camshaft trouble

[280zgod]

alright i ordered a stage 3 cam and wanted to put it in so im wondering do i need to take the whole engine out to swap cams? Also, ive gotten alot of it apart on the head but i cannot get the cam out of the head... the sprocket bolt will not loosen and every book ive looked at doesnt say or show a good way to loosen this bolt. they all just say loosen the sprocket bolt and remove the sprocket to remvoe the cam... but how do i remove the sprocket bolt????? anyone a pro at this and have a foolproof way of doing it? please help me ~Jerrod

[Zedrally]

Put the car in gear and use a long bar.

I think you have other issues to face before you take off the cam sprocket.

Do yourself a favour and do a search using the search function. Arm yourself with a FSM and familiarize yourself with the procedure, otherwise you will end up with the radiator and front cover plate off...

MOM

[Ed]

An impact wrench is probably the easiest way to remove that bolt. You can borrow a 1/2" electric one from Autozone if you don't have one. Another option is a wrench (preferably a 1/2" drive) and a 2lb hammer. Also I hope you are following the directions from a service manual to the letter. Although changing the cam isn't a difficult task you must insure that you do it correctly.

Are you using a block or wedge of some kind to hold the cam chain tensioner in place?

Did you make sure you set the #1 piston @ TDC on the compression stroke?

Also pay attention to where the groove on the camshaft sprocket line's up with the line on the cam shaft tower.

Good luck.

[JEFF]

Also watch the indents/dots on the chain that correspond with the ones on the cam sprocket and the crank gear.... But if you do the procdure that is in the FSM you will not need the marks on the chain at the crankshaft end .

- Jeff

[280zgod]

well got it all off the head is out and heading to machine shop city. is 400$ a good price for resurfacing, valve job, and port n polish, plus installing a stage 3 cam kit? but anyway got everything ready got the cam out and tried to pull the head off. nope. there were these two tiny bolts in the front like half hidden underneath the top lip of the head took me a while to see them man that was frustrating but its off so yay me. thanks guys you all helped alot.

~Jerrod

[280zgod]

well that was a whole waste of 900 dollars and three weekends of work. why would anyone make a car where you have to take the whole engine apart basically just to install a new camshaft? does that make sense or am i not seeing the beauty of the L series design anymore. I have about as much as i can stand. i try to do things myself i try to read through the manual and use its wisom and yours but the Z just does not want me to succeed in life. I'm afraid this cam business is leading me to putting the Z "down" cuz i'm screwed now. i was not aware you had to remove the radiator, fan, pulleys, distributor, oil pump, timing plate, cam chain, chain tensioner, head, sprocket, and cam just to install a new cam. why is the cam even on top if you have to remove the whole bottom end to do anything with it? is it some form of japanese mind tricks or something? the manual said if all you were doing was removing the head that you just needed to hold the chain somehow to keep its tensiopn while you got the valves fixed and stuff then put the head back and be on your way but no. it isnt that easy. so yes if anyone might be interested in buying a freshly valve jobbed, resurfaced, straightened n42 head with a stage 3 cam kit also freshly installed in it by a professionl machine shop not me, we just might be able to work something out. cuz i aint paying a mechanic no 1200 dollars to make this work and i aint taking the 20 hours of labor and posiibly(knowing how nissan is) 100's more dollars to fix it myself. because right now i have no time or money left for that. ive been pushing my beat up 720 these past few weeks trying to fix my car so i could drive it again and fix the 720 but now that isnt happening. looks like both nissans will fall into the abyss in a few weeks. oh well. things like this just seem to happen to me alot. guess im dealing with it haha. anyways just felt like venting cuz im too pissed after these past 40 hours of rediculousness and dealing with machine shops and discontinued or hard to find nissan parts that were all for nothing, not to mention all the money those things leached from me. alright the vent is finished. sorry everbody dont take too much i said as truth cuz i know in a week ill be back asking you how to fix my Z. so until then let the venting continue in the form of road rage in the 720 bahaha....(its been one long rediculous week ) :dead:

[sblake01]

Well, I know you don't want to hear it, but the cam can be removed without doing all of that. None of that stuff i.e. oil pump, fan, dist, timing plate, chain, would have to be removed.

[Ed]

Stephen is right. You don't have to remove that stuff unless you forget to use something to hold the cam chain tensioner in place. If you do forget or it still pops out THEN your screwed. Then you have to remove the radiator, oil pump, dist, sway bar, and front cover. Been there done that :stupid: . One word of advice when you put it back together make sure you have the crank and cam allignment exact. One tooth off and you will be doing it all over. Also make sure you have the distruibutor shaft alligned properly one tooth off on that and you will be pulling the front cover off AGAIN. Been there done that. Some of us just learn the hard way.

[280zgod]

i began removing stuff today i almost have the radiator out and i dont even know how to remove the dizzy and stuff but i guess ill find out somehow. but i have to head back out to college tonight so the z is going to be chiiling at home in the garage for at least another week til i can touch it again. its gonna take me a few months i bet to do this but oh well next time ill just need to make sure that i pull the chain almost tighter then it should be once i remove the sprocket.... do i really have to remove the sway bar to do this?

~jerrod

[sblake01]

If you're just pulling the cam, the 'dizzy' (I hate that term for a distributor) stays in. Use a chain wedge on the cam chain before you remove the bolt and pulley. If you use the mark on the pulley as a guide you wont have to mess with the dist., oil pump, or any of that madness. Talk to some people that have done it before you start tearing things apart. It's not a job for a beginner. Could get frustrating and costly.

[Zedrally]

I'll chip in wuth my 2c,

I use heater hose jammed in to secure the cam chain, if you don't secure the chain then it will become a 20 hour job rather than 2!

Firstly set the motor up so #1 cylinder is at TDC on the ignition stroke . ie at the end of compression prior to firing, the secure the chain, remove the sproket etc, installation is the opposite.

This should be a 2 hour job, with experiance.

[sblake01]

...its gonna take me a few months i bet to do this...

This should be a 2 hour job, with experience.

Like I said, seek help or it could get frustrating and costly.