so. opened it back up
and the marks on the cams where off. but when i closed it up they were aligned.
so i guess i have to take off the exhaust cam. turn the crank to TDC
then put it back on

and im not sure if the distributor should have or not have that gap btwn it and the camshaft.
but it looks to be basically almost flush with the block


and also. i have no control over how the camshaft pulley mounts. there is a notch in the end of the camshaft and it mounts wherever that is turned.
so.
any input?
I plan to use azian_advanced's tutorial. and start the car before i put it all back together again
24. Warning: The next two following steps will be the most difficult and longest steps. Get a box of kleenex ready just in case .
In this step, you will try to test start the car and see if the timing is right. Since there is no coolant (if you replaced your water pump) and the alternator is not attached, you can't run your engine for long. If the car starts and idles fine, you're golden! Otherwise, you'll need to make adjustments by moving the timing belt back and forth on the camshaft timing pulley til you get it right.
To start off, put the timing belt on the camshaft timing pulley and make sure it's fairly tight. Then loosen the tensioner pulley bolt until it springs back tight putting tension back on the timing belt. Retighten the tensioner pulley bolt. If you had used the alternative method from step 14, then put the spark plug and wire back on. Put the negative terminal back on the battery. Pray... now get in the car and start it with the hopes of it running normally. If it does, congrats as you just saved the extra trouble in having to adjust the timing and proceed to step 26.
This post has been edited by Tigawoods: Jul 22, 2010 - 8:32 PM