acarney

Ok, so I'm STILL working on my timing belt job on my 2002 A6 with a 2.7t. I FINALLY got the crankshaft access plug out using the longest metal pick I could find and squishing my hand up from under the car. I can't actually get my hand between all the pipes/hoses and it's IMPOSSIBLE to fit the crankshaft access plug special tool in there. The tool is just too damn big to fit in this spot with the angle that the treads are on the engine block. How the HELL do you get this plug in? If you go from ABOVE the car I can't figure out where to squish my hand in down around the engine (and honestly I can't actually get it down more then above three inches or so) and there seem to be NO guides on if you can remove something to make life easier. I think the people with the 2.8L engines go from under the car but they don't have the big fat pipe from the intercooler to the turbo charger to deal with, and that seems to be what is stopping me from being able to force this special bolt into the position.

acarney

So in the one picture you can see the access plug open (circled in green) and two different pipes or cross members going horizontal across the car blocking access. In blue is what I believe is a pipe from then bottom of the driver side intercooler and going/coming from/to the turbo charger. Because of that I can get the special bolt at the proper angle for the threads to match up. (Let alone the fact it takes about 10 minutes to shoe-horn the damn thing UP there in the first place each time I try)

In the other picture it's looking down on the drivers side of the engine from the engine bay. Do I stuff my hand down where the yellow arrow is? That seems towards the back of the engine BUT I can't get my hand down there far enough and there's some sheet metal shield or something just to the right (right under the hoses coming from the expansion tank) that really makes it too tight to get my hand in there and I doubt the ~3 inch special locking bolt)

Or, do I try to stuff my hand back at the bottom of the engine where the red arrow is? I can only get it about two or three inches back from that oil filter and I'm not sure if that's far enough back, OR far enough left to actually be touching the engine block. I just run into some rubber feeling stuff and what feels like the charge pipe again from the intercooler...

jseklund

This part is always a bit of a pain at first. I don't know how you removed the plug with a pick, because the two 2.7Ts I've worked on have screws that hold them in place....

You need to removed the intercooler piping that is in the way. There are a couple of hex-head bolts that you can use a hex socket to remove, and a long flat tip screw driver will remove the band clamps. Removing will be a little easier than re-installing and you will be swearing a bit. Be ready for SOME oil to come out of the hoses when you open them.

Once you have the intercooler pipes removed, use a couple of long extentions through the wheel well, and a 10 MM socket to screw the plug in. You can reach up by hand at this point too and get it started - but I like to get it in firmly without cranking hard on it.

Prospeeder

And thats why I dont use the worthless crank pin.....Just line the balencer up with the mark and just do the freakin timing belt already....you would be done driving your car by now. Pullies loose, put the cam bar on, remove the pin and tension the belt, then put the lower cover and crank pulley on, make sure the marks lined up and tighten the cam pullies, done put it back together and be done already. iv done over a hundred of these 2.8/2.7T belts and used the crank pin once, it pissed me off with the huge waste of time and never used it again.

jseklund

Prospeeder has much more experience than I, which is probably why I feel this way, but I really like knowing that pin is in place. It removes a possible error from the hands of someone who, in my case, has only done this 3-4 times. If something does go wrong, it is just one more part that you have to worry about getting right if the pin isn't lined up. Plus, if you are pulling the crank seal, it would take longer to get that all back together correctly, in my mind.

tester123

I don't know your level of expertise in automotive repair but, IMO it is in your best interest to lock the crank with that pin. It maybe a pain, I have 4.2, never worked on 2.7T (at least not this type of work anyway) but would it be possible to try to reach from driver side wheel well?

acarney

First time doing the timing belt. I think I would feel a lot safer having that pin in... I can't reach in with my hands at all. From below I have two metal hoses (coolant?) running across the engine bay and sway bar? From the wheel well I can reach it with a 18" extension BUT I can't get the pin threaded in at all. I think it's the turbo pipe that is keeping me from getting the right angle. Now that I'm hearing that you need to remove the turbo pipe (or at least loosen it from the metal bracket and the hose clamp near the intercooler) I have renewed faith.

I really want this pin in because I do want to remove the crank & replace the seal and I think with my level or know how, this is the only way to do that and ensure things stay lined up...

Should I remove the turbo pipe all the way, or just the metal bracket on the oil pan and the hose clamp near the intercooler? I don't even know if/how to loosen or remove it's connection to the turbo charger. From under the car or from engine bay?

acarney

After much fighting I was able to squize a socket up there and remove the 10mm bolt that was holding it which almost fell on my face BUT the plug was still firmly in place... Since I couldn't fit my hand up there I had to use the longest and smallest pick I had and fight for about 30 min trying to loosen and pull the plastic plug out. That's what I meant. This thing is in a HORRIBLE location and the Blau instructions AND Bently are WORTHLESS on this step as they just gloss over HOW to reach this or if you need to remove anything and instead just say "insert crank locking pin"

jseklund

Yes, I know. You have to remove the pipes for the intercooler. It's just how it is. There are two allen socket bolts attaching one of the pipes to the bottom of the oil pan. I usually use gentle force to squeeze a hex socket in between the two coolant pipes that go over one of the bolts. Taking 20 minutes to remove the necessary parts will save you hours of frustration in trying to do something that is near impossible.

acarney

I've removed those two hex bolts, should I removed/loosen the hose clamp where the metal pipe connects to the rubber one near the intercooler? Do I actually remove the pipe completely, or just push it aside or something? I can figure out where any other clamps/bolts are for the pipe near the TURBO side... Or how to access that area.