Timing belt: did you change it, did it break on you?

In article >,
Ajanta > wrote:

> They say that at one time Rolls Royce used to come with
> sealed engine, with no maintenance ever needed by owner.

You mean no maintenance ALLOWED by the owner. As I remember it, they
still needed maintenance, but by the dealer or factory. Those cars
usually came with a RR-certified chauffeur, who was expected to take care
of the routine things.

Merritt

> > Which manual do you recommend, Hays or Chilton? (98 Camry)
>
> Both. They both have strong and weak points. My experience is that a weak
> point in one is covered better in the other.

Better still is a for real Toyota manual.

I tell my customers to get a set of 'real' factory manuals thrown in as
part of any new vehicle purchase. More often than not, it will be the
first time the salesperson will have ever been asked for them, and they
may not even know they even exist. (They usually come from the parts
dept, just like floor mats or whatever.)

They can be found on eBay too.

A lot of them come in multiple volumes now, be sure to get them all.

They can save you a ton of money over the life of the car, and are a
good selling point when it comes time to sell... if the car is totaled
or stolen, they can easily eBayed.

Do not leave them in the car if you ever take it to the dealer, they
WILL pull them out thinking they're theirs!

Good Luck!

Erik

"Ajanta" > wrote in message
...
> Daniel > wrote:
>
> : Gen. III, timing belt replacement interval: 60,000 miles. If you change
> : them at the recommended interval, they don't break.
> : Did my own work.
> : Found several errors and damagae inflicted by prior mechanics.
> : Copy of my own records follows: (by the way, I learned to do this by
> : reading online groups and the service manuals. When I first purchased
> : the car, didn't even know how to change the air filter element)
>
> I am inspired to try, at least for small things: I am an apartment
> dweller, there is no convenient place to store tools or do work.
>
> I'll start with air filters and spark plugs. They are due. That will
> take care of tune up. :-)
>
> Which manual do you recommend, Hays or Chilton? (98 Camry)

I can't speak for a Chilton's manual, but my Haynes Corolla/ Geo Prizm
1993-2002 manual, bought 4 months ago, was assembled improperly. It begins
at page 2A-13; Section 1 is incomplete, begins at page 1-11. Sections 2-A,
2-B and 2-C, in complete form, follow Section 1. Also, there's no index
page.

"Kiran" > wrote in message
...
> This is inspired by the other thread. For Camry owners especially (but
> feel free to answer if you have another model, just name it):
>
> 1. Did your timing belt break on you? At how many miles? Did you get
> warning (strange noises) or was it a sudden surprise?
>
> 2. Did you change it on your own, before it broke? Again, at how many
> miles?
>
> Kiran

To edit a long story, the belt on my `86 Camry broke at about 178K miles
when a bearing from either the idler or tensioner broke up and cut the belt.
I recommend having these parts replaced when changing a belt.

Good point, Erik.
When I bought my Avalon, I talked the dealer into substituting the Toyota
Maintenance Manual instead of free lifetime oil changes. "Free" oil hanges
are worthless tio me, what with the 30 mile drive to the dealer. And I
actually like doing it myself. The last place I paid somebody for an oil
change was at a Sinclair gas station/garage something like 35 years ago..
"Erik" > wrote in message
...
(snip)
> I tell my customers to get a set of 'real' factory manuals thrown in as
> part of any new vehicle purchase. More often than not, it will be the
> first time the salesperson will have ever been asked for them, and they
> may not even know they even exist. (They usually come from the parts
> dept, just like floor mats or whatever.)
>
> They can be found on eBay too.
>
> A lot of them come in multiple volumes now, be sure to get them all.
>
> They can save you a ton of money over the life of the car, and are a
> good selling point when it comes time to sell... if the car is totaled
> or stolen, they can easily eBayed.
>
> Do not leave them in the car if you ever take it to the dealer, they
> WILL pull them out thinking they're theirs!
>
> Good Luck!
>
> Erik

My 4cyl 91 Camary?s orginal timing belt lasted 185,000 miles . . .
I tensiond it as directed and
even checked it for breakin stretch but it still loosened up enough at
300 miles that it jumped time one tooth
============
The trick I found for tensioning the belt is as follows:
Always use a new spring on the tensioner pulley, but don't expect that
little spring to apply sufficient tension by itself.
Loosen the adjustment bolt after installing the new belt keeping
tension on the side toward the front of the engine. I used a large hook
tool but you might find some other type of pry bar, and pulled up with
a great deal of force using both arms - just a gradually increasing
smooth pull - enough to move the whole engine. Did this about three
times. Then release the pressure and allow the tensioner spring to hold
the belt by itself as you tighten the adjustment bolt. Essentially you
are pre tensioning the belt to remove stretch that will otherwise
appear within the first few minutes of operation. That should eliminate
any problems with timing belt tension.

the belt on my `86 Camry broke at about 178K miles
when a bearing from either the idler or tensioner broke up and cut the
belt.
=============
Dealer service advisor looked at me kind of strangely when I brought in
an essentially immaculate engine compartment with complaint of "faint
smell of burning rubber" after highway driving for more than 30
minutes, mostly when coming to a stop and engine idling.
Some time later, checking spark plug wire resistance, discovered one
wire shorting to ground way down inside the spark plug tube, and
burning the boot - another wire had infinite resistance - open circuit.
Had also wondered if one of the timing belt idler bearings was hanging
up enough to create friction and heat on the back (smooth, non-toothed
side) of the timing belt, so my online parts list quotation form
included the idler bearings.
Once removed and turned by hand, neither idler turned smoothly - both
made a bearing noise.
So I agree, it's good preventative maintenance to replace those
bearings. This was at 120,000 miles.

"tom418" > wrote in message
news:BRHve.6572$up5.4361@lakeread02...
> Good point, Erik.
> When I bought my Avalon, I talked the dealer into substituting the Toyota
> Maintenance Manual instead of free lifetime oil changes. "Free" oil hanges
> are worthless tio me, what with the 30 mile drive to the dealer. And I
> actually like doing it myself. The last place I paid somebody for an oil
> change was at a Sinclair gas station/garage something like 35 years ago..

The cheap or free oil changes aren't worth it, I think. I can do an oil
change
on any of our cars in 20 minutes in the driveway, and that's taking time to
drink a beer while doing it. The trick is to get a good floor jack and
jackstands
and a creeper, and also to buy oil and filters in advance, when you are
already
driving by the auto parts store. I also check the paper for sales on motor
oil and stock up when it goes on sale - so far I have not paid more than a
dollar for a quart of oil.

It would take me more time to drive to the oil change place, wait for them
to do it, then drive home. And the times that I have available to drive to
an oil change place - such as Saturday afternoon - are the times that
everyone
else has available and want it done also, so there is always a line.

Ted

In article >,
"Ted Mittelstaedt" > wrote:

> "tom418" > wrote in message
> news:BRHve.6572$up5.4361@lakeread02...
> > Good point, Erik.
> > When I bought my Avalon, I talked the dealer into substituting the Toyota
> > Maintenance Manual instead of free lifetime oil changes. "Free" oil hanges
> > are worthless tio me, what with the 30 mile drive to the dealer. And I
> > actually like doing it myself. The last place I paid somebody for an oil
> > change was at a Sinclair gas station/garage something like 35 years ago..
>
> The cheap or free oil changes aren't worth it, I think. I can do an oil
> change
> on any of our cars in 20 minutes in the driveway, and that's taking time to
> drink a beer while doing it. The trick is to get a good floor jack and
> jackstands
> and a creeper, and also to buy oil and filters in advance, when you are
> already
> driving by the auto parts store. I also check the paper for sales on motor
> oil and stock up when it goes on sale - so far I have not paid more than a
> dollar for a quart of oil.
>
> It would take me more time to drive to the oil change place, wait for them
> to do it, then drive home. And the times that I have available to drive to
> an oil change place - such as Saturday afternoon - are the times that
> everyone
> else has available and want it done also, so there is always a line.
>
> Ted

Those cheap/free dealer oil change package deals are nothing but service
department marketing tools. They work VERY well for dealers by the way.

It's hard to sell you a laundry list of stuff that 'needs' to be done if
your not there...

Erik

In article >,
wrote:

> On Sun, 26 Jun 2005 18:16:03 GMT, Ajanta > wrote:
>
> >JazzMan > wrote:
> >
> >: My personal opinion is that critical internal
> >: motor parts should be designed to last the life of the motor,
> >: not be routine maintenance items that upon failure will
> >: damage the motor beyond economical repair.
> >
> >I agree, but must say I haven't chosen my cars with this
> >in mind, only by overall reputation (after nameless student
> >cars, first Corollas, then Camry's).
> >
> >They say that at one time Rolls Royce used to come with
> >sealed engine, with no maintenance ever needed by owner.
>
> It wouldn't stay sealed if I owned it............

Take it from a guy with some RR experience. Nothing is, nor ever has
been reliable about them. They're much more snob than quality, and
generally a giant PUTA to just keep running.