cambelt question

[AUDI COUPE 20V]

i had replaced the my cambelt on my 7a and when i start it seems to start instantly and idles better could the timing had been out before? even if the timing was out should the car as i know how crucial the timing has to be ?

[Dave cook]

All three timing marks should be aligned, cam pulley, crank pulley, flywheel mark.
If all of these are aligned your engine is timed up

http://s2central.net/temp/timingbelt.html

[AUDI COUPE 20V]

all were algined and car runs but seems to start and idle better than before the cambelt was done?

[Dave cook]

The timing should be spot on then

[mcandmar]

I think it is possible to have the cam gear off a tooth and still run, not great mind you.

The timing belt is hard to tension correctly on the 7A, if it’s loose you can get valve train lash and that will in turn create some ignition scatter. Think sloppy belts and how the cam loads and unloads the belt as it rotates. If the belts loose you can usually hear it, the distributor gear can rattle too.

That was one problem i had with my car when i bought it, after changing the belt and making sure its tight the car idled smooth, and all the valve gear noises went away too.

God knows who thought a water pump was a good tensioning solution, probably the same idiot who though Hitachi Injectors was a good idea