1996 Caravan - 3.0L Timing belt replacement

I was recently driving our 1996 Dodge Caravan with a 3.0L engine and when I was turning a corner the van died and stopped running. Earlier that day my wife had told me she smelled something funny but I didn?t have time that morning to check it. Once I diagnosed that is was a bad timing belt I found out that the smell was the timing belt rubbing/burning through the belt covers.

So after I replaced the timing belt and got everything back together, I started the van only to hear a repetitive "tick-tick" sound from the engine, lifters, valve train, or something of that nature, accompanied by white smoke at the exhaust. But wait, thats not all. There is also, what sounds like a growling sound, almost like something is loose somewhere (it?s really undescribable). And once the engine warms up, I can hear and feel a "tick-tick" at the duty cycle purge control valve of the EVAP system. The duty cycle purge control valve is turned on by the PCM only when the vehicle has warmed up. It has something to do with controlling/recycling the fuel vapors through the system.

When I replaced the timing belt, it was shredded, so I had to match my timing marks up manually. I know that for every one revolution of the camshaft sprockets, there are two corresponding revolutions of the crankshaft sprocket.

What if a person were to have the crankshaft sprocket 360 degrees off, to where the camshaft was at 180 degrees when it should be at 360 degrees? Or what if one camshaft sprocket is off, etc?

1) Would the van even start if this is the case? 2) Is my engine not burning the fuel correctly, if so, could this explain the duty cycle purge control valve making the ticking sound? 3) Have I bent a valve, is my timing off, etc?

I?m about to pull it back apart, so any help would be much appreciated.

Thanks Mikelb5

Reply to
mikelb5
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Did you replace the water pump and timing belt tensioner? It's rare that a shredded T-belt -doesn't- tear up the other rotating components.

Lining up the timing marks is the only way I've ever done them. Don't know what else you were expecting. The 3.0 does NOT time off of #1 cylinder if in case you went according to distributor position. Even a bad service manual should have shown the correct timing marks.

Nothing

How many bubbles are in a bar of soap?

The purge solenoids do make noise, it is completely normal. You're just first noticing because you're grasping for an answer.

The 3.0 is not a valve bender. Only you can see if the valve timing is off. Line up the marks on the sprockets.

New water pump, new tensioner and make absolutely certain she didn't overheat the thing and blow a head gasket.

Reply to
aarcuda69062

If you hadn't told me the whole timing belt ordeal and possibly that growling sound, I'd say you've got a blown head gasket. My 92 with the 3.0 blew its head gasket a few years ago. When it did, I was starting, it half-tried to start then like the engine jammed (can't recall if there was a noise or not). Hit the starter again and it started up running rough. Gave it a little gas and it finally smoothed out, but was ticking/missing and blowing white smoke.

While they were in doing all this work, they went ahead and put on a new timing belt, as well as a timing belt tensioner. It had been squealing/whining like a noisy belt on and off for quite some time, after that it was quiet as a mouse. Maybe your timing belt tensioner got messed up when the belt went out?

Wesley

Reply to
Wesley
360 degrees "out" ??

Seems like that would be right back where you started.

Reply to
me!

I had a 3.0 Caravan (w/ overdrive) that was always a dog. It would get 23 mpg but literally wouldn't spin the tires on loose gravel. I had a reputable technician at a local shop tell me that an incorrectly installed timing belt (i.e. one cam slightly late) would cause it to be underpowered while still getting the expected fuel economy, FWIW. I never checked for that as it wasn't a big enough deal to me, but I'd had a similar one before that and it had twice the power.

Reply to
James Goforth

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