Locking camshaft on bank 1 996

[Dan C]

I am trying to lock the camshaft using the LN Engineering tools.  On the LN pdf showing the ims replacement procedure, it shows locking the camshaft by locking only the bottom camshaft (lower green plug on bank 1).  On rennlist, I was told that for the 3 chain engine (which mine is) you are supposed to lock the top and bottom.  There is a double sided tool in the ims pro tool kit but the blades which insert into the slots are wider than the single sided tool and one of the blades is shorter.  I can't get this tool to insert into both slots (top and bottom).  The engine is in the car so its really hard to see.  To me this double blade tool doesn't seem to fit into the slots.  

Do you really need to use this double sided tool to lock the top and bottom or do I just use the single sided tool?  The single sided tool fits nicely in the bottom slot and I can definitely tell it is engaged.

[JFP in PA]

2 hours ago, Dan C said:

I am trying to lock the camshaft using the LN Engineering tools.  On the LN pdf showing the ims replacement procedure, it shows locking the camshaft by locking only the bottom camshaft (lower green plug on bank 1).  On rennlist, I was told that for the 3 chain engine (which mine is) you are supposed to lock the top and bottom.  There is a double sided tool in the ims pro tool kit but the blades which insert into the slots are wider than the single sided tool and one of the blades is shorter.  I can't get this tool to insert into both slots (top and bottom).  The engine is in the car so its really hard to see.  To me this double blade tool doesn't seem to fit into the slots.  

Do you really need to use this double sided tool to lock the top and bottom or do I just use the single sided tool?  The single sided tool fits nicely in the bottom slot and I can definitely tell it is engaged.

 

If you have a three chain motor, you should be using the correct long cam locking tool, which has a cam tab at both ends:

 

 

If you cannot get the tool inserted, try rotating the engine (clockwise only, by hand) and see if it fits then.  You may have the engine 180 degrees off.

[Dan C]

Thanks for the confirmation.  I ended up moving the crank slightly from TDC, locking the cams with the double sided tool, then locking the pin in TDC.  It was just off enough that it was difficult to get into the slots combined with the extremely limited access to the top plug with the engine in the car.

 

I was doing this to remove bank 1 tensioner as it had a slow leak.  I couldn't see a crush washer on the bolt and sure enough when I took the tensioner out, someone forgot to put the crush washer on.  Why they took the tensioner out in the first place, who knows.  

 

Took it out for a test drive only to find the clutch starting to slip!  Haven't driven it much to diagnose further but it seems really early to have the clutch slipping at 70K miles.  I've driven it less than half of those miles so maybe a prior owner was not very efficient at manual transmissions.  Anyway, looks like a clutch and a new version of IMS may be in my future soon.