Audi's 2.8T and 3.0T TFSI V6 engines run a timing chain setup with four camshafts instead of two, which means twice the locking points and twice the opportunities to get something out of sequence. This is a job where a proper camshaft locking kit isn't a nice-to-have, it's the difference between a clean chain service and an engine that runs rough or throws a cam-correlation code after reassembly.
Tool You'll Need
- 5-Piece Camshaft Locking Tool Kit (T40133) — locks all four camshafts simultaneously to hold correct valve timing while you're in the chain and tensioner area
You'll also need a crankshaft holding tool for the front pulley bolt (never impact it off), a torque wrench, and the correct chain and tensioner kit for your specific engine code — as with any chain job, replace the full kit together rather than a single worn component.
Why Four Camshafts Changes the Job
A four-cylinder engine gives you one intake and one exhaust cam to keep straight. The V6 TFSI gives you two of each, one bank on each side, and all four need to hold their correct relative position through the entire chain service. The T40133 kit is built around exactly that requirement — locking all four in their correct positions at once, rather than trying to hold them individually and hoping nothing shifts while you're focused on the other bank.
Step 1: Establish TDC on Cylinder 1
Rotate the crankshaft (counter-held, never with an impact tool on the pulley bolt) to Top Dead Center on cylinder 1 using your engine's specified timing marks.
Step 2: Fit All Four Camshaft Locks
Install the locking tools across all four camshafts — both intake and exhaust, both banks — confirming each one seats flush and square before moving to the next. If any one of them won't seat cleanly, stop and recheck crank position before forcing anything.
Step 3: Access the Chain and Tensioner
With all four cams locked, work through whatever covers and accessories are in the way to access the timing chain and tensioner assembly on the bank(s) you're servicing.
Step 4: Relieve Tension and Remove the Old Chain Components
Using a proper ratcheting chain tensioner tool with pressure relief (never compress a hydraulic tensioner with raw hand force alone), relieve tension and remove the old chain, tensioner, and guides together.
Step 5: Install New Components
Fit new guides, the new tensioner in its retracted position, and route the new chain per the factory diagram — keeping every one of the four cam locks in place and undisturbed throughout.
Step 6: Release and Verify
Release the tensioner, remove all four camshaft locks, and rotate the crankshaft through two full turns by hand, bringing it back to TDC. Reinstall all four locking tools and confirm every one seats cleanly — on a four-cam engine, this check matters even more than on a four-cylinder, since there are more places for something to have shifted out of sequence.
Step 7: Reassemble and Build Oil Pressure Before Startup
Reinstall covers and accessories, and if your engine's cam adjusters rely on oil pressure to lock properly (many V6 TFSI variants do), consider briefly cranking with ignition/injectors disabled to build oil pressure before the actual first start.
Common Mistakes
- Locking only two of the four cams and assuming the others will hold — lock all four, every time
- Losing track of which bank you've verified — work methodically and double-check both banks independently
- Impacting the crank pulley bolt — always counter-hold
- Skipping the two-turn double-check — more critical here than on any four-cylinder job given how many locking points exist
See our full Audi tool lineup for more V6 TFSI-specific service essentials.