Timing cover gasket replacement questions
 

Okay so I have a coolant leak from the timing cover gasket in my 99. Today I had a little time to mess with it and got off the fan and fan shroud. My question is my Haynes manual talks about putting cylinder 4 at TDC if replacing the timing chain set.

The first question is, how would I be able to tell if I need to replace the timing chain set before I pull off the cover? (I don't want to pull the cover off and then mess with putting the motor at TDC)

Second question, say I pull off the cover and it seems sloppy, couldn't I just rotate the engine and line up the timing marks on the gears and be fine?

Third question, how much slop is too much slop?

The only reason I'm even thinking about changing it all out is because the vehicle has 400k miles on it and I can only assume it is the stock motor.

Also do I need to use rtv anywhere when doing the gasket, and exactly where do I use it if so?

Coolant leak from a timing cover?? That would be a first. The gasket seals oil, not coolant. More likely the water pump, bypass hose, or lower intake gaskets are leaking coolant onto the timing cover.

Hmmm weird when I looked at it before I bought it I could have sworn it was coming from the timing cover... I didn't really think anything of it because I had a coolant leak from the timing cover on my mustang but they have different motors... I'll have to look again now that I have the fan/shroud out of the way.

These timing covers are dry to coolant (Ford is not). These timing covers are plastic and require replacement once they have been removed (there is no separate gasket). Furthermore, if you disturb it, you will need to do a crankshaft sensor relearn as the sensor mounts into the cover. Look for leaks at the things pointed out by the Captain and leave the timing cover alone.

The rtv goes on the front and back between the lower intake manifold and the engine block. You mentioned your Haynes manual. There are a lot better resources for information on lower intake manifold replacement. There are step by step instructions as well as videos online. It's a common problem that's been covered by some knowledgeable mechanics.

Yeah I'm gonna go mess with it later and figure it out.

UPDATE: it was the water pump lol

Piece of cake to replace ;)


In your first post, you asked how to check timing chain slack without engine disassembly. Using a socket and ratchet on the crankshaft pulley, you can rotate the shaft back and forth, (clockwise and counter clockwise) until you feel the drag of the camshaft starting to turn. It's very slight, but if you pay close attention, you can feel it. At the outer diameter of the dampener, make a note of how far you can turn the crank. Look at the index on the timing cover and make an approximation of how many degrees the shaft moved. Ideally there should be zero slack, but if there's 12 degrees or more, you can literally lift the chain off the cam sprocket, which is enough to allow it to jump... it needs a new chain & gears.

Yeah I have the new water pump on there now but it was getting dark so I'm going to finish it tomorrow plus the fiancé was in the hospital so I needed to go there... And honestly I'm not too concerned with the timing chain... I just wanted to check and replace if necessary if I was going to have the cover off of the motor.