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9000 Bulletin Board
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Re: Can I tell if t-chain bad by pulling off valve cover?
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Posted by Ari [Email] (#2847) [Profile/Gallery] (more from Ari) on Tue, 20 Mar 2001 13:04:07 Share Post by Email
In Reply to: Re: Can I tell if t-chain bad by pulling off valve cover?, Paul Davis, Tue, 20 Mar 2001 11:27:58
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By the time the chain would show any significant slack, the engine would be toast. The chain is held in tension by both the chain tensioner, AND the force of the valve springs.

The 900 16V Bentley manual shows the procedure for checking the alignment marks.

It's pretty common for the top end of a Saab engine to rattle. If the rattle is only when cold, don't sweat it. If it rattles when warm, it's still not a big deal, not unless it sounds like a tin can full of silverware rolling down stairs. As a simple fix, put the car in neutral, and with a big wrench on the main pulley, turn the engine over Backwards a turn. You can pull the spark plugs to make it easier if you wish. This helps set the chain tensioner. If that doesn't do it, it never hurts to replace the tensioner (other than the $50 for the part).

On the 9000, the chain tensioner is easily accessed from outside the engine. I'd have to check my manuals since it's been a while since I last did one, but it's just a big hex bolt on the top backside (firewall side) of the engine, right at the line of the chain. The only tough part is finding a socket big enough to fit. It's a pain in the 900, just because of access.

Check in the archives, or get the Haynes manual (or a 16V 900 Bentley) manual for more detailed instructions. But it's basically remove the old, insert the new, then pull the wire from the new that keeps the plunger from plunging during installation.

I'm not a big believer in assessing chain health by tensioner plunger length. The plunger can move when you're removing the tensioner. I would go by a visual inspection of the chain and alignment marks. If the chain is in good shape, then the marks will align. They would only be off if the chain had jumped a tooth (big performance change), or the chain stretched. And chains don't really stretch. They develop wear between the pins and the links, and the holes in the links elongate. That extra few thousandths in each link adds up to a longer chain. It's not the length, but the fact that there is wear that indicates it's time to replace the chain, because a worn chain can break. But if the links and pins look visually good, chances are there is no 'stretch'.

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