Reconditioned head & cam chain replacement project

JDR

New Member
Hi all,

It has been many years since I got my hands dirty (besides the odd oil change and brake replacements etc.). I have a 2013 Lancer which I have just had the head reconditioned and will be replacing the cam chain, tensioner and guides.

The car is a:
  • MITSUBISHI LANCER CJ 2.0L 4B11 MIVEC DOHC 16v MPFI 4cyl 5sp Man 4dr Sedan FWD [2013]
I have a couple of initial questions and as the job progresses I'm sure I will have more.

Question 1) I got the attached from a document called "Mitsubishi Lancer CJ 2007-2011 Service Manual". Given mine is a 2013 will this be the correct one to use. I have not found another that seems to be for my year. My main concern are the head bolt torque settings.

Question 2) The manual recommends the sealant for the timing cover as Three bond 1227D, 1217G, LOCTITE 5970, 5971, 5900 or equivalent. Will Permatex - Ultra Grey be a suitable equivalent?

Thanks in advance.

Jonno
 

Attachments

  • GR00003100-11A ENGINE MECHANICAL.pdf
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G'day,

Im not certain on 1), but i have found Ultra Grey to be a great one-size-fits-all for sealing. Just made sure the surfaces are bloody clean from oils, and let it cure properly and according to instruction, and it should be fine
 
Thanks @donki,

I have another question. In the head install step the attached are the instructions for the 2 bolts on the timing case side. The first instruction is that the washers are removed - I assume they don't mean completely removed, but then inserted with its sag facing up?- what the heck is the washer sag?

EDIT:

The plot thickens. I had a look at the new replacement head bolts. They all had washers on them that could not be removed except 2 bolts had no washers. I had a look at the old head bolts that came out when I took the head off and they all have washers on them that cannot be removed except 2 bolts which do have washers that can slide off over the threads.

So I am now a bit confused. 2 of the new head bolts don't come with washers. All the old head bolts all have washers with 2 of the bolts having washers that can come off. So do I take the washers that can be removed off the old head bolts and put them on the 2 new head bolts that don't have any washers?

Your feedback most appreciated.

Thanks,

Jonno
 

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OK, I think I will remove the washers from the old head bolts - the ones from the timing case side and place them onto the 2 new bolts that do not have have the washers. Still buggered if I can work out what the 'sag' is though. I'll just copy the orientation of the other washers and I think I will be right. :)
 
So the head bolts wont be sold with washers, you can get them separately. The “sag” is the bolt head side - ie keep the side of the washer that was on the head on the head and the side that was on the bolt on the bolt. Don’t flip them upside down.

If some of the washers are captive, you’ll definitely need new ones for your new bolts.

I dont know why theyre not sold together, but it’s common place in the industry - maybe they just hate us
 
Oh and in answer to your first question, yes. Any RTV will suit, just follow the instructions as Donki said.
 
So the head bolts wont be sold with washers, you can get them separately. The “sag” is the bolt head side - ie keep the side of the washer that was on the head on the head and the side that was on the bolt on the bolt. Don’t flip them upside down.

If some of the washers are captive, you’ll definitely need new ones for your new bolts.

I dont know why theyre not sold together, but it’s common place in the industry - maybe they just hate us
Thanks @SDate42
All the new bolts bar 2 have washers (captive). The 2 that don't have washers I can get off the original bolts that were used in the same place - that should be OK?

Cheers,

Jonno
 
Question about grade of sandpaper to sand the crankshaft face where the new front main oil seal will go - what is the best grade for this?

Thanks,

Jonno
 
A question about cam shaft bolt tightening.

In the attached image it shows the torque setting as being 17nm to 30nm. Can this be correct? the bigger number is almost twice the size of the smaller tension. On all other bolts it does not give a range, it just says xxnm plus minus yy.

Any ideas what tension I should be setting those front bolts?

EDIT: Found some further info that says the first torque is the initial torque and the second is the final value.

Thnaks,

Jonno
 

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Thanks @SDate42
All the new bolts bar 2 have washers (captive). The 2 that don't have washers I can get off the original bolts that were used in the same place - that should be OK?

Cheers,

Jonno
Yeah re-use the washers and keep them the same way up.

With the sandpaper, use the finest possible. If you have no blemishes or indentation you can feel with your finger anything 600+ will be fine for a light pass. I often use scotch bright, as its even less harsh.

And finally, youre on the money. Initial torque followed by final. You must do all cam caps to the first before doing any to the final. Note also with cam caps you’d do them up evenly the whole way down where possible. I’m sure you know, but you run the risk of bending the cam if not brought down evenly.
 
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Hi all,

OK. The head back from the engineers and it looks all shiny and new again.

I got a head gasket made by a company called Ajusa, a Spanish company I believe.

The head gasket came with an enclosed pamphlet that set out the torque sequence and torque amounts. The amounts are stipulated in Kpm, although the 'p' looks more like an 'a' flipped left to right. That said I think Kpm is Kilopond-meter.

The instructions on the Ajusa head gasket pamphlet are as follows (steps 1 - 6):

1) 4Kpm (converted to Nm, equal to 39.22Nm)
2) 8Kpm (converted to Nm, equal to 78.45Nm)
3) -180 Degrees
4) 2Kpm (converted to Nm, equal to 19.61Nm)
5) 90 Degrees
6) 90 Degrees

Looking at the Mitsubishi manual the instructions are as follows (steps 1 - 3):

1) 35Nm
2) 90 Degrees
3) 90 Degrees

So I am a bit confused as to what the correct operation is. 8Kpm is nearly 80Nm which is 45Nm more than the max Mitsubishi recommended torque.

Any input will be most appreciated.

Cheers,

Jonno
 
Hey mate, use the mitsu specs! AJUSA is the same brand I used on my pajero heads. Their torque pamphlets are confusing at the best of times. They likely mean to acheive the same torque through a few different possible options rather than following them all.

Stick to the mitsu stuff and you’ll have no dramas.
 
Hey mate, use the mitsu specs! AJUSA is the same brand I used on my pajero heads. Their torque pamphlets are confusing at the best of times. They likely mean to acheive the same torque through a few different possible options rather than following them all.

Stick to the mitsu stuff and you’ll have no dramas.
Thanks @SDate42
 
Hi all,

Cam Chain Issue

I am obviously missing something here. I am now up to fitting the new cam chain, guides and tensioner. I lined up the marks of the cam gears and crank gear as per the manual, but when I had a look at the right hand side of the chain, the intake side there is a huge amount of slack. The new cam chain and old cam chain ate the same length. I was expecting the slack to be zero on the right hand side as the left hand side will have the slack taken up with the tensioner.

Would I rotate the crank shaft in a clock wise direction to take up the slack on the right hand side of the chain? (keeping the mating marks on the gears aligned with the colored marker link plates) That is the only thing I can think of. Your feedback most appreciated.

Some pics attached.

Cheers,

Jonno.
 

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You need to make sure the cams are both in the right spot. There should be marks on both of them that point at each other. I would guess if your slack is on the non tensioner side that the cams have turned in that direction.

Use some spanners on the cams and a second person if required to get them lined up.

Also have you had the cam gears off? They’re a VVT unit which rotates relatively with oil pressure. If theyre like every other VVT cam gear, you can actually bolt them down in any spot which would render your chain markings useless.
 
Thanks @SDate42. I landed up taking off the chain, realigning the gears and assembled everything again and this time all was well!

Cheers,

Jonno
 
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