I just put back everything after doing a Head gasket change, Lower timing cover (the tensioner bolt housing was stripped so replaced the lower cover). As i was doing this I needed to take the crankshaft bolt and pully off to access the lower cover. as i removed the bolt it spun everything on top cams. i lined the intake cam shaft using a 4mm and the same for the exhaust side.

the problem i have is that the pully on the bottom says 40 on the TDC part. I'm trying to line it up and spin the bolt and the crankshaft to tdc. In my car its the later version so the TDC is 20 after the .1 and there is not marking on it execpt on the lower cover..there is this marking that sticks out and thats where i have been reading the numbers.

for anyone out there that has a clue on this..... Does the crank stop spinning??? i turn it clockwise and it goes to past 50 and the numbers disappear. i turn counter clockwise..it goes to 40. but i cant seem to turn the crank clockwise past that blank numbers.


does anyone know if it should keep on spinning the crank clockwise?

i always seem to do this. does anyone know what might be holding it up?

thanks for the input guys.

if you can't turn the crank by hand, then the cams are out of time and the valves are hitting the pistons. good luck, chuck.

the cams on top spin freely, i can spin the whole thing without the chain on, and line up the 4mm holes so it goes tdc.

do you think i should turn them clockwise 90 degrees? or take out the whole top two cams?

Hard to follow exactly, but you're syaing you had the chain off the sprockets so the cams got out of time. Also now the crank won't spin completely.
if you have no idea where the timing is, I would remove the cams to unlift the valves before rotating the crank. Otherwise you could bend a valve due to interference.

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Prost!

You are on the money, the chain skipped tooth on the sprokets when i was un bolting the crank nut.

ok i'll give that a try tonight. ill remove the upper two cams and then set the crank...hopefully it will turn.

Are the spark plugs removed so that turning the crank is easier? You only want to turn clockwise btw.

These two threads may help on the timing:
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=147315
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=259766

Good luck.

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Prost!

Why don't you indicate TDC by observing movement of the number one piston. Either pull the head and dial it in or carefully use a tool like a thin screwdriver in the sparkplug hole (with the cams out as suggested) to watch when the piston stops coming up and then continuing rotation until it starts going down. In between those two points is TDC. That should get you to a point where you can make sense of the marks on the crankshaft pulley.

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88 300e
89 300e
93 400e
93 500e
77 308 GTB

I did this already...using the oil dipstick. and finding out the peak height in cylinder. but the timing marks on the bottom did not show TDC it read 40...which is way off. i re assembled everything again, tried to start it up and it only gave a crank for a second...then it didnt even want to spin as it kinda felt like a siezed engine not getting timing right.

also on this M104 there is a notch on the crank where you can only put the OEM pulley a certain way so that it reads TDC. strange thing is that the thing wont move clockwise past the 40...so something is holding it up from doing so...probably a valve... thus letting me think its going up but not actually going up at the 1st cylinder

If you've hit the starter with it in this condition you can all but guarantee a bent valve (s). The 104 valves are not very substantial and it won't take much to bend one. My guess at this point is that the damper is not installed correctly on the hub. Are all the bolts in the hub? IIRC there is one bolt that is offset preventing the damper from being installed incorrectly. If the damper is on right, the key may have gotten knocked out when the hub was installed. I've knocked a few into the pan myself, its not hard to do. Without the key the hub could end up anywhere.

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90 300TE 4-M
Turbo 103, T3/T04E 50 trim
T04B cover .60 AR
Stage 3 turbine .63 AR
A2W I/C, 40 LB/HR
MS2E, 60-2 Direct Coil Control
3" Exh, AEM W/B O2
Underdrive Alt. and P/S Pulleys,
Vented Rear Discs, .034 Booster.
3.07 diffs 1st Gear Start

90 300CE 104.980
Milled & ported head, 10.3:1 compression
197° intake cam w/20° advancer
Tuned CIS ECU
4° ignition advance
PCS TCM2000, built 722.6
600W networked suction fan
Sportline sway bars
V8 rear subframe, Quaife ATB 3.06 diff

duxthe1 makes a good point about the key. had a 300sl/m104 with a missing key that ended up in the oil pump, jamming it, breaking the op chain, which then broke the timing cover. a nice mess that had started when the timing cover was off at a dealer for work approx. 30k miles before. go slow. good luck, chuck.

Ok guys,

I took off the cams on top... what a pain to remove, i probably stripped every single one...even tapping them in before i loosened them up. Torx 40 was the key. then i removed the spark plugs.... Number two...was BENT!! CRUSHED!! these are brand new.... so i went under the car to move the crank.. it doesnt move clockwise...it just stops..

i know about the pin on the bottom of the crank. it was in there and before i put in the nut on the crank, you can see the pin in tack to the guide.

what to dooooo?

Take the head off. You need to confirm that there is no damage to the valves. Then, using a dial indicator, validate the position of the damper at TDC and confirm the key mentioned by others is securely in place. I know this is not what you want to do but if you cranked the engine - even if you did it by hand - and you encountered something that stopped the crank, you have put a piston and a valve into contact and as also mentioned, they are soft enough to bend under those conditions. If you cranked it with the starter motor, you can expect bent valves. This will cost you another head gasket and your time but you are already spending more time than necessary. Having the head off will give you the vantage point you need to be at to solve this.

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88 300e
89 300e
93 400e
93 500e
77 308 GTB

Clk500kid,
Did you resolve this problem? I am having similar problem with crankshaft getting stuck(will not rotate past 20 or 10 degree) after setting my dowel marks using 4mm drills and crank at BTDC of 30 deg. My car is m104, 1993, 300E, 3.2L I am afraid to crank it with ignition switch if I have pistons and valves interference. I don't want to destroy this engine.....it is in excellent condition when I changed head gasket. I wish there was somebody out there who could help with this issue because I have read everything and followed every advise I got from this forum but I can not seem to figure out how to get crank rotation without valve & piston interference. Could you update me if you have figured this problem? Thanks