Changed the cam belt on Zetec's about 4 times now and its pretty simple.
First thing is to get a Haynes manual. They are not perfect but its as good as it gets for the DIY mechanic.
Tools you need are the cam locking bar, the pin that you insert through the treaded hole in the block to locate TDC and a suitable device to lock the crank in position.
First job is to remove the plug leads and cam cover. Then remove the plugs and place some paper in the plug galleries to stop foreign objects entering if dropped.
I know several people who have relied on the TDC pin to hold the crank whilst loosening the front pulley bolt, all but one have got away with it, the one that didn't wrecked the crank. The front pulley may be stuck on the crank if its never been off. A few light taps with a hammer onto a block or wood to protect the pulley has always worked for me but beware, it could cause an issue and space is tight.
At this point I will honestly say that I have never needed to loosen the cam retaining bolts unless I have been fitting new performance cams. With the crank on TDC you will probably find that the cam locking tool will not fit in the slots. This is not because the cams are out of position, its because the fitted belt will have stretched over the years. With a little perseverance along with temporarily moving the crank off TDC the bar will fit. Once the belt is off reposition the crank using the pin.
Always buy a good kit from Conti, Gates or even Ford. Last time I bought genuine Ford (purely for convenience (driving past the stores) but kits were unavailable, had to buy the tensioner and pulley separate. Still about the same price as the alternatives. Always do a tooth count on both belts before fitting, parts have been known to be in the wrong boxes. Also buy a new cam cover gasket. It tends to stretch a little over the years and can creep when you refit the cam cover which will lead to oil leaks, guess how I know.
Now fit the new belt keeping it as tight as possible on the strait run between the cam and crank. Tension up as per Haynes manual and fit the bottom belt cover and bottom pulley to the correct torque. Before removing any location devices check that the belt is tight between the cam and crank. Now remove the locking devices and carefully rotate the crank 2 full turns back to TDC having inserted the pin as you get close to TDC. Once at TDC you will almost certainly find that the cam bar fits perfectly or with only a little jiggling.
If it fits check the tension again and reassemble.
In the unlikely event the bar does not fit and you are sure that the crank is at TDC it needs the cams adjusting. When I say does not fit if it takes only a little persuasion to get the bar in you will fine, it really needs to be a tooth or so out to cause performance issues. This is a 2 person job in my experience. Haynes manual shows how to make the tool to hold the cam sprockets whilst loosening the bolts. Do not rely on the bar to hold the cams, you will damage them. My experience is that getting the bar into the cams before stating helps, you will need to move the crank a bit to do this so loosen the TDC pin. Now with the aid of a beautiful assistant loosen the cam pulley bolts and them move the crank back to TDC. Cams and crank are now correct. Check tension is still OK on the starit side and again with the help of your assistant tighten the cam pulley bolts. Remove anll locking devices and crank pin and rotate the crank 2 full turns. Set crank at TDC using the pin and the cam bar should now fit. Assuming it does complete the refit of all the parts.
Hopefully that should be it.
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