Broken Balance Shaft belt

[Texvet]

97 Eclipse Spyder Turbo - Son's car over heated - water pump leaking, so in preparation to install new water pump - I pulled the plastic timing belt covers and I see that the B-Belt is broken!!

Not what I wanted to get into - but..

1st question is: what the heck does the B-belt drive? And what else could be messed up because it broke? I had the car towed home, but did start it to pull it into the driveway. It sounded OK?

2nd question is: can I loosen the main timing belt enough to get the B-beth back in place. By that I mean can I take just enough slack out to slide it off the crank gear and slide the B-belt on? The thought of messing with the main belt freaks me out a little. I am afraid I'll get things out of wack and never get it back on the road!

Thanks in advance,
Brad

 

[Boostn92]

You will have to pull the timing belt off to replace the balance shaft belt. I have seen balance shaft belt break and did no damage to the engines while others have broke the timing belt or other damage. There are many possibilities why ## balance shaft broke. When was the last time it was replaced and how many miles on the engine?

 

[Texvet]

I am not aware that either belt has been replaced? The car has 156K miles on it. We've owned it for 2 years or 35000 miles. I am sure I should replace the main belt while it's apart - and I am fairly handy - just never done a timing belt. I guess I need a few special tools, and I already have that DYI timing belt article.

Any other thoughts or ideas are necessary and welcome.
Thanks,
Brad

 

[fwdeclipse]

To change the water pump you have to pull the timing belt off anyway. Its not to hard its just intimidating the first time you do it.

 

[Texvet]

Your right it's the intimidation factor. It also has an oil leak passengers side - bottom - oil appears to drip from where the transmission and engine attach. I am guessing rear main seal?

How difficult is it to yank the engine out? Looks like 3 mounts, some wiring, linkage and hoses? That from a guy afraid of replacing a timing belt : ) But it seems silly to do the timing belt and water pump only to have the rear main blow clear out a week after.

What do you guys think?

Thanks again,
Brad

 

[Quasimondo]

Best bet is to find a copy of the factory service manual. I found it to be indispensable when it came to doing first-time jobs. Unlike the Haynes or Chilton's manual which half-asses the instructions for major repair jobs (good for quick reference on small things, though), the FSM will guide you step-by-step on how to do both the engine removal and the timing belt replacement.

A CD copy is usually found on eBay, though I'm sure there are other places on the internet to find a copy as well.

 

[jeremy19984g63]

Have you ever done a compression test on the engine? If not do that before you pull it to replace seals, because thats a lot of work to find out later it needs rebuilding! If you don't think it needs rebuilding, then at least replace the timing belt and the idler pulleys. You can replace the belt without the special tool they call for. I have done it many times.

 

[jeremy19984g63]

The b-belt drives the front balancing shaft, and most people remove these shafts when they do a rebuild. The engine is in no need of these parts to work properly. If this help you out some.

 

[FORMONTOYA]

As stated, others have removed the balance shaft and belt, so it's not really a necessity, it just keeps down unwanted vibrations. However, if the car has 150K with 35K yourself and a broken B-belt, I would be hesitant to go any longer on that T-belt. You will need to remove the T-belt to get at the water pump, so now is a good time to "knock it out".

Also as stated, the Chilton's and Haynes manuals are somewhat vague in their detail, a service manual book or CD is the way to go, also the VFAQ is a great source.

Everything you're looking to do can be done without removing the engine, although the T-belt job is tight and working on a FWD tranny sucks, especially if done in the garage on jack stands. If you do decide to pull the engine there are actually 4 mounts that hold it in.....DS motor mount, F/R roll stoppers, and the PS side tranny mount. It's easier to pull the engine/tranny as one.

As stated, a compression test doesn't hurt anything. With the mileage of the car you probably have some worn out valve stem seals, and if that's the case now would be the best time to pull the head for a refresh while the T-belt has to be done.

After all is said and done, the best bet is to get a look at everything, especially read the VFAQs on the subject and decide if it's something you want to tackle or not. If you have the ability to remove items and put them back on, then it's just a matter of time to get the job done. Really the only special tool that's required would be a torque wrench, everything else can be done with a good set of tools (and maybe a "cheater" bar).

If you do tackle this job I would strongly suggest to "bag-n-tag" all fasteners, parts, etc. Mark all hose ends and electrical connections as to their location. And take pictures along the way as they will prove invaluable when things go back together, especially if the project runs longer than anticipated and memory fades.

T-belt items to replace:
T-belt, B-belt, auto tensioner, 2 tensioner pulleys (T-belt, B-belt), idler pulley, water pump, crank seal, oil pump shaft seal, B-belt shaft seal, 2 cam shaft seals. If you're completely changing the T-belt and auto tensioner and not trying to re-use them you will NOT need the "special" tool as stated in the VFAQ. Also I would suggest to purchase the T-belt items from the dealer, it's a rarity to hear a story about OEM T-belt components broken prematurely, while I've read numerous times about aftermarket components failing before their time, and then there goes the head.

If you do replace the rear crank seal, go ahead and replace the 2 axle seals in the tranny. Also the crank seal just "picks out", you don't have to remove the housing. Also look at the clutch and fork/pivot ball while you're in there.

If you have to have some head work done now would also be a good time to replace the fuel filter and the heater hoses to the firewall, plus all the miscellaneous "jumper" hoses spread throughout the engine.

When it's all back together do a boost leak test as I'm quite sure it has some, especially in the throttle body.


VFAQ: http://www.vfaq.com/index-main.html
CD manual: http://www.ecanfix.com/~manualcd/index2.htm

Now that should keep you busy.

 

[FORMONTOYA]

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Here is the referenced picture. With the belt off, rest the pulley arm against the "pinned" tensioner, align the 2 holes vertically (to the left as shown) and torque the center bolt to spec, then install belt.