Timing belt needs replacement after only 38K miles

[Michael Vernick]

I have a 97 legacy brighton wagon. My dealer replaced the original
timing belt at 82K miles. I took the car into a local mechanic
(trusted and used by my family for many years) for a 120K tuneup and I
was told I needed another timing belt. Is it possible for the belt to
go after only 38K miles?

Thanks in advance

 

[BlueSTi]

I have a 97 legacy brighton wagon. My dealer replaced the original
timing belt at 82K miles. I took the car into a local mechanic
(trusted and used by my family for many years) for a 120K tuneup and I
was told I needed another timing belt. Is it possible for the belt to
go after only 38K miles?

Thanks in advance

It is pretty unusual to need a timing belt after only 38K miles.
Timing belts are usually good to well over 50K miles. But, it is
always prudent to change them early rather than risk one breaking
BTDT. Replacing valves is expensive.
I've pulled timing belts at 50,000 miles that looked no different than
the new one installed. Maybe the first time the timing belt was
changed it was installed too tight or loose? This can cause premature
wear on the water pump if it's too tight and excess wear or slippage
if it is too loose.
I would definitely change it rather than risk the damage. It's
usually a good idea to change the water pump at the same time. I
cheaped out one time and didn't change the water pump and it leaked
not more than a month later! It would have cost little more than the
price of the water pump to change it when the belt was changed. It
cost double what it should have since the water pump leaked on the
timing belt and it had to be replaced a second time.
BlueSTi
"Scary-Fast"

 

[David]

I have a 97 legacy brighton wagon. My dealer replaced the original
timing belt at 82K miles. I took the car into a local mechanic
(trusted and used by my family for many years) for a 120K tuneup and I
was told I needed another timing belt. Is it possible for the belt to
go after only 38K miles?

I doubt it's common. What's wrong with it? Is it possible he's telling you
you need a new one because of the mileage (some cars, although probably
not yours, want one every 60k miles)?

 

[Rick Courtright]

was told I needed another timing belt. Is it possible for the belt to
go after only 38K miles?

Hi,

Two or three thoughts here...

First, does your mechanic know the dealer replaced the belt at 82k? If
not, he's probably going on the assumption of every 60k the belts should
be replaced.

Has he looked at the belt? An improperly tensioned belt can go quickly.
As can one if an idler pulley bearing's headed south. Also, though a
dealer would use OEM belts, if an owner or independent mechanic
installed an aftermarket belt, my experience tells me the life
expectancy CAN (not always) be far less than OEM. I've had an
aftermarket break at 50k miles, yet pulled OEM belts right at 60k and
they looked brand new as another poster reported.

Do you have leaks, either oil or coolant? Both can be hard on belts. One
SHOULD replace all the front engine seals (cams, crank, oil pump front
seal and O-rings on rear) each time the belt's replaced. Many suggest a
water pump each time, though I've been able to go two changes on most of
my pumps.

So, yes, it IS possible a new belt's in order, but it's hard to tell
from my computer screen what's really going on in your engine!

Best of luck,

Rick

 

[Leo Lichtman]

I just had my timing belt replaced today at 113,000 miles, and
visually it still looks perfect. The mechanic showed me several
broken ones which also looked perfect except for the break. His point
was that a visual inspection of the belt cannot tell you whether it is
about to break. So I would ask the mechanic some more questions.
What is leading him to tell you it needs replacing?

My car also got a new water pump, mostly at my suggestion, but with
ready agreement from the mechanic. We also decided to replace the
hydraulic belt tensioner, because the mechanic said there was slight
leakage at the seal, and oil on the timing belt would cause problems.
I haven't seen this mentioned here--does anyone else have experience
along these lines?

 

[L. Kreh]

Just to echo some other the comments, I suggest finding out what the
belt replacement interval is for your engine. If your mechanic
suggests changing it before it's due, and he apparently is, I'd
definitely ask why.

 

[david]

I have a 97 legacy brighton wagon. My dealer replaced the original
timing belt at 82K miles. I took the car into a local mechanic
(trusted and used by my family for many years) for a 120K tuneup and I
was told I needed another timing belt. Is it possible for the belt to
go after only 38K miles?

Thanks in advance

if the dealer did not replace all that the timing belt is on like
tentionor or pulley thats sort of things then yes it is possible. that
it needs another one but the other parts likely need to be replaced as
well. hope this help