Hey there,

I am finishing up installing new Timing Chains and Guides on my 2001 Jaguar XJR and have a question on a bit of weirdness in regards to slack when the Cam lock for the Right Hand side is removed.

When the right Cam lock is removed, it introduces a decent amount of slack into the secondary chain, however when the Left Hand Cam lock is removed, it behaves as expected, so no problems there. Currently I have both Cam locks, as well as the Crank lock in place; but a bit puzzled why the Right Hand Secondary Chain is behaving this way.

To better help illustrate, here's a quick video:


Any help would be appreciated, thank you!

 

Normal. As I recall it's due to rotation of engine and cam position

 

Hugely helpful! I planned on cranking for 60 seconds to build Oil Pressure then let it smooth out; so I expect it to run pretty rough for a few minutes. Just wanted to make sure that it didn't have the opportunity to skip a tooth or something.

 

Eh, i wouldnt bother with the extended cranking. The new primary tensioners have the ratchet mechanism and the secondaries should have pressure almost instantly. The timing is basically idiot proof so you likely have it right.

Turn that sucker on.

 

Just a bit of elaboration to Quad's brief but correct reply, With the engine stopped, the valve springs are still pushing on the cam lobes, causing them to rotate, in some instances in opposite or the same directions depending at what point in the 4-stroke cycle they are stopped. The tensioners require oil pressure to do their job. First start up will fill them with oil very quickly and it should be fine. If the engine hasn't been started in a long time, then it could stumble a bit and give you the low oil pressure light for a second or two as it sort of gains speed, refills the system and builds pressure. Just let it do its thing and resist any temptation to race the engine right away.

 

I had the same question when I did them for the first time. Everything on the LH side was nice and tight, but RH side was a bit loose with tools in place. I was a bit nervous to start the car but it ran great, no issues. Go ahead and start her up.