How to Replace the Timing Chain in a 2005 Corolla

The timing chain on your Toyota Corolla is key to the entire engine turning with the help of the camshaft and crankshaft. Replacing a timing chain on any vehicle is a very risky task to do yourself. You need to ensure the engine maintains its proper timing balance. To do this, you need to keep the engine's No. 1 piston at the "top down center" or "TDC" position for the entire time that you work.

Instructions

Preparation

1

Disconnect the car's negative battery cable.

2

Rotate the drive belt tensioner clockwise with a wrench and slip the belt off its pulleys. Release the tensioner slowly.

3

Disconnect the alternator's electrical connectors. Unbolt and remove the alternator with a wrench.

4

Unbolt and remove the windshield washer reservoir with your wrench. Remove the engine cover and the valve cover below it.

5

Raise the front end onto jack stands and remove the right front wheel. Unbolt and remove the wheel well's splash shield.

6

Open the radiator's drain fitting -- use pliers if needed -- and drain the engine coolant into a large container. Use a 3/8-inch diameter hose on the fitting if one is not already installed.

7

Unbolt and remove the power steering pump from the engine while the coolant drains. Set the pump aside without disconnecting its lines.

8

Unplug and remove the spark plug from the No. 1 cylinder, using a spark plug socket and wrench. Install a compression gauge in the spark plug hole.

9

Connect a socket and breaker bar to the bolt at the front of the crankshaft and turn the crankshaft clockwise until the gauge reads pressure. Continue turning until the crankshaft damper notch lines up with "0" or "TDC" on the timing chain cover.

Removal

10

Remove the bolt on the crankshaft with the breaker bar. Remove the crankshaft pulley and vibration dampener with a puller that will bolt onto the pulley hub.

11

Raise the engine, using a floor jack and block of wood placed at the oil pan. Unbolt and remove the engine mount on the passenger side.

12

Unbolt and remove the drive belt tensioner, the engine mount's bracket and the crankshaft position sensor with its wiring harness, which are on the timing chain cover.

13

Unbolt and remove the water pump, taking note each of mounting bolt and its position.

14

Unbolt and remove the timing chain tensioner from the cover's rear side with your wrench. Unfasten and remove the timing chain cover. Take note of each fastener's location; one requires a Torx wrench.

15

Slide the gear-like ring that is with the crankshaft position sensor off the shaft and then unbolt and remove the timing chain's guide and pivot arm.

16

Lift the timing chain off the two upper camshaft sprockets and slip the lower crankshaft sprocket off the shaft with the timing chain.

Installation

17

Clean off all traces of gasket material from the timing chain cover and the engine matting surface, using a gasket scraper and acetone. Do the same for the matting surfaces for the water pump.

18

Loop the replacement chain onto the crankshaft sprocket, lining up the chain's colored No. 1 link with the sprocket's mark. Install the sprocket on the shaft with the chain.

19

Slip the chain within the guide and along the camshaft sprockets, making sure the other two colored links line up with the marks on the sprockets.

20

Remove all slack in the chain and install the chain guide and pivot arm for the tensioner, tightening its pivot bolt to 168 inch-pounds. Reconnect the gear-like reluctor ring with its "F" mark on the outside.

21

Run a bead of RTV sealant along the sealing surfaces of the timing chain cover and install the cover, connecting each individual bolt in its original location. Tighten the bolts in even increments to 120 inch-pounds for the 10mm heads and 168 inch-pounds for the 12mm heads.

22

Reinstall the water pump with a new O-ring and the engine mount bracket while the timing cover's RTV sealant is drying. Use sealant on the mount bracket's bolt threads.

23

Push the tensioner's plunger into the tensioner until it bottoms out and lock it in place with the hook. Lubricate the tensioner O-ring with engine oil and connect the tensioner to the chain cover with the hook facing upward.

24

Install the crankshaft pulley/vibration dampener with a vibration dampener tool. Rotate the engine clockwise until the tensioner releases its hook and extends, setting the chain's tension. Rotate the engine several turns and set the No. 1 piston back to TDC.

25

Reinstall the engine mount, the power steering pump, valve cover, engine cover, windshield washer reservoir, alternator and drive belt. Make sure the drive belt follows the same path along the pulleys as before. Reconnect the battery cable.

26

Reconnect the splash shield and lower the car off the jack stands.

27

Refill the engine coolant, using fresh coolant and water if the old coolant is dirty.