GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

I have an 03 1ZZFE that was making noise from the front of the engine. I removed the serpentine belt to eliminate the belt tensioner and water pump (which is new). the noise was still present. I removed the cam cover and checked the deflection of the chain between the cam gears. By eye it appears I have about 3/4 inch of deflection up and down on the chain. This seems excessive to me but I don't know for sure. I can't find this metric in my Toyota shop manual, in this forum or in other forums. I also called the Toyota dealership and spoke to a tech who was not sure. Anyone know what the tolerance should be?

I can only find elongation and cam sprocket specs. Have you checked your chain tensioner to make sure it won't push in when the pawl is locking it?

I have not pulled it yet but likely will to make sure it is extending all the way out. I will also see if I can get a look at the guide to see if it has any damage. Thanks!

Sure enough the chain tensioner was the culprit. I pulled the original and it was frozen; I could not get the indexing pawl to move. I replaced it with a new one ($25 from Autozone) and after checking timing following the release procedure I fired up Frankenvibe and after about 10 seconds it quieted down to its normal clatter. Job done! Thanks for the insight! Now onto the rear diff - wish me luck.

Another happy ending! Pics of the frozen part would have been nice to see but you probably didn't take any pics. In my line of work, repairing commercial HVAC equipment, I am constantly taking pics of how a blower exploded, or a valve stuck shut, or a switch somebody forgot to turn on (YEP, I even get to embarrass some people). Then when you show the customer the PROOF, they even appreciate you that much more.

tpollauf wrote:Then when you show the customer the PROOF, they even appreciate you that much more.

Or deny it and blame it all on you. Those are fun stories.

I'm glad that turned out to be the issue, as the tensioner is WAY easier to replace than the chain. You can even do it without being able to see what you're doing when you remove it and install it.

It was an easy fix. I will take pictures tonight when I ge home and post them. However, while finishing up that project I accidentally knocked it off the workbench to the garage floor. The shock of the impact seems to have freed it up. Obviously It's still going into the recycling pile.