Oh-Oh's, I Think I Broke It!

[Surok]

Hope you get it sorted easily buddy.
hope it doesnt cost too much or cause too much heartache

[victorb]

Whenever the cel flashes, it's a misfire.

I thInk your belt slipped one or two inches that's why it caused misfires and cam timing abnormalities. Realign your crank pulley(usually there's an arrow pointing downwards pulley-block) and make sure to tighten your belt just right, I supposed you over tightened it as your tensioner was moving back and fourth pretty bad

[Dave-ROR]

Originally Posted by victorb

Whenever the cel flashes, it's a misfire.

I thInk your belt slipped one or two inches that's why it caused misfires and cam timing abnormalities. Realign your crank pulley(usually there's an arrow pointing downwards pulley-block) and make sure to tighten your belt just right, I supposed you over tightened it as your tensioner was moving back and fourth pretty bad

The cams are chain driven I'm guessing, driven off a gear on the crank. The serp belt isn't driving them for sure. The serp belt could not be installed at all and the car would start and run fine. The tensioner on these cars is always moving all over.

Napoleon, I got a code this weekend too. Car stumbled and picked up an ignition coil sec circuit fault. It cleared itself then came back later. Cleared itself again. All was normal before it happened?

[avp1]

Do not count on cheap solution. Probaby the engine has major damage now. Seems like ECU fired sparks at wrong time. Probably screwed up VVT control too. He best you can hope is crankshaft sensor failure. If if was not, get ready to pay for a new engine.

[Ingen]

Your car sounds like an air compressor

I hope you can find a solution, easy or not. I would hate to see an 86 bite the dust, or end up with some stupid swap.

Edit: Also, thank you for not asking us what you can do to milk the warranty over this. It takes integrity to admit that your actions could cause problems with the car, and I applaud ya doing it. That said, I hope it's only a flesh wound!

[victorb]

Originally Posted by Dave-ROR

The cams are chain driven I'm guessing, driven off a gear on the crank. The serp belt isn't driving them for sure. The serp belt could not be installed at all and the car would start and run fine. The tensioner on these cars is always moving all over.

Napoleon, I got a code this weekend too. Car stumbled and picked up an ignition coil sec circuit fault. It cleared itself then came back later. Cleared itself again. All was normal before it happened?

Let's wait for the diagnose. Yup it's chain driven, but the crank rotation IMO has a direct connection with timing. Changing / replacing a pulley is critical, it should be balanced, rounded and exactly the same diameter as oem. If not, there will be problems

Tensioner should not move violently like that. That's too much play.

[Chimpo]

Originally Posted by victorb

Let's wait for the diagnose. Yup it's chain driven, but the crank rotation IMO has a direct connection with timing. Changing / replacing a pulley is critical, it should be balanced, rounded and exactly the same diameter as oem. If not, there will be problems

Tentioner should not move violently like that. That's too much play.

Are you suggesting that a different size crank pulley will alter timing by changing the speed of the crank itself?

[victorb]

Might be. I am not sure. That's why I wouldn't touch the pulleys.

[Dave-ROR]

Originally Posted by victorb

Let's wait for the diagnose. Yup it's chain driven, but the crank rotation IMO has a direct connection with timing. Changing / replacing a pulley is critical, it should be balanced, rounded and exactly the same diameter as oem. If not, there will be problems

Tensioner should not move violently like that. That's too much play.

That's pretty much how the tensioner moves. There are threads on here about it, mine looks basically identical without the added motion from the OP's engine itself shaking around due to the misfire.

Yes, the cams have a direct connection with the crank rotation for timing. The crank pulley has a locating pin that, combined with the bolt, hold the pulley and the oil seal to the crank. The crank is rotating the pulley and the belt and the belt slipping isn't going to cause the timing chain (which has no direct connection to the serpentine belt) to move at all. You'd have to provide more force onto the pulley itself than the engine itself is producing to stop rotation enough to cause an issue like that.. the belt will shred before it gets anywhere close to that force.

I agree that a replacement crank pulley should be round and balanced, it can be a different size. The crank pulley is only a source of rotation to the accessories, not the crank/engine itself. (the crank itself is the source of rotation to the pulley)

[Dave-ROR]

Originally Posted by Chimpo

Are you suggesting that a different size crank pulley will alter timing by changing the speed of the crank itself?

If he is, he is incorrect.

[Chimpo]

Originally Posted by Dave-ROR

If he is, he is incorrect.

That's what I was suggesting.

[LeeMaster]

Originally Posted by victorb

Whenever the cel flashes, it's a misfire.

I thInk your belt slipped one or two inches that's why it caused misfires and cam timing abnormalities. Realign your crank pulley(usually there's an arrow pointing downwards pulley-block) and make sure to tighten your belt just right, I supposed you over tightened it as your tensioner was moving back and fourth pretty bad

+1

[xwd]

Those codes on the other models with AVCS are almost always due to oiling issues. If you received one of those codes on the turbo model it usually meant your turbo or engine was due to be replaced shortly thereafter...

On the turbo cars (and I believe on our engines as well) there are screens in the banjo bolts which are there to help filter out stuff, but in general they ended up getting clogged or collapsing which causes low oil pressure and starvation. Not saying it's the case here, but Subaru started removing the screens in some bolts but not all of them and it's been a source of issues for a long time now.

Some folks have had bad oil filters which clogged and caused low oil pressure and these codes. How long has it been since you changed the oil? Do you have an oil pressure gauge? I would consider it mandatory for doing track days. White smoke and bad noises you could have valve damage because the AVCS system wasn't actuating correctly due to inconsistent oil pressure. As much as I hate to say it I see an engine teardown in your future. Best case maybe something wrong in the AVCS system causing the cam to be in the wrong position and that's what is causing it to run poorly.

The crank pulley and serpentine belt have nothing to do with the cams.

[OrbitalEllipses]

Originally Posted by dwx

The crank and serpentine belt have nothing to do with the cams.

Exactly. This is a chain-driven interference engine, not belt driven.