The ABCs of Oil Pump Chain Repair

The oil pump uses a network of galleries in order to pump your oil reach all the important parts of your engine for the purpose of lubrication. It also provides the correction pressure for the oil to travel every time.

The oil pump chain or drive chain, in turn, is the part of your oil pump connecting your camshaft with your crankshaft. Once that chain becomes faulty, your pump won't work as well, particularly in lubricating your camshaft and crankshaft.

The more notable consequence of course is your engine not being able to run at all since it absolutely needs that chain. Here's what you need to do to fix it.

It's Moderately Difficult to Fix Your Oil Pump Chain

  • What You Will Need: When fixing your drive chain, you need an oil pump chain replacement kit with miscellaneous parts included, lubrication, bailing wire, pulley removal tool, various wrenches and drivers, rubber mallet, and impact wrench. From there, set your engine to top dead center, which is the point where the rod-connected crankshaft is straight up and the piston is at the top of the stroke. Keep it there throughout the repair process.
  • Things You Might Need to Remove: When replacing your oil pump chain, remove everything that's blocking it from access, such as radiators, A/C compressors, and alternators. Afterwards, remove the crankshaft pulley bolt with your impact wrench. Use the pulley remover to remove the pulley itself. The bolts holding the chain cover should be removed as well to gain access to the pump chain itself. You might need to take off the oil pan depending on the placement of the oil pump in your specific car.
  • Rubber Mallet Action and Chain Removal: If the cover remains in place after bolt removal, use a rubber mallet to tap the gasket and loosen its grip on the engine block. Keep the chain drive bolts in their holes to make reassembly easier on you. While your engine is at top dead center, the oil pump chain's bright links line up with the corresponding marks on the camshaft gears. Take the camshaft bolt off with the impact wrench in order to remove the whole chain as a whole. Don't lose the crankshaft keys as you install the new drive chain.
  • Pre-Oil The Tensioner and Chain Installation: At this point, use the tensioner and guide for good measure. Pre-oil the tensioner because it operates via oil pressure. Use bailing wire to hold in place the tensioner to prevent engine displacement. The positions of the guide pin and crankshaft key relative to the camshaft should be 12 o'clock. Align the bright links and timing marks to the new drive chain before putting it in. Button everything up and make use of new crankshaft and gasket seals for good measure. Reinstall everything in reverse order of removal.

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