Gatorback belts..good or garbage?

[JDP AWD 1g]

i did a search for gatorback on these forums, read through some topics, couldnt really find the answer i was looking for.

my question is, are gatorback belts good? ive read somewhere that people were having problems with the gatorback timing belts....but what about accessory belts, and balance shaft belts?

i currently have gatorback as my alternator / wp belt, and balance shaft, the others are OEM, i was racing a mustang last night, and my car started squealing afterwards. i got my car home alright last night, and today i went out to take a look in the daylight, only to find out the gatorback belt slid in on the pulley about 1/4 inch, and now rubs on the alternator every so often. obviously that belt stretched or slid enough to get onto the other side of the pulley.

the 2nd part of my question is, should i replace with gatorback, or go with an OEM one?

 

[ielaser]

Mitsu belts would be your best bet and are stronger then most aftermarket belts out there.
But you should try to put the belt back and make sure everything is tight and run the car again and see what happens,
if it doesnt help go get some mitsu belts.

 

[quiksilver38]

gatorbacks are garbage, i got one for my other eclipse and the quality was terrible, my friends snapped on his 6 bolt after only a few thousand miles. OEM is the way to go

 

[Talesin]

Gatorbacks are crap for our cars. If you were driving a Buick, maybe. But our engines get a LOT hotter, so the belts and hoses need to be very specifically made to put up with that heat.

Personally I'd go with one of the kevlar-made belts (for added peace of mind... head work is expensive for bent valves!), or the Mitsu OEM belts.

 

[JDP AWD 1g]

i would love to go kevlar, but unfortunately i dont have the budget to fork out for kevlar belts at the time being, so im lookin for the safest most inexpensive way...

 

[alex99gst]

Safest and most inexpensive would be OEM hands down. The extra you pay for an OEM or kevlar belt is what you save not having to pay for any kind of head work.

 

[97 4G63]

I had gator back on my n/a and it snapped so i parted out the car. I just bouth oem balance shaft belt and main timing belt for my gst $102 dollar { gatorback sucks}

 

[dsm023]

Another vote for SUCKS! Had 1 that squeal like a pig.

 

[JDP AWD 1g]

well thanks for all your input...i wish i wouldnt have gone with these gator belts hearin all this bad stuff about em, i mean an accessory belt is ok i guess, but a balance shaft belt snappin is kinda serious. which sucks ### now im afraid the belt gonna snap, and i wanna replace with oem, but now your talkin about takin apart the timing that i just had done at a shop, since i dont trust my own work...so now im lookin at having it retimed again....this sucks..

 

[quiksilver38]

well thanks for all your input...i wish i wouldnt have gone with these gator belts hearin all this bad stuff about em, i mean an accessory belt is ok i guess, but a balance shaft belt snappin is kinda serious. which sucks ### now im afraid the belt gonna snap, and i wanna replace with oem, but now your talkin about takin apart the timing that i just had done at a shop, since i dont trust my own work...so now im lookin at having it retimed again....this sucks..

yea it beats rebuilding the head though, its almost certain the gatorback will fail on you sooner than later

 

[gammey4]

I have one on my car and havent had a problem, been on there for two years now.

 

[jott5555]

Ohh how sweet.. defiently go OEM t-belts and bs belts if you have them.. i use cheap ps and alt belts, and head work isnt that bad if you know how to do it.. 100.00 for some valve's and 30 for some stem seals and your set...

 

[Rex2342]

I've been running a gatorback T-belt for about a year now with no problems. I would have rather got OEM but I needed the car back right away after the head gasket blew and it was easier to get. They do have a gurantee (sp?) against breaking but it only covers the belt and not the hundreds if not thousands of dollars of damage to the engine if it should let go. Stick with OEM!

 

[blcknspo0ln]

I've used gatorback belts for the past 3 years. In fact, when you purchase a "belt pack" from a very reputable vendor (won't say who), they actually supply you with a package of gatorback belts. It is true that the belts are a little too hard for our application, but with the right tension they run fine with no breakage or squeeling.

p.s., NEVER use aftermarket belts for your important ones (Timing belt and balance belt). Only use OEM because you wouldn't want to ruin your investment over a couple of bucks!

 

[oldman]

Was the alternator belt loose when it slip a groove? If not, you should check for a separating crank pulley.

Tom, I need my timing tools.

 

[blcknspo0ln]

I gotcha homeboy.. PM your way..

*edit* clean your freakin' PM box!