Timing cover, gears and chain - removal The timing cover, gears, and chain can be removed with the engine in the car provided the radiator and fan are removed. (For radiator and fan removal see Chapter 2). The procedure for removing the timing cover, gears and chain is otherwise the same irrespective of whether the engine is in the car or on the bench, and is as below.
1 Bend back the locking tab of the crankshaft pulley locking washer under the crankshaft pulley retaining bolt, prising it back with a cold chisel or screwdriver through the radiator grille in the wing if the engine is still in the car. With a large spanner remove the bolt and locking washer. This bolt is sometimes very difficult to shift and hitting the free end of the spanner with a heavy hammer is sometimes the only way to start it. If the engine is still in the car, put the car in top gear and apply the handbrake hard to prevent the engine from turning.
2 Placing two large screwdrivers behind the crankshaft pulley wheel at 180 deg. to each other, carefully lever the wheel off. It is preferable to use a proper pulley extractor if this is available, but large screwdrivers or tyre levers are quite suitable, providing care is taken not to damage the pulley flange.
3 Remove the woodruff key from the crankshaft nose with a pair of Dliers and note how the channel in the pulley is designed to fit over. Place the woodruff key in a glass jam jar as it is a very small part and can easily be mislaid.
4 Unscrew the bolts holding the timing cover to the block.
Note: Four of the bolts are larger than the others, and each bolt makes use of a large flat washer as well as a spring washer.
5 Take off the timing cover and gasket if fitted, detach the engine breather hose from the cover.
6 With the timing cover off, take off the oil thrower. Note: The concave side faces forward.
7 Bend back the locking tab on the washer under the camshaft retaining nut and unscrew the nut noting how the locking washer locating tag fits in the camshaft gear wheel keyway.
8 To remove the camshaft and crankshaft timing wheels complete with chain, ease each wheel forward a little at a time, levering behind each gear wheel in turn with two large screwdrivers at 180 deg. to each other. If the gear wheels are locked solid then it will be necessary to use a proper gear wheel and pulley extractor. With both gear wheels off, remove the woodruff keys from the crankshaft and camshaft with a pair of pliers and place them in a jam jar for safe keeping.
Note the number of very thin packing washers behind the crankshaft gear wheel and remove them very carefully.
Tappets (cam followers) - removal 1 With the rocker gear and pushrods removed, undo and remove the bolt securing each tappet block side cover to the rear of the cylinder block and lift off the covers iif still in place). Note: On 1275 cc Cooper S engines tappet block side covers are not fitted and the tappets can only be removed after removing the camshaft.
2 Lift out each tappet from its location in the cylinder block and ensure that they are kept in the correct sequence in which they were removed.
Distributor drive - removal To remove the distributor drive with the transmission casing still in position it is first necessary to remove one of the tappet cover bolts. With the distributor and the distributor clamp plate already removed, this is achieved as below.
1 Unscrew the single retaining bolt and lockwasher to release the distributor housing.
2 With the distributor housing removed, with the casing still in position, screw into the end of the distributor driveshaft a -,Ig in UNF bolt. A tappet cover bolt is ideal for this purpose. The driveshaft can then be lifted out, the shaft being turned slightly in the process to free the shaft skew gear from the camshaft skew gear.
3 If the gear casing has already been removed then it is a simple matter to push the driveshaft out from inside the crankcase.
Camshaft - removal The camshaft can only be removed with the engine out of the car and on the bench. With the timing cover, gears and chain, distributor drive gear and tappets removed as previously described, proceed as below.
1 Undo and remove the three bolts and spring washers securing the camshaft locating plate to the cylinder block. Now lift off the plate.
2 Carefully withdraw the camshaft out of the cylinder block taking care not to damage the camshaft bearings with the cam lobes as it is withdrawn.
Note: On Cooper S 1275 cc engines position the engine on its side to prevent the tappets falling out as the camshaft is removed.