Fixing Your Xterra's Timing for Dummies

Nissan Xterra Timing Belt

Some of our staff here at the Antisocial Network remember working on engines in the pre-Clean Air Act days, when you could just about climb into the engine compartment and stand next to the "mill." Nowadays, the space is so crowded with the hoses and sensors of the emissions control system that it's nearly impossible for a shade-tree mechanic to perform a simple tuneup. That may be why some of the freelancers writing automotive "advice" (we use the term loosely) at eHow.com don't know jack about the topic: they've never even tried to do it. Take a look, for instance, at the mess three-time DotD Baptist Johnson made while attempting to address "The Timing is Off in My Nissan Xterra and It Won't Start."¹ Duh...

It's clear from his introductory paragraph that Baptist was way out of his depth here (as is the content editor who let him publish this rubbish). That's where Johnson intoned,

"The timing belt is a component in the engine system that helps rotate the camshafts in the overhead cam engine. Without an intact, properly functioning timing belt, your engine will not start."

Strike one against this moron: the question wasn't about replacing a timing belt, it was about setting the timing (probably). FWIW, the timing belt doesn't "[help] rotate the camshafts," its purpose is to make certain that every function of an internal combustion engine – piston movement, valve cycling, spark – occurs at the correct time and piston position relative to all the others. Wonder if he even knew that? Johnson didn't even suggest troubleshooting, just launched into a procedure that he pretended was quite simple: changing the timing belt. We wondered, if it's so simple that Baptist could perform it, how come replacing the timing belt costs several hundred dollars? Anyway, Johnson made the expected serious errors in describing the process, dumbassery like:

"Locate the timing belt at the front end of the engine block. You should be able to identify the timing belt as a long rubber band that winds around the engine camshafts."

Sorry, Baptist, that "long rubber band" is the serpentine belt, not the timing belt. You can't see the timing belt because it's under a cover or set of covers. You certainly can't

"...remove the timing belt cover using just your hands..."

...although we suspect he thought the shroud is the timing belt cover, the dumbass. Whatever the case, Johnson broke down the process of replacing the Xterra's "timing belt" into just seven steps, claiming that you'll only need an adjustable wrench. It's a damned shame Baptist didn't actually do some research (much less actually see a timing belt), because some poor guy published the whole shebang here, with photographs, and it does not look like it's much fun. It certainly takes more than seven steps and an adjustable wrench!
Worst of all, Johnson – besides not having the foggiest notion what he's talking about – answered the wrong question. The right question is not "how do I change my timing belt," it's "how do I set the timing." Of course, if Baptist knew an engine from a hole in the ground, he'd have known that – but like too many freelancers at eHow, he doesn't know anything from a hole in the ground. That's why eHow is the Dumbass of the Day poster child!

¹ The original has been deleted by Leaf Group, but can still be accessed using the Wayback machine at archive.org. Its URL was   ehow.com/how_8051176_timing-nissan-xterra-wont-start.html

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