Hi all,

So, I replaced my 240's timing belt a few weeks ago. When I took the old belt off, it looked like the intermediate shaft was off by 1 tooth--that is, the dot on the shaft was one tooth higher than the line on the housing.

When I replaced the belt, I put it back on in the right spot - and the marks on the new belt confirmed my suspicion about the formerly misplaced old belt; that is, they lined up with the line on the housing, not with the former placement of the intermediate shaft. There were a couple nicks in the old belt, but nothing serious.

Is it possible that it jumped a tooth, or was it likely just installed wrong?

Now - the engine doesn't run the same as it used to. The engine hesitates a little when revving up/slowing down, and the valves tap noticeably when accelerating (they didn't used to do this, or at least not as much).

What should I do? Is there some other adjustment a former owner could have made to correct for the error in timing belt placement? Am I crazy in thinking that I was correcting something and should I revert to the way it used to be?

I've never used a timing light; would that help me determine if things are off/on right now (pardon my ignorance)?

Thanks!
Tobias