I got my new timing belt cover today. I managed to get the crank and cams out of sync by popping off the belt for adjustment, but with some effort and manual spinning, I finally got them all back into alignment.

I tried a couple teeth forward, and tooth or two back. None of it changes anything at all. I couldn't get the exhaust noises to change cylinders, and centering each cam gear on the camshafts (as suggested for such problems) did nothing at all. I'm still getting ZERO CELs.

I think Klaus' original suggestion that it's my manifold might be on the right track. I said I torqued them all down, but maybe it was a false torque. That caused me a lot of issues with the headbolts, and maybe there's an issue with the manifold studs.

*ALL* the manifold studs backed out when I removed the head. I had to lock up the studs with a pair of high-strength nuts and work very hard to get the nuts off. In a couple cases the end of the studs were so "attached" the nuts, I ended up stripping the threads off the stud. I think I need to find some new manifold nuts to go with the new studs I bought on labor day.

I also found that there was no gasket at all between the exhaust and the turbo, nor a turbo/downpipe gasket. IPD sells them, so I'm going to order some. I've got an R-type manifold on the way from Erie Volvo. That should be a good excuse to pull the turbo and manifold again and check everything.

The clicking/slapping noise is still bothering me, but I have to say that my power and fuel consumption is just about where it should be. I'd expect more issues with all my exhaust valves out of whack.