2.5 TDi Allroad - Cam pulley granaded :(

N

nedge2k

Registered User
Joined
Aug 21, 2013
Messages
64
Reaction score
9
Points
8
Location
NULL
Driving home for lunch, heard a noise, engine stopped. Lifted bonnet to be greeted by a chunk of cam pulley. ****. Took belt covers off, pulley destroyed but fuel pump rotates freely.

What the hell happened!? Fatigue? That bank did tap when cold, valve train failure?

IMAG0863.jpg
 
I can't comprehend how that is even possible :wtf:

The valves must have hit the pistons, but usually with a set of new valves and maybe new heads, you should be good to go. Might be cheaper to replace the whole engine with a new one.

Keep us updated with more pics.
 
Seen that before, either bad cam timing or one of the bolts holding the plastic cover behind the pulley came off and jammed the pulley. I have rebuilt a few engines with that issue before... I have a good engine from one of the cars i am breaking if you need to get the car back on the road...
 
Any news?

I came back to this thread just to check if you are lacking the flywheel on IP. Indeed, that may be the cause of your fail.
 
So, had the whole weekend to get stuck in and take the heads off - not a nice job - and the results are...

NO PISTON DAMAGE! :D

Sacrificial rockers did their thing, 20 out of 24 broken, slight witness marks on the pistons. Cams are junk though, some lobes have quite bad wear, some have none. Injection pump flywheel is AWOL but it was not the cause...a bolt holding the rear cambelt guard in place did indeed work its way loose and into the pulley spokes.

So when you all have a minute, go take your cambelt covers off and check the 4 bolts behind the pulleys are nice and tight!!
 
Wow all that damage because of a small bolt that secures the cambelt cover. Sounds like the cams were on there way out anyway but that is an expensive job to sort with just parts alone. Chris (Adamss24) will tell you where to get all the stuff if you don't know. He is a bit of an expert with these engines.

Karl.
 
I would check the valves move nicely in their guides as they tend to bend at the cotter end and look fine till few thousands miles down the road they decide to break dropping the valve heads into the engine. What was your engine code again ?
Telltale signs of bent valve is few do not sit centered and the spring will be closer to the head cast as you look from above. If severely bent the valve will be lower than the others and the spring won't hold it shut as it jammed the guide ! It would be a nice idea to replace the cams, rockers and lifters + valve stems seals at the same time- that engine i offered you last time would have been cheaper !
 
Can you post some pictures of the pistons and the heads, especially the valves? A picture is worth a thousand words...
 
  • Like
Reactions: kanecullen89
yeah but at least i know the heads in my AKE engine will now be "as new" ;)

i'm going to strip/clean the heads and re-lap the valves but yes, will carefully check the valves! just ordered a full cam kit, head set, belt kit, water pump and will be ordering a couple of those oil drain valves and a new stat for good measure.

the car is an '02 but the engine is a '99 - will cleaning the breather filter be sufficient or will it need replacing?

anything else i should do while i'm there?

I'll stick more pictures up when I get a chance but for now...

https://picasaweb.google.com/107012...authkey=Gv1sRgCMi65uDxqOnEwgE&feat=directlink
 
Last edited:
Check oil pump chain drive and tensioner as well, breather needs changing for later ventury effect. Your engine is also weaker than the 2002 one, they changed design of the block and pistons/rods are different too. I would have gone for a pair of cam roller heads to be honest, it's the best upgrade there is...
 
but not as forgiving if a belt guard bolt comes loose! ;)

weaker how? ...maybe i should have had your engine :/

I take it the oil pump is mounted behind the crank pulley and has to come off to be checked? if so, will locking the crank with the bolt in the side be strong enough to get the crank pulley bolt off and is it left-hand thread?

cheers.
 
NEVER use the locking tools to tighten or loose a bolt.

You can hold the crankshaft in a few ways:
- buy a special tool for this job from Audi, but it's pricey.

- try with an compressed air impact tool.

- put it in gear (or P), hold the brakes. Someone else needs to loosen the bolt.

-if the above method fails, take off the starter and block the teeth with a heavy duty screwdriver. An impact tool is a must to loose the bolt.
 
Stripped and cleaned the heads and manifolds yesterday...I was black after that!

7 bent exhaust valves, 4 bent inlet valves :(

Some were only slight and may have straightened back with a bit of running but I didn't wanna risk it. All the exhaust guides were quite badly worn also - no pop whatsoever but new stem seals should sort that. Still debating whether to just replace though. Some of the valves also had some nasty wear on the tips.

Oh and oil pump appears to only be a sump off job judging by Elsawin.
 
Lots on at the moment but had time to get the heads built-up yesterday. I also put the oil filter housing through the parts washer and managed to melt the diaphragm that bolts to the side of the breather filter - doh! Well, I assume it melted, doubt it had degraded quite as much as it looked.

More pics of the heads all shiny and clean...

https://picasaweb.google.com/107012...authkey=Gv1sRgCMi65uDxqOnEwgE&feat=directlink
 
Buy the new one from audi for the AKE engine, it's the later venturi effect that does not clog... Heads do look good, i would have used 2nd hand/genuine valves as i had issues with cheap valves before... I only use Swedish stainless steel valves if going aftermarket, otherwise audi standard is fine for me.
 
nothing wrong with AE valves, used in race engines all the time ;)

my breather filter was actually the later type, on the side of the breather housing there another cover about the same size with a diaphragm in it - that's what melted. the stuff in the parts washer is quite aggressive!
 
getting there slowly! had the sump off, checked chain tension and it seemed ok - could move the tensioner arm by applying some pressure to the chain - certainly wasn't loose. block faces cleaned up, heads on with new glow plug (threads were very flat on old plugs, didn't want to risk compression leak), new oil check valves, cam belt, water pump and stat fitted and everything threadlocked to hell and back! another sunny evening or two and she'll be back!

https://picasaweb.google.com/107012...authkey=Gv1sRgCMi65uDxqOnEwgE&feat=directlink
 
Last edited:
Incidentally, what's the best way to prime the oil before startup? Pull the connector from the VP44 and crank (after bleeding that too obviously)?
 
Very impressed with your work bud! I recently did my cams and that was enough lol
 
Suppose I should update this too...3yrs on, all good. AE valves, rockers, cams etc all still in perfect condition

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

S
2.5 tdi allroad EGR pipe
Replies
6
Views
1K
All-rod
All-rod
N
2.5 TDi Cam Timing Woes
Replies
4
Views
2K
Palhais
P
A
Allroad ABT Sportsline 2.5 tdi !
Replies
98
Views
23K
Rodeoro
Rodeoro
S
Cambelt change - 2001 2.5 tdi Allroad
Replies
4
Views
896
adamss24
A
marmite
My old Car Allroad 2.5 Tdi
Replies
0
Views
949
marmite
marmite
Top
Back