Help with Camshaft Pulley

Ritch M · Post by **Ritch M** » Mon Aug 13, 2007 9:18 am

My brother and I are trying to remove the camshaft puuley (hamronic balancer) from my 02 neon sxt. we actually broke and gear puller bolt in half, anyu advice on how to get the darn thing off. We've already tried to tap the puller bolt with a hammer - no dice????????

gilly02le · Post by **gilly02le** » Mon Aug 13, 2007 11:09 am

camshaft pulley = cam pulley... crank pulley = harmonic balancer...

Ritch M · Post by **Ritch M** » Mon Aug 13, 2007 11:21 am

cryptic reply what exactly are you saying? we are trying to remove this pulley to get to the bolts that hold on the timing belt cover, then reove/replace the timing belt and water pump, we are also going to remove the head and take it to a local shop for milling/inspection.

gilly02le · Post by **gilly02le** » Mon Aug 13, 2007 11:28 am

ahh ok.. cam pulley. well you will need a special tool to remove that pulley, i would pm someone who has an aftermarket cam gear on here.. and ask em how they managed it, and if they have any tips for ya!

all_motor_mike · Post by **all_motor_mike** » Mon Aug 13, 2007 12:15 pm

sounds like crank pulley to me............. rent the "chrysler harmonic balancer puller" from auto zone........... remove the pulley with it......... a torch may help a little, and then take it back to autozone and get ur money back. if indeed u are talking about the crank pelley of course.

Ritch M · Post by **Ritch M** » Mon Aug 13, 2007 1:02 pm

got it done, we got a pulley from advance auto parts, it bent, took it back, went to farm supply and found some heavy duty ones, one was too big , the other we snapped in half, went back, got the big one, modified it top fit, used the dogbone as a brace for the center and used impact hammer, got it off, head's off and in the bed of the truck on our way to the shop for milling and inspection...... we will hopefully get it back tomorrow and install new water pump, timing belt and head gasket kit. just hope we don't have parts leftover or run out of parts putting it together......

aperson · Post by **aperson** » Mon Aug 13, 2007 3:44 pm

Just remember that running out is better than having extra.

Ritch M · Post by **Ritch M** » Mon Aug 13, 2007 9:16 pm

went to the shop to pickup the head - it was warped - it was off by about 10000 - milled - compression test checksout. tomorrow we will hopefully, reinstall head with new head gasket kit, install new water pump and drivebelt, hook and fill everything back up and pray that A: It Starts and B: It Runs Without Overheating Anymore.

yellowpatrol · Post by **yellowpatrol** » Thu Aug 16, 2007 3:52 pm

That suuuuucks. How much did they charge you?

Ritch M · Post by **Ritch M** » Thu Aug 16, 2007 10:20 pm

50 bucks for both the planing and the compression - bad news is we had that done, put it all back together - no dice, so last night we did a new radiator install - worse news - its still friggin overheating......my hopes and dreams are crushed. I now owe payments on a $5000 POS!

BlackRoseRacing · Post by **BlackRoseRacing** » Fri Aug 17, 2007 6:08 am

you did change the thermostat right?

Post by **occasional demons** » Fri Aug 17, 2007 7:34 am

If you replaced the thermostat was it aftermarket? Did it have an air bleed hole? If not remove the t'stat and drill a hole in it. I'd go at least 3/16" this is overkill, but it will tell you if trapped air or the t'stat is the problem. If it runs cool to normal temp., then go to the dealer and put the right one in. The factory ones have an air bleed. Unfortunately there is no other way to get trapped air out of the head, unless you loosen the temp sender till fluid comes out, or run it till the stat opens - which will almost always result in boil over.

Ritch M · Post by **Ritch M** » Fri Aug 17, 2007 9:18 am

yes we did change the tstat, it was a lower temp one and i dont remember if it had a air bleed hole.

i want to include the following info conditions when it runs too warm/hot:

only overheats with the ac on

it tends to happen when engine runs at 2500-3000 rpms for an extended time.

there is also a significant loss of power when it overheats (say going up a steep hill)