|
I just changed mine. My 87 245 shows 151K miles on the odometer, though the odometer was broken for about 20K of those miles at the 118K mile mark, so I estimate about 170K miles in actuality. The timing belt was replaced at 50K and 100K miles at the dealer, prior to odometer failure, so the belt I just replaced had about 70K miles on it. Since I had no oil leaks, the belt was in excellent shape, and I probably could have gone a while without changes. I have kept the old belt just in case I need a temporary belt in the future, being careful to mark the running direction it was previously installed in.
I should note that the difference in tensioner positions between the old belt and the new belt was substantial. With the old belt, the tensioner had clearly been adjusted to account for the stretching one expects with usual wear and tear on a timing belt. The new timing belt had hardly the same amount of slack in it, and it was a challenge to get it to slip over the cam/inter/crank gears as well as the tensioner. I would describe it as a very snug, perfect fit. It made me appreciate the practice of adjusting the tensioner at the designated intervals. Also worth mentioning is that you should be attentive to how deep the tensioner dowel is inserted into the engine block. I think I only saw one mention from Chris Herbst of this potential problem among all the online resources I studied before doing the belt change. After installing the belt, make sure the dowel is fully seated in the block. You might have to use gentle taps on the dowel from a punch and hammer to drive it all the way in. Incorrect seating of the tensioner in the block could easily shorten the life of the tensioner and its bearings.
The best part about the job was that the timing was perfect after everything was back together.
Kourt
87 245
Austin, Texas
|
