Timing belt reuse - I am a Bad Person(tm)

EricH

EricH

Eric Hamilton
Moderator
I pulled the cam tower off green car yesterday so I could retorque the head bolts (1500 block with 17mm bolts so couldn't use the 19mm head bolt tools that I have). This was after maybe a thousand miles and a bunch of pretty intense heat cycles on the new motor.

But - and this is how I know I'm a Bad Person(tm) who will go to the other place when I die - I put the thousand-mile timing belt back on, just because I was in a hurry to drive the car this past weekend. Maybe I'll get around to changing it in a few weeks... Or maybe the Fiat gods will punish me with a broken belt tomorrow... If they do, I'll deserve it, for I am a Bad Person(tm).
 
!

If you go to the "other place" you'll have a lot of friends there. I'm swapping engines and reusing the new belt off the original engine. Can't be that bad.
 
EricH said:
I pulled the cam tower off green car yesterday so I could retorque the head bolts (1500 block with 17mm bolts so couldn't use the 19mm head bolt tools that I have). This was after maybe a thousand miles and a bunch of pretty intense heat cycles on the new motor.

But - and this is how I know I'm a Bad Person(tm) who will go to the other place when I die - I put the thousand-mile timing belt back on, just because I was in a hurry to drive the car this past weekend. Maybe I'll get around to changing it in a few weeks... Or maybe the Fiat gods will punish me with a broken belt tomorrow... If they do, I'll deserve it, for I am a Bad Person(tm).
Click to expand...



I have a feeling you will be hearing from a few others but I would strongly consider replacing the belt after 5k miles as they do stretch. This is just me and my paranoia maybe. Even if I am just adjusting timing marks I would still replace it.

eflexter said:
If you go to the "other place" you'll have a lot of friends there. I'm swapping engines and reusing the new belt off the original engine. Can't be that bad.
Click to expand...

I would NEVER swap used t-belts no matter how good it looks. Again, just me.
 
no need to change belt after 1000 miles

I assume you changed the belt when the head was put on? Then you do not have to change the timing belt after 1000 miles just because your retorqued the head.

Chis
 
AFAIK, Tim is going to the "other" place...

Geez...

I "religiously" change my belt every 5 years or so... whether it needs it or not! Sometimes its 40K miles, sometimes it 10K... Same with my oil, every 6 months...

Never lost a belt and have 168K on this engine... I'm the one living on "borrowed" time!

Thinking about it a little harder... I'm still on my THIRD belt... the old second one is still in the spares box in the trunk... just in case...

HAHAHAHA....
 
Black-Tooth said:
AFAIK, Tim is going to the "other" place...
Click to expand...

Well that is a given Tony. :mad4::devil::mad4:

I have been bitten by the bad timing belt once with an X and once with my 74 124. The X was me not being diligent about changing a belt after I bought the car AND the PO said "it had less than 10k miles". The 124 was a bad belt from a parts store - and it cost me :(
 
taking off the cam box

Eric maybe now is the time to spend a little cash for the
Fiat tools so you don't have to pull the cam box to tighten the head bolts.
Or the tool crib over at Mirafiori has a set, I'm mailing them back as we speak.

Chris
 
Just a question here on timing belts... over on the miata.net site I've read again and again that it's a 'mileage' thing... not a 'age' thing. It always comes up when someone buys something like 10year old car with like 14,000 miles on it... Someone always suggest changing everybelt and hose, and someone ALWAYS points out that timing belts are good for 60k.

Same probably applies here right?

Now if I took a belt off any of my cars including the Miata, especially if it had more than 5-8k miles, I'd go ahead and replace it, as its not too expensive for just the belt... I guess I'm paranoid releasing the tension lets the belt 'snap back'... and kill the life expectancy.


(plus I 'scored' 6 miata belts from a MGB dude who bought a garage full of parts from a closing sportscar shop... I'm probably set for life!:headbang:)
 
Just about every car I've ever worked on (except Fiat) the manual makes a point to tell you that you need to mark the rotation for the belt so it can be put back on the same way if you are going to reuse it. I think that Fiat is using an over abundance of caution in requiring the belt to always be replaced. I just don't think that Fiat belts are really any different than Honda or VW or any other make that doesn't have an issue with reuse.
 
My understanding is......................!

Matthew said:
I just don't think that Fiat belts are really any different than Honda or VW or any other make that doesn't have an issue with reuse.
Click to expand...

....it's all about the cambelt tooth profile!
Where the shape of the teeth on our Fiat cambelts is a 'wedgy' block type, compared to the belt tooth shape on most Japanese and Euro cars, which has a more 'rounded' profile.
Theory is that the rounded tooth profile puts less stress on the belt as it drives the respective pulleys, compared to the block type profile.
I read this comparison of the respective types of cambelt construction in a Gates (belt manufacturer) article some time ago.
Seems to make sense, I suppose - up to yourself to agree or disagree!

cheers, Ian - NZ
 
It's just a belt

I have done the same and kept it on.
It's just a rubber belt - no magic, no voddo.

Back in the day when our engine was first designed, this may have been a critical item.
Now, we are decades ahead in experience, and the materials for these belts have evolved.

I say, other than running it at the wrong tension or getting oil on it, there isn't much you can do wrong.
 
That's only true if ya live upside-down...

... on THIS planet or Mars... whichever comes first.

HA!

Hey...

Hope all you folks are OK... Is the South Island sinking?
 
eflexter said:
If you go to the "other place" you'll have a lot of friends there. I'm swapping engines and reusing the new belt off the original engine. Can't be that bad.
Click to expand...

Something like "Go to Heaven for the climate, go to Hell for the company"?

I agree with the idea posted about the squared vs round belt tooths. My Ford's 2.3 has square belt teeth and I know people harp about replacing those particular belts on time. One has broken on mine (with sis driving) but luckily not an interference motor. So there must be a disadvantage to the square teeth.
 
al_ngl said:
Something like "Go to Heaven for the climate, go to Hell for the company"?

I agree with the idea posted about the squared vs round belt tooths. My Ford's 2.3 has square belt teeth and I know people harp about replacing those particular belts on time. One has broken on mine (with sis driving) but luckily not an interference motor. So there must be a disadvantage to the square teeth.
Click to expand...

When Volvo moved to the rounded tooth belt on some engines, they basically doubled the service interval.

I reused my X1/9's belt after doing the head work, it only had 2-3K on it.
 
ianlawson said:
....it's all about the cambelt tooth profile!
Where the shape of the teeth on our Fiat cambelts is a 'wedgy' block type, compared to the belt tooth shape on most Japanese and Euro cars, which has a more 'rounded' profile.
Theory is that the rounded tooth profile puts less stress on the belt as it drives the respective pulleys, compared to the block type profile.
I read this comparison of the respective types of cambelt construction in a Gates (belt manufacturer) article some time ago.
Seems to make sense, I suppose - up to yourself to agree or disagree!

cheers, Ian - NZ
Click to expand...

All manufacturers, certainly including Fiat, went to the round tooth design in the late eighties or early nineties. Round tooth belts generally last well over 100K miles. Still I can't ever remember seeing any other manufacturer recommend against reusing the belt even when they were using the square tooth style.
 
belt

In my opinion your actually better off with the old belt than a new belt with the mileage you have on it. If you buy a new one from the auto part store it probably has been sitting there a while. Not to many need a belt for a x. The belt you have has proved itself to be reliable.

I actually took apart a firebird 350 just to find out the spark plugs I had just bought and put in where defective. Wasted hours trying to figure out what was wrong.:censored: Not a fun day.
 
The Belt lasts the life of the engine

Hey
I dont know what you guys are on about.. I know for a fact that the belt lasts the life of the engine.
How do I know?
Well think about it when the belt breaks, the engine is Firetrucked!!. Its that simple
In the US due to your emmisions engines and pistons used & the comp ratio and cut out in piston crown makes the engine non intererence ie valves dont touch pistons if belt goes lala but if you have messed with cr or you have done head work you most likely will have a scenario where the valves will get touched up real quick by the pistons.
My bros 124 did a cam belt once and it ruined the engine completely..
Why on earth would you skimp on a 15 dollar part?
 
Not sinking yet, Tony, but..................!!

Black-Tooth;75047[I said:
]... Is the South Island sinking[/I]?
Click to expand...

........the Sth Is. locals reckon that you don't need to drink much booze these days to get that 'swingin' ' feeling - heh!! :drink:

Yep, all's well with us 'upright' North Islanders, mate!! :cool:

cheers, Ian - NZ
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top