I have done this repair on my 95 Nissan 4x4. It was pretty straight forward. Just follow James' videos and instructions carefully and you're good to go! I must say there is not another company or gentlemen who provides service like James. He was quick to respond to all of my questions and genuinely cares about his customers success. Pretty rare these days. Thank you James!
I recently purchased and installed the self adjusting ratchet tensioner shown in the video, and wow, what a difference in my truck's acceleration in 1st and 2nd gears, as well as no start-up chain slap. My 1995 Nissan truck has over 300,000 miles, and when I removed the valve cover and looked down on the chain I noticed my driver's side chain guide was gone. When I removed the oil pan I found all the pieces. drilling the access hole to remove the tensioner was not as difficult as I thought it would be, and saved many hours of parts removal. I too used a rubber expansion plug to close off the hole once I installed the tensioner. Jim was extremely helpful, sending me torque specifications and photos from the Nissan dealer repair manual, and of course, fabricating the tensioner part. Many thanks to Jim, and if you have a Nissan with timing issues, broken guides, chain slap, etc. this is the best fix I have found for those issues.
Thank You Bill for the comment. Hope you get many more trouble free miles out your rig. I hear several people have gotten up to 500,000 miles and they are still running smooth. My rig as well has more acceleration in 1st and 2nd gears now, & less down shifting going up hills. You will also notice an increase in fuel mileage.
I own a 1997 Nissan truck with that horrible start up sound. Went searching for a solution and found the MrJim series videos on this exact problem. After further investigation and a watch all of his videos, I came to conclusion that I needed this ratcheting timing chain tensioner. Ordered it, installed it and WOW! Talk about a HUGE difference! Not only did the start up sound go away, but the truck actually felt like new again. Throttle response was snappier, MPG improved 2-3 miles per gallon and the overall feel of the motor at idle was smoother. If you have any kind of start up rattle, save yourself a headache and replace the tensioner with his. I promise you will not regret it and that hideous sound will never return.
Fantastic, betweeen the 3 videos 15, 16, 17 i was able to do this job. Starts and sounds better now, and runs way better. Couldnt have done it without these videos, and Mr1jims fantastic responsive emails with so much detail, it was like he was in the room helping! Definitley reccomend doing this if you have any start up/driving rattle. My 1992 hardbody pickup does not have AC /AC condensor so i just took the rad, fan and the grill out and had tons of space to use my full size drill, and be 100% confident on the hole location by seeing it straight on from the front. Take your time, watch these videos multiple times and refer back while doing the job and its very simple. I also highly recomend the rachet tensioner that Mr1jim Sells and shows. Its defintley the best option and absolutley worth the extra little bit of work. I was surprised, once I started and pulled a couple things out of my way, at how simple the whole thing was, provided you are very cautious not to let the chain slack. Have a few sizes of bunjee cords at the ready before removing the cam bolt. You're the MAN Jim!
There is no access panel in the front of either the KA or the Z motors in the Hardbody trucks. He has cut a hole into the timing cover and is using an expansion plug to seal the hole. The plug is used as a band-aid fix when a cooling system freeze plug has come loose or been removed. This is not a bad idea but an oil change and come serious cleaning of the front of the motor internals is highly recommended. The tensioner change is not a bad idea, however, I've ran mine for 20 plus years with the same rattle at startup with zero issues and no damage to the timing cover. I have had to replace my timing chain guides one time. But that is typical with this motor over 250,000 miles. Also, taking the timing cover off to replace the timing components only takes a few hours more. I believe that I did mine on a Z24 in 6 or 7 hours without cutting a hole in the timing cover.
Did I miss how the access panel got there? I've never seen or heard of an access panel there, but it's a great idea. Do you have a video on that process? Can the same technique be used on different models, or just the 97? It seems like Nissan would have discovered and remedied the tensioner problem way before it became an afterthought. I like and appreciate your videos.
Should come out good for you. I have a couple videos on how to provide a tensioner access hole in the front cover. You may want to consider modifying the front cover by installing an access hole to re-set the adjustable tensioner if needed. If you ever pull the cam sprocket off in the future, the chain will go slack and the self adjusting ratchet tensioner will ratchet all the way out. It can be difficult to reach down to reset the tensioner piston without removing the front cover, an access hole in the front cover will make re-setting the tensioner piston easier.
Not sure why not able to reply on your 1st question on the other video. Answer to your question on other video "is this an engine out job?" No, the access hole can be cut with engine in a D21, it can be done with the radiator left in, can take as little as 2 hours complete including installing a new tensioner.
Mr1Jim, Is there no way to access those tensioner bolts with any kind of tool at all from the top? Now that would save me a whole lot of time! Did you make the access whole for convenience sake or is it a necessity? Keep in mind that I have a Stanza and it's crooked-ways... :)
Steve, Yes, its possible to access the tensioner bolts and loosen them with a box end wrench. The fastener heads contact the timing chain cover before they completely free themselves of the threads in the engine block. So, I came up with an alternative, which was to provide an access hole. A lot of other engines have access holes for the tensioners,. Would have been nice if Nissan would have provided one on the KA24E as well.
@@jamesmartin5370 the whole reason I asked you if he could do it that way is because I will have to pull my motor out in order to drill holes in it that's why I said it would save me a lot of time if I could leave it in. Remember it's a Stanza not a Truck...
I moved the camshaft without the timing chain almost like how you have your camshaft position at 7:33, do you believe I may have bent the valves? or maybe just tapped them?
When rotating camshaft without chain attached, its possible to have a valve make contact with a piston. However, if a valve would have contacted a piston, you would have felt an immediate resistance. If you didn't feel any resistance or force things you should be in good shape. You'll need to manually return the camshaft to its original position for valve timing to be correct with crank shaft.
@@jamesmartin5370 Thanks for the reply and I felt like I didn't force anything just wanted to get a peace of mind. I'm on top dead center on camshaft and crank. Time to put everything together and hope for the best.
I had a mechanic replace my timing chain with a whole new kit with oil pump water pump tensioner and guides. I still have rattle I took it back and he is saying maybe installed wrong or the tensioner is bad. Is that right?
Rebuilt engines that have had head and block milled start off with more chain slack and higher chances of early start up rattle. What happens is milling ends up causing the cam sprocket to be lowered amount that was milled off, so when head is bolted to block the cam sprocket ends up being lowered and this will increase amount of excess chain slack.
I have run into multiple people who have installed multiple timing chain kits to get rid of this start up rattle. After the first new kit they thought they had a bad kit so installed another new kit and still had the rattle so chances are another tensioner or another kit may not help. I would say you would have better luck limiting the hydraulic tensioner piston travel either with a self adjusting ratchet tensioner, Tensioner Spacer or adjustable piston. Best option I have seen is the Self Adjusting Tensioner, My rig was always low on power when taking off from a stop but has lots of low rpm power now with the self adjusting tensioner.
I don't believe it has had any milling done. I believe they may have just installed it wrong since when I got it back the first day after the new timing chain was installed it was also off by 10degress on the timing. Barely ran.
If not familiar with installing oil pump in these KA24E engines its common to have timing issues. Oil pump shaft drives the distributor by way of a distributor drive shaft that slides into the end of oil pump shaft that needs to be clocked correctly while oil pump is being installed. If oil pump shaft is clocked incorrectly the distributor drive shaft will be off, when this happens, there isn't enough swing adjustment on the distributor housing to be able to get engine in time. If its the oil pump clocking that is causing the timing issue, the fix would be to remove distributor, then remove oil pump and re-clock and install. On oil pump housing near where the distributor drive shaft slides into it, theres an oil hole drilled through the casting, this is an index hole that indexes with a timing punch mark on distributor spindle. When installing oil pump the hole and punch mark need to be indexed, while installing the oil pump. If timing issue is because timing chain is off a tooth they may need to pull valve cover and correct by advancing or retarding the cam sprocket amount needed. If you have timing chain start up rattle, correcting the timing may not solve the chain noise. Let me know how it all turns out.
@@fivestarhemi2877 I see it. Its the original water pump on engine, its not been touched there. The slice milled into the water pump housing has a chromate plated locking clip inserted in it. The locking clip must be holding a seal or bearing in place. I see the aftermarket pumps don't have this design feature in them. Wonder if it doubles for the weep hole? I believe the slice is something the engineers designed into this pump required to hold an internal part. Good eye. Thanks
![[UNCUT]"ทนายตั้ม" แฉยับ! ความลับสวรรค์ ใครคือ "บิ๊กเทวดา" ของบอสพอล l คนดังนั่งเคลียร์ l 15 ต.ค. 67](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/ru9fpSaUwdA/mqdefault.jpg)
I have done this repair on my 95 Nissan 4x4. It was pretty straight forward. Just follow James' videos and instructions carefully and you're good to go! I must say there is not another company or gentlemen who provides service like James. He was quick to respond to all of my questions and genuinely cares about his customers success. Pretty rare these days. Thank you James!
I recently purchased and installed the self adjusting ratchet tensioner shown in the video, and wow, what a difference in my truck's acceleration in 1st and 2nd gears, as well as no start-up chain slap. My 1995 Nissan truck has over 300,000 miles, and when I removed the valve cover and looked down on the chain I noticed my driver's side chain guide was gone. When I removed the oil pan I found all the pieces. drilling the access hole to remove the tensioner was not as difficult as I thought it would be, and saved many hours of parts removal. I too used a rubber expansion plug to close off the hole once I installed the tensioner. Jim was extremely helpful, sending me torque specifications and photos from the Nissan dealer repair manual, and of course, fabricating the tensioner part. Many thanks to Jim, and if you have a Nissan with timing issues, broken guides, chain slap, etc. this is the best fix I have found for those issues.
Thank You Bill for the comment.
Hope you get many more trouble free miles out your rig.
I hear several people have gotten up to 500,000 miles and they are still running smooth.
My rig as well has more acceleration in 1st and 2nd gears now, & less down shifting going up hills.
You will also notice an increase in fuel mileage.
I own a 1997 Nissan truck with that horrible start up sound. Went searching for a solution and found the MrJim series videos on this exact problem. After further investigation and a watch all of his videos, I came to conclusion that I needed this ratcheting timing chain tensioner. Ordered it, installed it and WOW! Talk about a HUGE difference! Not only did the start up sound go away, but the truck actually felt like new again. Throttle response was snappier, MPG improved 2-3 miles per gallon and the overall feel of the motor at idle was smoother. If you have any kind of start up rattle, save yourself a headache and replace the tensioner with his. I promise you will not regret it and that hideous sound will never return.
Thanks Dante,
Glad it restored the power back to when it was new, these engines perform better when the chain slack is controlled.
Fantastic, betweeen the 3 videos 15, 16, 17 i was able to do this job. Starts and sounds better now, and runs way better. Couldnt have done it without these videos, and Mr1jims fantastic responsive emails with so much detail, it was like he was in the room helping!
Definitley reccomend doing this if you have any start up/driving rattle.
My 1992 hardbody pickup does not have AC /AC condensor so i just took the rad, fan and the grill out and had tons of space to use my full size drill, and be 100% confident on the hole location by seeing it straight on from the front.
Take your time, watch these videos multiple times and refer back while doing the job and its very simple.
I also highly recomend the rachet tensioner that Mr1jim Sells and shows. Its defintley the best option and absolutley worth the extra little bit of work. I was surprised, once I started and pulled a couple things out of my way, at how simple the whole thing was, provided you are very cautious not to let the chain slack. Have a few sizes of bunjee cords at the ready before removing the cam bolt.
You're the MAN Jim!
He is Very knowledgeable I have highly respect this man for his knowledge on these vehicles.
Thanks for the comment
There is no access panel in the front of either the KA or the Z motors in the Hardbody trucks. He has cut a hole into the timing cover and is using an expansion plug to seal the hole. The plug is used as a band-aid fix when a cooling system freeze plug has come loose or been removed. This is not a bad idea but an oil change and come serious cleaning of the front of the motor internals is highly recommended. The tensioner change is not a bad idea, however, I've ran mine for 20 plus years with the same rattle at startup with zero issues and no damage to the timing cover. I have had to replace my timing chain guides one time. But that is typical with this motor over 250,000 miles.
Also, taking the timing cover off to replace the timing components only takes a few hours more. I believe that I did mine on a Z24 in 6 or 7 hours without cutting a hole in the timing cover.
Did I miss how the access panel got there? I've never seen or heard of an access panel there, but it's a great idea. Do you have a video on that process? Can the same technique be used on different models, or just the 97? It seems like Nissan would have discovered and remedied the tensioner problem way before it became an afterthought. I like and appreciate your videos.
I am working on a video to show the process of installing the access panel , should be done in a couple of weeks.
Just bought my own tensioner! I’ll be making my own video when it comes in! Doing a Full KA build on my channel! THANKS!
Should come out good for you.
I have a couple videos on how to provide a tensioner access hole in the front cover.
You may want to consider modifying the front cover by installing an access hole to re-set the adjustable tensioner if needed.
If you ever pull the cam sprocket off in the future, the chain will go slack and the self adjusting ratchet tensioner will ratchet all the way out.
It can be difficult to reach down to reset the tensioner piston without removing the front cover, an access hole in the front cover will make re-setting the tensioner piston easier.
these engines sound like diesels even without the rattle its kinda cool
Not sure why not able to reply on your 1st question on the other video.
Answer to your question on other video "is this an engine out job?"
No, the access hole can be cut with engine in a D21, it can be done with the radiator left in, can take as little as 2 hours complete including installing a new tensioner.
my 1992 is driving me nut when i start-up. THANKS
See my video #12 and #14, you will want to address the issue before the chain cuts a hole in the timing cover.
Same here, but I sold mine before I discovered these videos. Would love to have another one though.
Mr1Jim, Is there no way to access those tensioner bolts with any kind of tool at all from the top? Now that would save me a whole lot of time! Did you make the access whole for convenience sake or is it a necessity? Keep in mind that I have a Stanza and it's crooked-ways... :)
Steve,
Yes, its possible to access the tensioner bolts and loosen them with a box end wrench.
The fastener heads contact the timing chain cover before they completely free themselves of the threads in the engine block.
So, I came up with an alternative, which was to provide an access hole.
A lot of other engines have access holes for the tensioners,.
Would have been nice if Nissan would have provided one on the KA24E as well.
@@jamesmartin5370 the whole reason I asked you if he could do it that way is because I will have to pull my motor out in order to drill holes in it that's why I said it would save me a lot of time if I could leave it in. Remember it's a Stanza not a Truck...
Beautiful job !!!!
I moved the camshaft without the timing chain almost like how you have your camshaft position at 7:33, do you believe I may have bent the valves? or maybe just tapped them?
When rotating camshaft without chain attached, its possible to have a valve make contact with a piston.
However, if a valve would have contacted a piston, you would have felt an immediate resistance.
If you didn't feel any resistance or force things you should be in good shape.
You'll need to manually return the camshaft to its original position for valve timing to be correct with crank shaft.
@@jamesmartin5370 Thanks for the reply and I felt like I didn't force anything just wanted to get a peace of mind. I'm on top dead center on camshaft and crank. Time to put everything together and hope for the best.
Where do I get the self adjuster tensioner from? Part number? Or do u still sell the tensioner extender?
Thank You,
That part can be found at www.martin-industries.net/
Feel free to contact me anytime with questions.
Best Regards,
Jim
Where did you get a rachet tensioner for your nissan pickup d21 2.4
More info at: www.martin-industries.net/
I had a mechanic replace my timing chain with a whole new kit with oil pump water pump tensioner and guides. I still have rattle I took it back and he is saying maybe installed wrong or the tensioner is bad. Is that right?
Has the head or block ever been milled??
Rebuilt engines that have had head and block milled start off with more chain slack and higher chances of early start up rattle.
What happens is milling ends up causing the cam sprocket to be lowered amount that was milled off, so when head is bolted to block the cam sprocket ends up being lowered and this will increase amount of excess chain slack.
I have run into multiple people who have installed multiple timing chain kits to get rid of this start up rattle. After the first new kit they thought they had a bad kit so installed another new kit and still had the rattle so chances are another tensioner or another kit may not help. I would say you would have better luck limiting the hydraulic tensioner piston travel either with a self adjusting ratchet tensioner, Tensioner Spacer or adjustable piston.
Best option I have seen is the Self Adjusting Tensioner, My rig was always low on power when taking off from a stop but has lots of low rpm power now with the self adjusting tensioner.
I don't believe it has had any milling done. I believe they may have just installed it wrong since when I got it back the first day after the new timing chain was installed it was also off by 10degress on the timing. Barely ran.
If not familiar with installing oil pump in these KA24E engines its common to have timing issues.
Oil pump shaft drives the distributor by way of a distributor drive shaft that slides into the end of oil pump shaft that needs to be clocked correctly while oil pump is being installed.
If oil pump shaft is clocked incorrectly the distributor drive shaft will be off, when this happens, there isn't enough swing adjustment on the distributor housing to be able to get engine in time.
If its the oil pump clocking that is causing the timing issue, the fix would be to remove distributor, then remove oil pump and re-clock and install.
On oil pump housing near where the distributor drive shaft slides into it, theres an oil hole drilled through the casting, this is an index hole that indexes with a timing punch mark on distributor spindle. When installing oil pump the hole and punch mark need to be indexed, while installing the oil pump.
If timing issue is because timing chain is off a tooth they may need to pull valve cover and correct by advancing or retarding the cam sprocket amount needed.
If you have timing chain start up rattle, correcting the timing may not solve the chain noise.
Let me know how it all turns out.
Where does one get one of those ratchet style tensioner from?
desprate
Send me an email at jamesmart55@hotmail.com and I will send you some information to look at.
Mr1jim thank you so much
Why is there a slice on the water pump? Sorry just curious
Slice on the water pump?
Not sure of complete meaning of question?
Please rephrase.
@@jamesmartin5370 @ 7:20 you can see a little cut/slice where the cooling fan gets bolted on too.
@@fivestarhemi2877
I see it.
Its the original water pump on engine, its not been touched there.
The slice milled into the water pump housing has a chromate plated locking clip inserted in it.
The locking clip must be holding a seal or bearing in place.
I see the aftermarket pumps don't have this design feature in them.
Wonder if it doubles for the weep hole?
I believe the slice is something the engineers designed into this pump required to hold an internal part.
Good eye.
Thanks
@@jamesmartin5370 th-cam.com/video/fNDz3tyyjP4/w-d-xo.html
@@jamesmartin5370 at 17:59 whats the name of that aluminum seal? I really need your help
That looks like an OEM Toyota chain tensioner.
Its a modified OEM 13070-40F06
Access panel, You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.