Checking a timing belt

[dulcimerbob]

Is there a way to check a timing belt for wear etc. ? The PO said he thought it had been changed recently from the appearance . Is it possible to make this call based on that ? Sounds dubious. Thanks
Bob

[ventura ace]

No, they generally don't look worn at the recommended change interval. If you don't have any real clue of its age or mileage, I would definitely change it. It's a relatively easy task, and the belt is fairly cheap. Check the tensioner bearing while you are at it. If it makes any sounds or wobbles at all, change it, also.

Alvon

[Mathew26]

Theres no great way to check the belt. Although, you can feel for all the teeth and that will give you a piece of mind kinda feeling. The test I like to do is on the drivers side of the car between the intake and aux. gears twist the belt. If the belt twists more that 90degrees or to where you can make the smooth side face the front of the car and then some thats what I would say could be a possibility for a change.

[NCArachnid]

Does the age of the timing-belt factor in as well? My car has done a lot of sitting over the past 10 years so I know it hasn't clocked 30k miles but I'm still a little nervous about it.

[So Cal Mark]

age is a huge factor, and a 10yr old belt should be replaced. While checking for 90 degree twist is a good way to check tension, it doesn't give any clues as to the condition of the belt

[kristoj]

The recommended interval is 5 years or 30,000 miles, which ever comes first. A ten year old belt is a ticking time bomb.

[NCArachnid]

Just another thing to add to the ever growing list of projects to get this puppy back on the road! I hope to get the body work done by mid-summer so I can get it off to the paint shop. I probably need to change the timing belt before I need to run the motor to move it around the shop. I will refer to all the great posts about changing the belt. I'll probably upgrade the radiator(more on my plan for that later), change the alternator (exchange it for my 1983), and swap for electronic ignition at the same time. It seems I will be disassembling all these systems to change the timing belt. Thanks for the advice.

[NCArachnid]

Had some time off last week so I changed the timing belt and tensioner bearing. It was remarkably simple thanks to all the posts I had read prior. The belt was very worn and "polished" but no cracks. The tensioner bearing was "crunchy" and definitely needed changing. I used extra reference marks as suggested to maintain the alignment. I put everything back exactly to the position it was. I did notice that the auxillary shaft pulley mark was pointing to about the 2 o'clock position instead of the 1 o'clock position (see photo). Am I correct that this doesn't really matter as long as the motor turns freely by hand without anything hitting?



I'm almost embarrassed to admit while referring to my manual I found an old receipt from the PO that gave a date for the last timing belt change, head rebuild; Sept 1987. I'm very fortunate that my stupidity didn't cost me an engine.

[mdrburchette]

Your auxiliary shaft should be okay. Believe me, you'll know if the aux shaft is misaligned. The fuel pump lobe will hit one of the #2 rod bolts and cause a heck of a racket.