camshaft cog

hi i have been trying to set the timing on my m40 engine but the cog that bolts to the camshaft spins without turning the camshaft itself, as i purchased the car with half the motor missing i am wondering if i am missing a part that locks the cam shaft and cog together as the bolt that goes through the centre doesn't seem to be enough

if anyone has any pointers or pics i would appreciate the advice

thanks



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/01/2014 11:42PM by slim636.

Hi Slim!
Feel free to drop by the "community forum" and present yourself and your car, if you want.

Do you have the shop manual of your car, like the Haynes, Bentley, RTA or equivalent? It is very usefull, if not an indispensable tool to carry out such a job.

I believe the m40 is similar in the BMW e36, perhaps that manual works in your case, in case you can't get the correct one.
Do you have any pictures of the car?

I personally never had an M40 engine, and I can't be of much help.
Good luck!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/02/2014 09:14AM by Jose Pinto.

As far as I can remember, there were never any useful workshop manuals for the M40. I had one, but I never did the camshaft
work on it myself. According to the mechanics I used, it was easy to work on, but a rather flawed design when it comes to
camshaft, belt and tappets.

my car is an e36 but I'm just hoping to get as much information as possible

It seems there's no woodruff key is needed, therefore, are you sure you're using the correct bolt with the correct torque?

Something is wrong, there is no woodruf key as such, there is a slot machined into the camshaft and the "key" is machined in as part of the timing gear.





Can be seen better here.



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E30'S AREN'T BUILT, THEY'RE CAUGHT IN THE WILD!!!



When in doubt, use full throttle,
it may not improve the situation, but it will end the suspence.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/21/2015 12:48AM by Flyboy.

There has to be a key to keep the gear and cam properly related. If the gear had become loose it could wear the key away and allow the gear to become loose. I friend had that happen to his M20 motor on the gear on the crank. The key was worn nearly through and the timing was so far off that the valves were all touching the pistons.

Bob in Lake Havasu