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Timing belt components

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Lucas03es

10+ Year Contributor
285
0
Jul 28, 2009
Las Vegas, Nevada
So I have the head off of my car, and I am going to be doing the timing and balance shaft belts while i'm down there. The car has a 7 bolt block on it from a 2g and I suspect it only has a max of like 10k on a rebuild. Is there any way to check the water pump, tensioner pullies, idler pullies, etc. to see if they are reusable?

Also, the timing belt tensioner itself doesn't have the grenade pin in in at all, does that matter?
 
Well as far as the water pump goes, the pulley itself just bolts to the shaft that drives the propeller in the water pump. So if the bearings in the water pump are bad you'd have to replace the whole water pump. Just spin it freely with nothing on it and see if it turns without much if any resistance. If its hard to turn or makes any grinding sounds, then its probably bad. The same test goes for the tensioner and idler pulleys. Just spin them freely and if they are hard to turn or make any noise I would replace them. If they were all done at the rebuild tho, with only 10k on them they should be fine. About the tensioner, are you talking about the new one you got or the one that's on the car. The one that's on the car now shouldn't have the pin in it, because you pull that out after its installed to put tension on the t-belt. You should buy a new tensioner when replacing the timing belt, and yes, that new one that you buy should have the pin in it. After you install everything and get the right tension on the timing belt, then you pull the pin.
 
You can get all these components with the timing belt for $100 online, so usually it's not worth risking.

But, if you want to reuse stuff, and you're sure it is fairly fresh: If the water pump doesn't leak, and the bearing doesn't seem bad, you can leave it alone. Check to see that the idler and tensioner bearings are good and don't grind. For the tensioner itself, you just compress it back down and make sure no oil leaks out the seal (remember to compress it a little at a time, don't just crank it down all the way in 2 seconds).

Well as far as the water pump goes, the pulley itself just bolts to the shaft that drives the propeller in the water pump. So if the bearings in the water pump are bad you'd have to replace the whole water pump. Just spin it freely with nothing on it and see if it turns without much if any resistance. If its hard to turn or makes any grinding sounds, then its probably bad. The same test goes for the tensioner and idler pulleys. Just spin them freely and if they are hard to turn or make any noise I would replace them. If they were all done at the rebuild tho, with only 10k on them they should be fine. About the tensioner, are you talking about the new one you got or the one that's on the car. The one that's on the car now shouldn't have the pin in it, because you pull that out after its installed to put tension on the t-belt. You should buy a new tensioner when replacing the timing belt, and yes, that new one that you buy should have the pin in it. After you install everything and get the right tension on the timing belt, then you pull the pin.

Actually, I'd replace them if the turn too easy as well. If they just spin like nothing, you know the bearings are pretty dry. New ones don't really 'spin' when you turn them. Yeah, make sure you listen when you turn them and if you hear any noise, replace.
 
Well the idler pulley spins what seems to be freely without any noise and not too loose.

The water pump spins without noise, but if you put your hand on it and give it a light spin, it doesn't spin very much farther than when my hand left it, is that normal?
 
Well the idler pulley spins what seems to be freely without any noise and not too loose.

The water pump spins without noise, but if you put your hand on it and give it a light spin, it doesn't spin very much farther than when my hand left it, is that normal?

i actually am doing the same thing as you are doing right now and i just went and bought a brand new water pump. havent put a mile on it yet. i did the same test as you and it spun easily with no resistance but when my hand left it it barely spun half an inch before it stoped so i am sure your pump is good
 
Cool, thanks.

So, when I bought a Gates timing belt off of ebay (I know, just testing to see if they were authentic Gates or not), I received a "Dynabelt" but it said "Gates Unitta Asia" on the box also, and after a bit of research and looking at their website Gates Unitta and clicking global, it brings me to the Gates main site. Would you trust this belt?
 
I would def replace the water pump and tb tensioner. Like in previous reply you can find all this online for under $100. I would say that having brand new components as well as peace of mind for that price is more than worth it IMO
 
Rockauto.com has the best prices although make sure you don't just opt In for the cheapest price and it's usually best to stay away from ebay for car parts

If you need some pens or laser pointer giver but not the life line of your 4g63
 
Haha I agree I avoid eBay like its cool usually sticking to OEM parts especially for timing unless its the belt then upgrade that's kinda why I was surprised when someone posted the timing set up for $100 the OEM set up cost me about $200
 
Haha I agree I avoid eBay like its cool usually sticking to OEM parts especially for timing unless its the belt then upgrade that's kinda why I was surprised when someone posted the timing set up for $100 the OEM set up cost me about $200


Not sure where they found the whole setup for $100 unless it was eBay quality. I just bought the whole Gates kit with the water pump, tensioner, etc from JNZ for a little over $200 shipped. I'd personally rather do it once with good quality parts than take any risks!!
 
So I have the head off of my car, and I am going to be doing the timing and balance shaft belts while i'm down there. The car has a 7 bolt block on it from a 2g and I suspect it only has a max of like 10k on a rebuild. Is there any way to check the water pump, tensioner pullies, idler pullies, etc. to see if they are reusable?

Also, the timing belt tensioner itself doesn't have the grenade pin in in at all, does that matter?
The grenade pin is for install. Its not supposed to be there.
 
I'm also in the process of gathering parts for a timing belt job. The car is a 1990 6 bolt with 100k and no records of previous replacement so it has to get done before it's on the road.

Yesterday I picked up the EVO belt 1145A038 for a steal of a deal. From what I've read its OEM and Kevlar so it should last. Anyone have experience with that belt?

Are you guys replacing your crank pulley when doing the higher mileage timing belt jobs? Supposedly they can deteriorate over time...
 
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