How can a timing belt fail after 45,000 miles?

[96ToyoCam164K]

Ok, so the mystery has been solved...but with reluctancy. Got a call this morning and apparently the timing belt was not good. I initially told him that I did the timing belt test by taking off the distributer and I saw the rotor inside turning even though the car didn't start. I also mentioned that it wasn't supposed to be due til 224,700 and I'm only at 210xxx.

Would the minor oil leaks cause a belt to shorten its life? What about driving around mountains for several hundred miles and having the engine rev to 5000 to climb hills, would that shorten the life and be considered 'extreme'? The recommendation is 60,000.

I don't doubt its the timing belt because I mentioned to him it was making a rough grinding noise, coming from the passenger side of car, near timing belt

Initially mine broke back in April 2009...thats just last year! But apparently this one isn't snapped but rather shredded, but I haven't seen it yet

[Mister_Perkins]

Yes, oil will definitely lower the life of a timing belt significantly. More than likely your water pump bearing was what was making the grinding noise. Tell your mechanic you want to see the water pump before they install the timing belt. If you see grooves wore in behind the pulley thats more than likely why the belt broke. So it was probably a combination of Oil and water pump bearing

[fishing freak]

Have you driving conditions changed from the last belt change,, and did you use a factory belt or an aftermarket ?

[96ToyoCam164K]

Originally Posted by fishing freak

Have you driving conditions changed from the last belt change,, and did you use a factory belt or an aftermarket ?

Yeah they've changed quite a bit. This belt did alot of driving on steep grades. They used O-reiley aftermarket

I asked him about the waterpump and asked if there's anything wrong with that and he said no. I wish I could just drive up there and look at it

[Mister_Perkins]

Well tell the mechanic after he is done you want the old parts. To not discard them.

[LynchburgCSI]

Originally Posted by Mister_Perkins

Well tell the mechanic after he is done you want the old parts. To not discard them.

EXCELLENT advice. I always do this. I'm curious to see what happened here. I wanna see pics of these parts if possible.

[Mister_Perkins]

well that's insurance for yourself too. Because if he gives them to you and you find that you think they are not bad you can bring the invoice and parts to a couple places and ask them if they think they were bad and if they say no have them write a written statement. then you can contact the company and get your money back for replacing parts that didn't need replaced. Also, if they refuse to do this for whatever reason that's an indication that they are trying to make money by ripping you off and that's no good

[96ToyoCam164K]

well its a place I used to go to alot..did pretty good work for the most part so dont think its a ripoff. If they can start it up...then thats the most important part.

[fenixus]

ouch, timing belt, eh?

make sure they know from WHERE it leaked oil. you don't want to get another belt destroyed in same/similar way. probably either cam or crank seal leaked (or oil pump). make sure they are replacing all seals and gaskets while doing the timing and water pump job. I would replace the WP regardless, even if it looks good, it's an added cost I know, but also an insurance you won't need to go through same shit anytime soon if the job gets done right.

try ebtter brand parts this time (no o'reilly aftermarket shit), Gates makes a good timing kit, try it, i'm sure your shop can get it.

also think of replacing idler and tensioner (and spring) at same time, as I said, you don't wanna come back to working on this area again. because things down there tend to break when you need the car most...

[zythr]

Person working on car could have touched the belt with wet and/or oil hands.

[Silent Runner]

One of the first things I did when I purchased my Camry was to take it to a top rated Toyota dealer for a timing belt replacement. It was a whopping 60,000 km (about 35k miles), past due for its second replacement. At the time Itold the service representative, "when this engine is opened up, I want everthing that shows the slightest sign of failure or significant wear replaced". When they called me they said "everything else looks great, absolutely no need to do any other stuff, just the belt". I said are you absolutely sure? They said "yes". Two weeks later I was thinking, "this engine doesn't sound happy and right and I took it back to them. They ripped it open again and ended up replacing everything I'd asked them to check before. Idlers, waterpumps etc, and another new belt. Then I was presented with an invoice for the full cost of this new work. After a very serious discussion with the service manager (which is pretty darn tough for a female knowledgeable about cars), I left with a bill for the parts they had to replace because they didn't do what I asked them to do in the first place. I also got a bit of an undertanding about what most honest auto service centers have to balance on a day-to-day manner. Sometimes a really high repair bill can be an honest representation of what should be done at the time to fix a car properly and for long term reliability. But if it shows stuff that isn't actually outright broken at the time it can be perceived as an attempted rip-off. Yes a timing belt can crap out before it really should, and unless I get bullit proof testimoney of aftermarket part superiority, I rely on a manufacturers fear of recall costs to tell me that OEM or Toyota replacements are my choise.

[JohnGD]

+1. Always do a "complete" timing belt job. That way there's no need to go back in for 5-years/60K miles. (perosnally I don't believe in the 6-years/90K interval, even if driving 15K miles per year).

[deadrx7conv]

I also find that generic parts don't last as long as the factory parts. I would definitely buy the belt from your Toyota dealer.

[fenixus]

Originally Posted by deadrx7conv

I also find that generic parts don't last as long as the factory parts. I would definitely buy the belt from your Toyota dealer.

+1

same experience here.

[JohnGD]

It's not likely in a properly maintained engine the idlers and water pump are seizing. These were probably skipped (even before the 2009 belt change)? Because a complete job wasn't done.

If you have grinding noises then seizing bearings are more likely the reason for short belt life. Today's rubber formulation should have a good degree of oil resistance even with leaking cam seals. So while I won't soak the belt in oil or coolant, the belt should take minor leaks under the timing cover without problems.

These engines don't have automatic belt tensioners, and the timing belt does stretch. 60K is more than adequate in most cases. If you can do your own work, then 50K is fine too, especially if you do a lot of city driving stop-and-go. Maybe your mountain climbing can be equated with city driving as far as engine stress? Dunno.

eBay sellers have supposedly all OEM parts timing belt packages. Not sure about the oil seals and "Motorad" thermostat however (you may get lucky and get Kuzeh, but what if Motorad? ). Otherwise the cheapest we know.

Originally Posted by 96ToyoCam164K

Would the minor oil leaks cause a belt to shorten its life? What about driving around mountains for several hundred miles and having the engine rev to 5000 to climb hills, would that shorten the life and be considered 'extreme'? The recommendation is 60,000.

Initially mine broke back in April 2009...thats just last year! But apparently this one isn't snapped but rather shredded, but I haven't seen it yet