Timing or Cam Belt/s
Complicated they may, be but ignore them and it WILL cost you.
If your someone who thinks what's a cam belt? Or what's the difference between a cam belt and a timing belt? Or is that the same as a "fan belt"?.......Then this page is for you URGENTLY.
Cam belt or timing belts, are pretty much the same thing and come in a variety of shapes and sizes, just take a look at the illustration here and it will give you some idea of how simple an how complex they can be.
The Cam Belt illustration on the left is an 1100cc Fiat, as you can see it bears no resemblance to the Cam Belt illustration on the right which is a 2.6 V6 Vectra, the complexity of the system and therefore cost of a belt or belts changes is in direct proportion.
These belts are usually housed on the end of the engine right alongside the inner wing or up against the radiator. (just to make changing them a little more interesting).
When will it need changing? We have computer programs and written data to tell us when your Cam Belt is due for change. Some manufacturers recommend every 36,000 miles some every 80,000 and some at other intervals, so it really depends on what vehicle and how old the vehicle is that you drive.
If you don't do the mileage then there are time intervals as well. One thing remains constant though IGNORE IT AT YOUR COST. A few pounds for a belt change or a lot of pounds if the belt breaks. If the Cam Belt breaks, at the very least it is an expensive repair, at worst it may put the engine beyond economic repair and depending on the value of the vehicle, write off the car.
The manufacturers recommended interval is the LATEST mileage or time to change the belt. CHANGE IT EARLIER is company policy at ace auto services.
Cam belts are usually made from Butyl and nylon (butyl is a type of man made rubber compound, tyres are made from the same material) . the inside surface has teeth either square or half circle depending on the shape of the slots on the component it fits in to. Here at Ace Auto Services and the vehicle manufacturers recommend you replace the belt guides and tensioner's too. If the cam belt is too loose due to a worn tensioner it won't be efficient and will fail. If its too tight the added pressure will make it fail. Either way you're back where you started.
Why does it do so much damage? As you can see from the illustrations, the belt revolves around the cams and the crank shaft, amongst other things, at several thousand times a minute. It is critically important that these components move at a prescribed rate to each other. (the timing)
Why does it cost so much? When the belt breaks, the cam shaft/s that are opening and closing valves to allow fuel/air in and exhaust gasses out, slow down in relation the the crank which is pushing the pistons up and down. You don't have to be a mechanic to work out what would happen if a set of valves were opening when a piston was coming up. They crash into one another and do serious internal damage to your engine, hence the cost of the repair or more often a replacement engine.
How you avoid this is easy. "Change the belt/s" sooner rather than later.
If all this has left you a bit baffled please just ask ace auto services garage Nottingham we will be only too pleased to help.
You can find us 8.30 till 5.00 Monday to Friday at the garage in Sneinton Hermitage (Colwick Road) Nottingham NG2 4BT.
Call the garage Now on 0115 958 4898
