Schurkey Posted April 17, 2007 Report Share Posted April 17, 2007 How long does it take for the 3.4 cam belt to "shed" rubber dust and fibers? I pulled off the belt cover, and underneath it's just filthy with debris. The belt itself looks worn but not destroyed. No obvious cracks or missing cogs, no excessive edge wear or pulley wear. Just "old belt". I'm surprised (and appalled) at the amount of crap--dry, rubber powder with fibers in it, about an eighth of an inch thick--under the cover. Engine still runs good--but I bought the timing belt kit from NAPA ($185) and I'll be changing the belt and idlers in the next couple 'o days. The car has 124K miles on it--I bought it with 112K. My first guess is that this is the original belt--but I don't know the car's history, so I'm kinda curious how long it takes to fill the timing cover area with belt dust. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White93z34 Posted April 18, 2007 Report Share Posted April 18, 2007 at 124k i should hope thast it has been done before, however i've seen stranger things. it is normal fore the belts to dust as they age. also, what all does that NAPA set include? idlers, tensioner, belt, tensioner actuator, and the misc bolts? http://www.60degreev6.com has a good write up on how to do this. if it is your first time expect to invest AT LEAST a weekend into it. I just did mine for the first time and I spent the better part of a weekend on it. When my belt finally did go ( i was about 15k overdue for a change ) it wasen't even the belt that broke, the spring inside the tensioner actuator busted and it got all out of time before finally stalling out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psych0matt Posted April 19, 2007 Report Share Posted April 19, 2007 my first time, one of the idlers went, i had to convince my dad that replacing them both was a good idea. then last summer, after the swap, I had the tensioner go out after like 500 miles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garrett8 Posted April 19, 2007 Report Share Posted April 19, 2007 i got my car at 100k right now im sitting at 157k, i have nver changed the belt, pulled the covers off belt still looks good with no debris, as soon as the belt breaks im getting a new car, something with a lil L67 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5speedz34 Posted April 20, 2007 Report Share Posted April 20, 2007 my first time, one of the idlers went, i had to convince my dad that replacing them both was a good idea. then last summer, after the swap, I had the tensioner go out after like 500 miles How did the idler go? I mean it's just a pulley, but what do you mean by it went? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White93z34 Posted April 20, 2007 Report Share Posted April 20, 2007 my first time, one of the idlers went, i had to convince my dad that replacing them both was a good idea. then last summer, after the swap, I had the tensioner go out after like 500 miles How did the idler go? I mean it's just a pulley, but what do you mean by it went? theres a million different ways, a bearing in it may have locked up, the belt may have worn too far against the edge and wore it down, the bolt may have bent. the pulley is just plastic after all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pwmin Posted April 20, 2007 Report Share Posted April 20, 2007 i got my car at 100k right now im sitting at 157k, i have nver changed the belt, pulled the covers off belt still looks good with no debris, as soon as the belt breaks im getting a new car, something with a lil L67 why would you just let it break? in some cases, especially the newer LQ1s, the belt going out can bend valves and cause a lot more damage. that thinking just doesnt make sense to me. your car will pretty much be worth nothing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psych0matt Posted April 20, 2007 Report Share Posted April 20, 2007 my first time, one of the idlers went, i had to convince my dad that replacing them both was a good idea. then last summer, after the swap, I had the tensioner go out after like 500 miles How did the idler go? I mean it's just a pulley, but what do you mean by it went? theres a million different ways, a bearing in it may have locked up, the belt may have worn too far against the edge and wore it down, the bolt may have bent. the pulley is just plastic after all. basically, the center of the pulley was pretty much gone, shattered. The outside where the belt rides was pretty much ok (or at least was til this happened) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schurkey Posted April 29, 2007 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2007 also, what all does that NAPA set include? idlers, tensioner, belt, tensioner actuator, and the misc bolts? Two plastic idler pulleys mounted on bearings. One adjuster pulley on the cast-iron pulley mount (with bearings) and one belt. And an instruction sheet. NAPA part number NBH2521920. List price on napaonline.com is $187 www.60degreev6.com has a good write up on how to do this. if it is your first time expect to invest AT LEAST a weekend into it. I just did mine for the first time and I spent the better part of a weekend on it. aww, heck. I used the instructions posted on THIS site-- http://www.w-body.com/forum/index.php/topic,45620.0.html This was my first 3.4 belt replacement; and although I've done belts on other engines, I haven't done one for ~15 years. I spent perhaps 5 hours on the belt job; although there were a bunch of other things I did at the same time--O2 sensor, coolant replacement, PS cooler replacement; wheel balance; replace front rotors; and I wasn't real careful about marking my time on the belt job versus the other work. I'm confident the next belt job will take about 1/2 that amount of time--about 2 1/2 hours. When my belt finally did go ( i was about 15k overdue for a change ) it wasen't even the belt that broke, the spring inside the tensioner actuator busted and it got all out of time before finally stalling out. That's scary. Mine "seems" to be in fine condition--except that I forgot to re-install the stupid rubber plug when I pulled the paper clip out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White93z34 Posted April 29, 2007 Report Share Posted April 29, 2007 you lucked out, i know on my engine i have no timing marks to start with, as well as when mine failed it got way out of time. i figured i was overdue for intake gaskets, spark plugs, and the like anyhow so i am glad that i did them all. but good that it is all back in order. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garrett8 Posted April 29, 2007 Report Share Posted April 29, 2007 i got my car at 100k right now im sitting at 157k, i have nver changed the belt, pulled the covers off belt still looks good with no debris, as soon as the belt breaks im getting a new car, something with a lil L67 why would you just let it break? in some cases, especially the newer LQ1s, the belt going out can bend valves and cause a lot more damage. that thinking just doesnt make sense to me. your car will pretty much be worth nothing. the car is worth pretty much nothing as it is, and i dont have the time to do it and i dont wanna put money into a car that needs more work than it is worth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19Cutlass94 Posted April 29, 2007 Report Share Posted April 29, 2007 We've had people come in looking for parts for a ford pinto, I think your car is worth something, its just lack of effort on maintanence.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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