timming belt tension
11-07-2003, 07:09 PM
#2
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Join Date: Mar 2002
Posts: 309
Well, under one of the stickies there is a link for the timing belt replacement for a Nissan Quest, its a VG also. They have a pic of how far the tensioner is turned, you should be able to see what I mean. I did mine according to that, however its a bit too tight. It makes a whirring noise and the mechanic told me it was because the tensioner was a little tight but that it should be ok. In fact two nissan mechanics said it was normal and they often put them on the tight side as they stretch a little. however, mine hasn't loosened up in about 6 months and the noise is driving me crazy, so Im gonna do like the Quest VG faq but slightly less tension whenever I feel like taking it back apart. Hopefully, I can just remove the pulley and the bottom cover of the timing belt and get at it. Good luck.
11-08-2003, 08:25 AM
#3
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Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 13
timing belt
Originally Posted by 89sks
Well, under one of the stickies there is a link for the timing belt replacement for a Nissan Quest, its a VG also. They have a pic of how far the tensioner is turned, you should be able to see what I mean. I did mine according to that, however its a bit too tight. It makes a whirring noise and the mechanic told me it was because the tensioner was a little tight but that it should be ok. In fact two nissan mechanics said it was normal and they often put them on the tight side as they stretch a little. however, mine hasn't loosened up in about 6 months and the noise is driving me crazy, so Im gonna do like the Quest VG faq but slightly less tension whenever I feel like taking it back apart. Hopefully, I can just remove the pulley and the bottom cover of the timing belt and get at it. Good luck.
11-08-2003, 07:42 PM
#5
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Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 29
Originally Posted by scott jacobson
the thing i dont under stand is the part with the feeler gauge is it just to allow clearance for belt or do you pull it in and out to get the .013 thou and the part with 22lbs of force how does one get that to check deflection ?????
As for the feeler gauge, at this point in the procedure you have applied the force to the belt and have loosened the tensioner and I think that the feeler gauge is just the mechanism to back off the tensioner slightly after applying the force before finally tighening the tensioner.
11-09-2003, 07:19 PM
#6
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Posts: 2
Originally Posted by ljbrew001
I used a fish weighing gauge for the belt deflection. I used a big paper clip and formed a triangle so as to pull on the belt from the center.
As for the feeler gauge, at this point in the procedure you have applied the force to the belt and have loosened the tensioner and I think that the feeler gauge is just the mechanism to back off the tensioner slightly after applying the force before finally tighening the tensioner.
As for the feeler gauge, at this point in the procedure you have applied the force to the belt and have loosened the tensioner and I think that the feeler gauge is just the mechanism to back off the tensioner slightly after applying the force before finally tighening the tensioner.
An experienced mechanic gave me this advice when I changed my timing belt in my'92. At first I told him of the recommended way using the feeler gauge method. He was emphatic that it wasn't necessary to do so. He said that after the tensioner was set in the initial setting and the crank was turned 2 revolutions to use 2 fingers and flex the belt at the midpoint opposite the tensioner. if using max force of thumb and forefinger you can only twist belt 90 degrees, tension is right. more than 90 degrees-tension is to loose; less than 90 degrees-tension to tight. I used this method and my belt only makes the slightest hum noise which should disappear after some wear. My mechanic friend says the hum comes from the back(smooth) side of the belt as it rides over the tensioner. as belt is manufactured and the cogged teeth are laminated onto belt pllies the dimple effect of the teeth can be felt on the backside of the belt until wear increases the flexibility of the new belt and it becomes more "flexible" Hope this helps - it worked for me!
11-09-2003, 10:37 PM
#7
This is advanced stuffs, you'll need to consult either the Chilton or the FSM for more information. I have personally thought that the Chilton instruction was the best of out of 3 since it was based on the FSM and Hayes. Note that both Chilton and Hayes was published by the same publication co but written by different authors and covered two different levels.
Now back to what you were worrying about, don't worry about the tensioner. If this is your first time, bring a friend over to help you out. Before you take the belt off, take a good look at it, feel its tension too. Notice its condition, if it's an old belt and it got cracks in it. Obviously, your new belt has to be tighten harder. It's about all common sense. Then you could just take the belt off and now go ahead loosen the tensioner but don't let the cams or the timing gear moves. The tensioner is nothing but a idler gear that you will need to use to tighten the new belt to the proper tension so it won't squeek.
As for the feeler gauge some of you were mentioning in the above, I don't have a very good explanation for it other than I did it exactly as instructed in the Chilton book. It's really confusing until you actually do it. For me, all that I'd felt was it held the tensioner down so I could torque the bolt down to prevent it from moving once the engine is running. Or at least really helped me torque down the tensioner idler bolt. That's how I'd felt, although there is a little hole there to let you put in a screw driver and tighten it but trust me, that just won't cut it.
Whatever you do, make sure you read the Chilton book first. Remember to be patience during the process and pay close attention to all of the details involved, esp the two cams, you don't want them to rotate out of sync. If it did, make sure you put them back to wherever you marked them or things can get really screw up. Take your time when you do this job to ensure everything get done right.
It took me over 11 hours to do this last time since it was my first time, I changed a lot while I was down there and I mean a lot of stuffs. You'll see why once you started working on it.
Now back to what you were worrying about, don't worry about the tensioner. If this is your first time, bring a friend over to help you out. Before you take the belt off, take a good look at it, feel its tension too. Notice its condition, if it's an old belt and it got cracks in it. Obviously, your new belt has to be tighten harder. It's about all common sense. Then you could just take the belt off and now go ahead loosen the tensioner but don't let the cams or the timing gear moves. The tensioner is nothing but a idler gear that you will need to use to tighten the new belt to the proper tension so it won't squeek.
As for the feeler gauge some of you were mentioning in the above, I don't have a very good explanation for it other than I did it exactly as instructed in the Chilton book. It's really confusing until you actually do it. For me, all that I'd felt was it held the tensioner down so I could torque the bolt down to prevent it from moving once the engine is running. Or at least really helped me torque down the tensioner idler bolt. That's how I'd felt, although there is a little hole there to let you put in a screw driver and tighten it but trust me, that just won't cut it.
Whatever you do, make sure you read the Chilton book first. Remember to be patience during the process and pay close attention to all of the details involved, esp the two cams, you don't want them to rotate out of sync. If it did, make sure you put them back to wherever you marked them or things can get really screw up. Take your time when you do this job to ensure everything get done right.
It took me over 11 hours to do this last time since it was my first time, I changed a lot while I was down there and I mean a lot of stuffs. You'll see why once you started working on it.
11-09-2003, 10:45 PM
#8
another thing, I can't remember the exact size for the feeler gauge that the Chilton book said but it's really cheap, only $2 for about 10 pieces of assorted sizes. It's avaliable at most autostore. I wouldn't try to substitute that with some home made goodies. Just do exactly as the book instructed and you simply can't go wrong. Remember to bring a friend over to discuss if you're not sure. Make sure you ask someone who's just as mechanically inclined as you were.
11-16-2003, 11:34 AM
#9
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Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 13
timing belt
Originally Posted by mddpld
An experienced mechanic gave me this advice when I changed my timing belt in my'92. At first I told him of the recommended way using the feeler gauge method. He was emphatic that it wasn't necessary to do so. He said that after the tensioner was set in the initial setting and the crank was turned 2 revolutions to use 2 fingers and flex the belt at the midpoint opposite the tensioner. if using max force of thumb and forefinger you can only twist belt 90 degrees, tension is right. more than 90 degrees-tension is to loose; less than 90 degrees-tension to tight. I used this method and my belt only makes the slightest hum noise which should disappear after some wear. My mechanic friend says the hum comes from the back(smooth) side of the belt as it rides over the tensioner. as belt is manufactured and the cogged teeth are laminated onto belt pllies the dimple effect of the teeth can be felt on the backside of the belt until wear increases the flexibility of the new belt and it becomes more "flexible" Hope this helps - it worked for me!
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