Cam Adjuster Seal Update: One completed today (BWW)

[OCDboy]

I thought I would update everyone that I completed the Cam Adjuster seal on the passenger side. It was much less painful than I expected.

I'll run through a few things on this replacement.

1) no you do not need to remove any cams as the bentley indicates.
2) I did loosen the caps on the intake cam as 4Driver4 suggested.
3) Since the gasket is metal...there isn't any significant residual material on the head or adjuster side. Cleaning with Simple green was adequate for the two surfaces.
4) I did not take disconnect the fuel lines as the bentley suggests. This is easy enough to work around.
5) You will need the adjust seal kit:



My cliff-note procedure.

Start by follow the steps to get the valve cover off.



Be sure and clean up the corners of the valve cover mating surface at the corners. You will apply some sealant at the corners and there is residual sealant that should be cleaned. I used a gasket pick to clean it up. Be careful not to get the old material into the head!



Mark the chain position on the cam and chain with a grease pencil or pain pen. I used grease and wiped it off when I was finished. With this procedure you should not need to worry about cam alignment as the chain is never removed. But to be on the safe side...mark it!!!



Install the VAG tool 3366, Cam Adjuster spring compressor. Do not go to quickly...just keep tightening until it is snug. You will know when you are there. (Don't over tighten as you could damage the adjuster) Notice the slack now evident in the chain!



Now loosed all of the caps on the intake cam exept on the end with the hall sender. There is a mating surface there that I was not comfortable loosening that end. Back the bolts out about 1/2 inch. Do not remove.

Then remove all 4 bolts securing the cam adjuster.



The adjuster will break free easily. Careful not to drop the old seal somewhere you don't want it to go! Now with the adjuster loose. You can easily see the 1/2 moon gasket located below the adjuster...again...careful! That thing is oily and easy to drop.





Here's a pic of the gaskets...notice how the old 1/2 moon gasket has shrunk? That's why it's leaking!



Using some cotton swabs and some simple green (full strength), I wiped in between the two surfaces and clean all grease. I found no residual gasket material.



Be sure to have an inspection mirror on hand to ensure all surfaces are clean prior to installing the new gasket.



Check with the bentley manual as you are to apply sealant to the new gasket prior to installation. I did not use the fancy VAG sealant, but some black RTV I had on the shelf (I know someone will flame me for that)



Install the 1/2 moon gasket...I used a screwdriver to position it.



Then install the new metal gasket and align with on bolt. It will seat quickly as there are bolt hole guides to line it up.



Install the remaining 3 bolts and torque down at a very light 10nm. Then remove the adjuster compression tool.



From there, torque the cam caps on the intake side. Make sure you work the bolts down a little at a time and crossing like you would a head. They also should be torqued to 10nm.

The rest is easy! Replace the valve cover, make sure you replace with a new gasket and apply sealant as required in the bentley guide. Replace all of the other parts, vacuum lines, coil-packs, airbox, y-pipe, etc.

It is a good idea to turn the motor over by hand a couple of times to make sure there are no timing issues. With this procedure there is limited risk of timing problems.

I think this can be done in about 3 hours. It took about 45 min to get the valve cover off. Then another 2 hours to finish...and a friend did stop by and distracted me while I was at it.

I thought I would get this down for future reference. This is only the passenger side. I would expect the drivers side to be similar. Overall, it was another intimidating task that turned out to be pretty painless. Thanks to 4Driver4, por911, Eric 2.7 and others for the advice!

Standard disclaimer: Use at your own risk! This is my personal shadetree effort and not "by the book" Remember any alteration to the timing will effectively destroy your motor...BE CAREFUL and ALWAYS TAKE YOUR TIME!!!

[RLG]

Great writeup man. I can't wait till I have to replace mine. This should go somewhere important...Stoney!!

[Kris Hansen]

[banana s4]

[Fairfax 2.7T]

[::yrk2.7t::M-Box²®]

[skidmark]

[mpw]

There had been some pretty good write-ups, but you've done great job a capturing it all in one place. The pics are really helpful.

[4Driver4]

It is also important to clean the area where the half moon sets. Mine had some buildup that required Brake Cleaner to remove it.

The cam adjuster uses oil pressure to function. The large hole in the flat gasket is where the oil passes from the head to the adjuster. On the adjuster inlet, there is a small screen that sometimes falls out. This is rare, but it does happen occasionally. When the adjuster is placed back onto the head, be sure it sits correctly (flat) on the new gasket.

[Eric 2.7]

is a good idea to get just a little more room to work.