[chikki66]

I have a 2004 forenza the timing belt idler went bad.. I went thru and replaced the idlers, tensioner, water pump and belt.... I matched up all the timing marks and buttoned it all back up.. After all this the car still won't start.. It back fired out of the throttle body once.. If anybody could give me any ideas on where to go from here to get it running again it would be greatly appreciated...

 

[7-even]

hi chikki66 welcome to the forum! ok first off dont keep trying to start the motor you might make things worse. there are a few things i can think of that could be possible problems. the first one that comes to mind is a problem in the head. the reno forenza have whats called an interference motor. this means that the pistons and valves run very close together and rely on the timing belt's timing to keep them from coming into contact with each other. if the timing belt or one of its components brakes there is a very good chance that a valve and piston will come into contact with each other causing damage. the car wont be able to start. the head needs to be inspected for damage. another th9ing that could have happened which is kind of the same thing when the pulley went the crank could have run past where its supposed to be or simply come out of timing with the camshafts(possibly damaging valves). you need to line the crank back up to top dead center and its timing marks in order for the motor to run. the problem is you cant move the crank. if you move the crank without the cams moving in unison to the correct timing via the timing belt youll have a piston come into contact with a valve causing damage and the motor wont run. if you keep trying to start the car you can make the damage much worse. simply put, your going to need to have the head looked at for damage then before putting everything back together place the crank at TDC and to the correct timing marks, set the cams to the correct timing marks then replace the head. that way everything is set where its supposed to be. if youve never done this kind of work before i strongly suggest having a mechanic do the job and evaluate the amount of possible damage. keep us updated. any other questions just ask!

 

[chikki66]

Thanks I have done this kind of work before... I was mostly curious before I tore into it more if its possible to be 180 degrees out of time cause I did notice the crank has to do 2 full revolutions to cams one revolution...

 

[7-even]

did a pulley brake and the belt come off? or was the pulley just making noise? if you just changed the pulley i guess you could be 180 out. let us know what you find out

 

[chikki66]

All the bearings fell out of the idler and it died... So I replaced the belt idlers and tensioner as well as the water pump... I did notice the intake side cam gear does rotate way more easily than the exhaust gear is that a bad sign or is that normal???

 

[7-even]

ok well you shouldnt be moving them at all lolol. if you try to move the camshafts you can force the valves into the piston and bend them. its easier than you think to do. what you can either do is put everything back together and try to start the car or, remove the head, check for damage, repair as needed, then put it all back together. i just typed this to someone in another thread lolol. if you need to adjust the crank i think what you need to do is remove the cams from the head first, then you can move the crank to TDC, then put the cams back in correct timing position. as for movement, how much are we talking? a little play or a half turn? theres supposed to be a little play so you can make slight adjustments to the cams for timing.

 

[joe86cool]

quick question

i have a quick question. my dads got an '06 suzuki reno, the idler pulley went out and someone tried to fix it, the car didnt start when they were "done". is the engine in the reno an interferance engine like the forenza your were talking about? could it be a bent valve like you mentioned in that post? any input will help, thank you.