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Might have to say goodbye to the Z...


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Posted

In one of my recent posts 'Dead..' my car just died on me one night...well found out what it was...it was the timing belt/chain...and they were saying it screwed something up badly and i might need a new engine..but even if it doesnt need one, my dad still said he wasnt going to put anymore money into it...So might have to sell/trash it...Who knows...

Posted

Man that sucks big time. I thought there was some sorf of safety mechanism that would kill the motor as soon as the timing chain breaks?? That way the pistons wouldn't ram into the valves and other damage. I dunno, I just thought I read that somewhere.

Posted

you right. it's SUPPOSED to be a non-interference engine. unfortunately, that's not all it's cracked up to be. :(

Posted
you right. it's SUPPOSED to be a non-interference engine. unfortunately, that's not all it's cracked up to be. :(

 

 

What do you mean by 'non-interference'?

Posted

i thought i read somewhere that on 91-95 3.4 dohc that the pistons didnt reach high enough to smash into the valves, and that on 96-97 motors GM increased the reach for the sake of 5 horse.... however i am not very sure as to how correct that might be.

Posted

Man, that sucks.

 

Well, if you do replace the Z hopefully you'll be able to get another W body.

Posted

Yeah its highly unlikely your pistons hit the valves. Clean up the fibers and get a new belt on there asap.

Posted
In one of my recent posts 'Dead..' my car just died on me one night...well found out what it was...it was the timing belt/chain...and they were saying it screwed something up badly and i might need a new engine..but even if it doesnt need one, my dad still said he wasnt going to put anymore money into it...So might have to sell/trash it...Who knows...

 

Wow, didn't know that my way-off guess could of been true!

JJS316, find a garage mech buddy and have em do it.

At what RPM did it die at? Can you remember?

If it's low-enough, you shouldn't have any major problems with a replacement of belt and re-set of timing.

Remember, my belt shredded @ 5,500 RPM's and I was able to replacement with no internal damage.

 

thought i read somewhere that on 91-95 3.4 dohc that the pistons didnt reach high enough to smash into the valves, and that on 96-97 motors GM increased the reach for the sake of 5 horse.... however i am not very sure as to how correct that might be

 

Close, very close...

 

W-Body Performance[/url]"]

Q: If my Secondary Timing Belt breaks or snaps while the engine is running, won't it bend or possibly break a valve?

A: It's possible, but very rare. The GM engineers have pulled through on this one. The 1991 - 1995 DOHC motor is called a "Non-Interferring" engine; the valves are always under tension by springs. Which means if the timing belt breaks the camshafts will return to a normal position and all valves (intake & exhaust) will closed. The car will stop running and no internal damage will be exterted on the engine. * However, in recent finidings with high engine speeds, there have been some recorded cases of Non-Interferring motors having valvetrain (bent or broken valves) damage. * To prevent this from happening on your vehicle, check you timing belt about every 5K - 7K miles for any cracks or kevlar powder (signs of rubbing / old). Timing belts are usually due around every 60K miles.

 

JJS316, I would take the educated chance. If you feel it can be resurected, go for it!

Plus, if you DO get a new car, it's a whole 'nother can of worms.

 

- Erik

Posted

Secondary timing belt? Where is the primary timing belt then? Doesn't make any sense to me.

 

Its unlikely that anything is broken, and if the chain broke that extremely rare. If its the belt, just retime it and throw a new belt on...thats basically maintenance anyway.

Posted

beats me why the service manual refers to it as the 2ndery timing belt....

 

Here's a pic of the DOHC timing CHAIN...turns out that wasnt my prob...

3-1-3.jpg?i=1065950037&pw=*5FDB3F6204C1

Posted
Secondary timing belt? Where is the primary timing belt then? Doesn't make any sense to me.

 

That's what the OEM service manual and mechanics here refer to it for clarification.

The primary is the timing chain from the crank to the bottom cam sprocket.

You know this Ben, I'm not doubting you a bit... I'm just following suit. :?

 

- Erik

Posted

heres what it is. on the 91 through 95 motors, GM thoguth that they would have a problem with timing belts breaking. so, they spent the extra money to make it a non interference motor that way when belts broke it didnt matter. they are close, but wont touch(technically shouldnt, have b4). but around 1995 they realized that very few of the motor's belts broke, so they thoguht wow, we got lucky. so then they decided to save the extra 20 bucks per motor or something and make them an interference motor. the pistons were cheaper. it was more expensive to get the same compression without letting valves hit. but then, in 95 and such, is when all of the pre 95 motors belts started breaking. once they got miles on them.

 

when the shop screwed up my cam timing, we still turned the motor over(even tho it wouldnt start) and the vlaves didnt hit. so even afetr the rebuild, i am still a non-interference motor.

Posted

damn, this happened to me twice already. and guess what, nothing internal is wrong with my motor.

 

i got one suggestion.

IF YOU REPLACE THE BELT, DO IT YOURSELF!

it can only coast you $175-400 to do it yourself (depending on if you need covers/pully's/and so on.)

 

you can find complete instructions here

http://www.60degreev6.com/index.php?p=pages&pid=6

 

and if you can't read, try the pictured step by step.

http://www.60degreev6.com/index.php?p=pages&pid=62

 

hopfully that helps you! good luck!

 

or you can buy my car :mrgreen:

Posted

My father said hes going to give it one more time...We are going to fix it...The way it sounds that i wasnt at that high of an RPM and the engine may not have been hurt, but they arent for sure yet. We will see...They are pretty sure they can fix it without a new engine. She might have one more chance...

  • 4 years later...
Posted

damn, this happened to me twice already. and guess what, nothing internal is wrong with my motor.

 

i got one suggestion.

IF YOU REPLACE THE BELT, DO IT YOURSELF!

it can only coast you $175-400 to do it yourself (depending on if you need covers/pully's/and so on.)

 

you can find complete instructions here

http://www.60degreev6.com/index.php?p=pages&pid=6

 

and if you can't read, try the pictured step by step.

http://www.60degreev6.com/index.php?p=pages&pid=62

 

hopfully that helps you! good luck!

 

or you can buy my car  :mrgreen:

 

Do I have to have an account there to view this, or is the post old?

Posted

damn, this happened to me twice already. and guess what, nothing internal is wrong with my motor.

 

i got one suggestion.

IF YOU REPLACE THE BELT, DO IT YOURSELF!

it can only coast you $175-400 to do it yourself (depending on if you need covers/pully's/and so on.)

 

you can find complete instructions here

http://www.60degreev6.com/index.php?p=pages&pid=6

 

and if you can't read, try the pictured step by step.

http://www.60degreev6.com/index.php?p=pages&pid=62

 

hopfully that helps you! good luck!

 

or you can buy my car  :mrgreen:

 

Do I have to have an account there to view this, or is the post old?

 

 

October 23, 2003... yes, its old...

 

Jamie

Posted

If your doing it yourself, go to the "Anyone doing there own work" thread. In there is the timing belt procedure.

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