Timing belt

[Lorrin Barth]

This question is about 2004 Subaru with a 2 liter quad cam engine. The service manual says to change the timing belt at 105K miles or at 105 months. Since the car is a 2004 I am over on months but the mileage on the car is only 56K. Question – do the timing belt now or let go for awhile?

Topic

[Pat61]

It’s 10 years old, change it. IMO the suggested change intervals are about right on the money. Rule of thumb -the faster an engine spins, the sooner one should change a timing belt. Major leaks are another good reason to change timing belts earlier than suggested.

[Lorrin Barth]

This is a situation I was never in before. I’ve noticed service interval charts have both miles and time but time was never an issue. When I was working I piled on the miles. Now, with both of us retired I see I’m over on time. Its a bit of a new world.

[Pat61]

[quote=”barneyb” post=102857] Its a bit of a new world.[/quote]
Welcome to the new world, and welcome to retirement! Change the timing belt, crack open a brew and think about your next fishing trip.

[Lorrin Barth]

I see gates has a kit with all of the particulars. That, and I’ll need a special tool to hold the crank while I pull the crank bolt. And, of course the radiator has to come out yet again. I already popped the OEM radiator.

A least things are still pretty clean. No leaks.

[JB]

Time is a considerable factor on rubber parts. Infact time sitting idle hurts rubber components more than time spinning. Low miles does not necessarily mean you are free to wait it out longer. One note on the motor be sure to check the crank pulley for damage if it is a harmonic dampener (rubber sandwich). I’ve seen plenty of them come apart with time. Many owners opt to replace them with solid billet units. Though you may loose the dampening effects it’s been noted that no one has succumbed to failures because of having a solid CP.

[Lorrin Barth]

I don’t read a Subaru forum. I probably should. But, anyway, from knowledge I have of other engines I’d be hesitant of going to a solid crank pulley. Maybe if you don’t own the vehicle for a long period it doesn’t make a difference. But, eventually, having a solid pulley in place of a damper can lead to bearing damage or a broken crankshaft.

However I will give the damper a good looking over. Thanks for the suggestion.

Now, since I am back from vacation I need to get some stuff ordered. I need a Gates kit (pretty blue belt), a thermostat, and Company 23 crank and sprocket holding tools. With all that on the work bench it should be time to start. You know, I really should buy new coolant hoses too. I wonder how many of those this thing has got?

[JB]

Yeah I don’t use them on anything else I can tell you that. I have all kinds of Subaru people assuring me it’s okay when I a debate it with them. I say do what you feel is best.

[EricTheCarGuy]

I vote to change it. Better safe than sorry.

[Lorrin Barth]

Yeah, I was reading in the service manual about how not only can the pistons hit the valves but the valves can hit each other. Not a pretty picture. Anyway, the belt job will be happening as soon as I obtain parts.

[EricTheCarGuy]

Good luck! Post pics of the project in the ‘How To’ section if you get the opportunity.

[Lorrin Barth]

I have a beautiful set of pictures I took during the clutch swap I did on my car last fall. The trouble is it is not a common car and those same pictures (not mine) exist on an enthusiast site. But yeah, I’ll take pictures. Hopefully they won’t show me bleeding to death.

[EricTheCarGuy]

You can never have too much information on a site like this. That said, I hope you don’t end up bleeding either. Good luck.

[Author]

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