Foreign Service ‘Assembly is the reverse of disassembly,’ service manuals
always say. With a timing belt on the Mitsubishi 3.0L DOHC
V6, thoroughness and precision are also required!
L
ast month we gave you an
overview of timing belt replace-
ment on Mitsubishi’s twin-cam,
3.0L V6. We’ll wrap up the top-
Dan ic this time, but you absolutely
must read last month’s column
Marinucci before digging into this one. You also need the
appropriate shop manual or timing belt ser-
vice guide for this engine.
Also, remember our emphasis on doing a
complete job here. That means replacing the
timing belt, water pump, automatic belt ten-
sioner and idler pulleys at the same time.
Techs can tell you that skipping one item can
really cost you later on.
Naturally, you have to identify and line up
Look for a pronounced dimple or dot on the front side of each cam sprocket and a pair
of arrow-shaped marks on the front of each cylinder head. Then highlight each dot and
arrow with white paint to make the job easier. This photo shows the front head.
10 June 2003
the correct timing marks. This V6 has five of
them—one on each cam sprocket and another
on the crankshaft sprocket. First, look for a
pronounced dimple or dot on the front of each
cam sprocket. Daub each dot with white paint
to make it easier to see. Then find the two ar-
row-shaped marks cast in the front of each
cylinder head. Likewise, daub these arrows
with white paint.
Slowly turn the crankshaft until the stan-
dard timing mark on the crank pulley is
aligned with the mark on the timing belt cov-
er. At the same time, the cam sprocket dots on
the front cams should line up with the arrows
on the front head (see photo below) while the
dots on the rear cam sprockets should align
with the arrows on the rear
head. Again, that’s five marks
you must line up at the same
time. Once you’ve got all five
aligned, we recommend slid-
ing a cam-alignment tool such
as CAM-LOK’s (refer to page
12 of last month’s column) be-
tween each set of sprockets.
This way, you’re sure the cams
can’t move out of position.
Now remove the pulley
from the crankshaft. If the
crank is still in the proper po-
sition, a little notch on its
sprocket will line up with a
pointer cast into the front of
the engine. In the photo on
page 12, the pointer (painted
white) and this notch are
aligned at about 1 o’clock. If
Photos: Dan Marinucci
so, you’re ready to remove
the timing belt in the se-
quence described in last
month’s column.
After removing the old belt,
check for cam seal leakage
and perform the other chores
we recommended last time,
such as replacing the water
continued on page 12
Foreign Service

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This photo shows the location of the key elements of the timing belt tensioner mechanism and the crankshaft pulley
alignment on the Mitsubishi 3.0L DOHC V6: tensioner pulley eccentric holes [1]; eccentric/pulley bolt [2]; automatic
tensioner-retaining pin hole [3]; “measured” distance between the left side of the tensioner pulley arm and the auto-
matic tensioner [4]; and the notch in the crank sprocket, aligned with the little pointer [5].
pump, automatic belt tensioner, them with the appropriate spanner ready compressed and pinned in
idlers, etc. Next, locate the plunger or tool (OTC’s MD998752 or equiva- place. Remove this retaining pin from
stem of the automatic belt tensioner. lent) and turn the eccentric until the the end of the tensioner, then slowly
This plunger pushes against the ma- two holes are roughly horizontal and rotate the crankshaft clockwise two
chined left side of the tensioner pul- above the bolt, as shown in the photo full turns. Wait at least five minutes
ley arm. Closely inspect this side of above. Then take up the slack in the for the automatic tensioner to “settle
the arm for wear. Replace this arm if new belt by firmly pressing the ten- in” against the new t-belt.
you see an indentation or worn spot sioner pulley against the belt and You’ll know the belt adjustment is
on its left side. If the tensioner pulley tightening the eccentric/pulley bolt. correct if you still can slide the re-
arm is okay, you’re almost ready to in- Next, make the initial t-belt adjust- taining pin in and out of the auto-
stall the new timing belt. ment with an accurate dial- or beam- matic tensioner freely and smoothly
To ease installation, first turn the type inch-pounds torque wrench. The after rotating the crankshaft. Sup-
crankshaft counterclockwise about just-mentioned OTC spanner tool has pose the pin doesn’t slide freely in
half a tooth. Then begin installing a 1⁄4-drive hole in it to accommodate a and out of the tensioner hole. In that
the new belt in the reverse of the torque wrench. Loosen the tensioner case, measure the distance between
removal sequence. Basically, you pulley bolt just enough for adjust- the machined, flat end of the auto-
work your way from the front cams ment purposes. Then use the torque matic tensioner casting and the flat
toward the rear cams and then down wrench and spanner to apply 84 in.-lb surface on the left side of the ten-
toward the crank. As you snake the of force to the eccentric. Now torque sioner pulley arm. If this distance is
belt over the cam sprockets, tem- the eccentric/pulley bolt to 42 ft-lb. within .149 to .177 inch (3.8 to
porarily cinch it in place with some Be sure the tensioner pulley doesn’t 4.5mm), the t-belt adjustment is
of those spring-loaded paper clips turn while you’re tightening this bolt! okay. Note that the machined left
we described last month. Last month we urged you to re- side of the tensioner pulley arm is
There are two holes in the face of place the automatic tensioner assem- the same surface we checked for
the tensioner pulley eccentric. Grip bly. The new tensioner’s plunger is al- wear earlier in this story.

12 June 2003