All internal combustion engines have a timing belt or some way to connect the camshaft with the crankshaft in an engine. Other methods include timing chains and timing gears. I feel a brief tutorial on timing belts may help many people from having to buy a used engine someday. Obviously there are other engine choices should your engine fail, such as: reconditioned engines and even brand new engines.
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- Timing-Belt
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- Typical Timing Belt Set-up
Most of the small front wheel drive cars have small engines that use a timing belt to connect the camshaft to the crankshaft. This is part of the timing system in an engine. Simply put, if the timing belt brakes or is put on incorrectly, the valves hit the top of the pistons and destroy the engine. Very uncool and expensive.
Many of you folks may have noticed a warning sticker on the timing cover. Basically it reads: Replace Tining Belt Every 80,000 miles (some cars have different mileage arrangements, but 80,000 miles is about par for the course). Several hundred bucks may seem like a lot of money, and it is, however it beats several thousand dollars if you ignore the warning plate. This would be considered preventive maintenance to the max degree because of the ramifications of a failed timing belt.
Choose a competent repair shop who employs top notch auto mechanics to examine the car and help you decide if the time is now for a replacement timing belt. If your luck ran out and your engine fails, call GotEngines.com at 1-941-269-8284, and speak with a trained and experienced expert. Use our GotTransmissions.com Blog as an available resource for your every day automotive needs.
