breaking the bolt loose...

[Gnuman]

 

By the way, if you've done a couple of timing belt and fuel filter changes on Honda Accords, anything and everything on Subies would seem like a walk in the park.

 

Pye

 

Heh, every time I work on any other brand of car, I love my Subaru all the more. . .

 

If you think Hondas are bad, try working on a domestic car. . . I swear the "engineers" were smoking crack. . .

[Al_SemC]

<<That's the crankshaft pully hold-down tool and has nothing to do with taking off the camshaft sprockets.>>

 

wow, i guess I screwed up all 30 timing belt jobs that I have done in the past 5 years! LOL, nice to resurect an old post.

 

Yeah, I was apparently feeling a bit vindictive at the moment and felt the need to resurrect an old thread. *shrug*

 

<<The forked tool in the photo is in fact a camshaft sprocket wrench 499207100 although I'm not sure if it'll work on the 2.5 l engine in question. I have one (and a crankshfat tool) and believe it was worth the money.>>

 

yes, at the time of the post i wasnt sure if he had a SOHC or DOHC engine. thanks

 

And never mind. I was close. This is a crank pulley tool. It's a bit like the cam tool you've got.

 

I've never seen an SOHC cam tool and honestly didn't know there was one, what with the hex shaped part of the cam just screaming to have a wrench put on. I retract my earlier comment.

 

Incidentally, these are the DOHC ones:

 

 

and

 

 

EDIT: Seems the link to the image for the first cam hold down tool at SPX broke. Oh well. It looks like this: O=O, where the circular parts have hex shaped holes in them that fit over the hex section on the front of the cam sprockets.

[blitz]

They're off! A combination of everything finally did it. Impact wrench on the intakes followed by chain wrench on the exhausts. Thanks for all the input guys. Red Loctite on the bolts. 60,000 miles and they appear to never have been off before. I'll go back together with blue.

"RED LOCTITE ON THE BOLTS" caught my eye. No wonder the friggin' things didn't want to come loose. Since when is Subaru doing this from the factory?

 

Is there a problem with the cam sprockets coming loose that I'm not aware of? Yes I'm hip to giving the crank sprocket bolt a dose of BLUE at re-assembly, but RED on the cam sprocket bolts???

 

Anyone?

 

**** ******!

[porcupine73]

Yo Subaru_for_LIfe, how about coughing up the part # for that Harbor Freight tool you mentioned? :-) I'm hip to getting one. I sent a fax to Kent-Moore for prices on their cam holding tool but they didn't respond, but I think it's about $90. I used the huge Harbor Freight chain wrench to hold my cam pulley while loosening the bolt, and I swear it took 200-300 ft lbs to break it loose; I had to put a big pipe on a 24" breaker bar to free it, but I think I might have bent/deformed the cam sprocket, so I ordered new ones.