timing belt calendar life

[dromader driver]

Wondering what the CALENDAR life thoughts are on a 300TDI timing belt. Had recent experience with another brand that is now a lot shorter in km's and a definite calendar limit

[AK83]

Wondering what the CALENDAR life thoughts are on a 300TDI timing belt. .....

RAVE says every 6 years(120K klms) or every 3 years(60K klms) in adverse conditions such as desert/dusty/tropical environments.

[alien]

RAVE says every 6 years(120K klms) or every 3 years(60K klms) in adverse conditions such as desert/dusty/tropical environments.
Yes for the change but the question is how long can a spare belt sit on the shelf or be carried before it’s deamed to old to fitt.

[loanrangie]

Not like you would change one in the field so no point in keeping a spare, serp belt yes but not a timing belt.

[gromit]

Not like you would change one in the field so no point in keeping a spare, serp belt yes but not a timing belt.

Problem is how long has the supplier had it on the shelf ? Do they rotate stock ?

I was under the impression mine hadn't reached 6 years but never checked, when I finally did I found it was 9 years. Low kilometer usage, looked perfect but......who knows when it would have let go.

Stick with a known brand , saving a few dollars could cost a lot of $ and grief. Oh, and check when it's due for a change [bigwhistle]


Colin

[Blknight.aus]

Not like you would change one in the field so no point in keeping a spare, serp belt yes but not a timing belt.

ummmm.......

[Red90]

Not like you would change one in the field so no point in keeping a spare, serp belt yes but not a timing belt.

Why would you not change one in the field? I carry a spare with a set of push rods. Easy job. No point in walking out of the bush.

[loanrangie]

Why would you not change one in the field? I carry a spare with a set of push rods. Easy job. No point in walking out of the bush.

Then do you take a piston/rod, pushrods, rockers, head gasket and bolts just in case ? A bit far fetched.

[roverrescue]

I too use to carry a belt and a handful of pushrods and a few rocket arms

In all the 300 belt breaks I have seen the most damage was 3 bent push rods and 1 cracked rocker arm

Of course the pistons kissed the valves but a change of belts and new rods / rockers and it’s a runner again????

Definitely not bulky spare parts to carry? Why would you not!!!!

S

[67hardtop]

Belt will prob be ok if kept away from UV light.

[Red90]

Then do you take a piston/rod, pushrods, rockers, head gasket and bolts just in case ? A bit far fetched.

There is never piston or gasket damage. 200s only bend pushrods. 300s can break rockers so carry a couple. No worse a field repair than a CV joint.

[Rick Fischer]

Shelf life of cam belts??? ...........and other critical things containing rubber.

Elastomeric components have a shelf life, be it a tyre or an "o" ring. All the reputable name brands will have a DoM branded on somewhere. The shelf life can be extended by "sealing" the component in and, climate and light controlled storage. (Shelf life of compounds will have been statisticlly determined and then adjusted a couple of standard deviations to the left, but one doen't really want to play russian roulette with the Mean.)

The real problem is the gradual evaporation over time of the volatiles that keep the rubber soft and flexible. At the extreme end - have a good sniff next time you visit local tyre dealer. [tonguewink] Is main reason tyres get hard and less grippy over time. Hence remove and replace after about 5 years.

Once apon a time when I wore a uniform, Defence had an elastomeric storage facility for all 3 services. Probably still exists. Could double storage life. However, as I recall individual items of stock by P/N would be removed periodically and lab tested.

Cheers

RF

[scarry]

Belt will prob be ok if kept away from UV light.

It would be better out of UV light,but i had a heap of belts in the shed,A,B,spa,spz section,many around ten years old.

Most of them had perished and i had to throw them away.

The majority of them were gates red label,so not rubbish belts,or cheap chinese stuff.

Sure timing belts are probably better quality,but its something to be mindful of.

[AK83]

As someone pointed out, sealing rubber parts extends their shelf life.
Never seen a 'sealed bag' timing belt, but many rubber components come in sealed packages(like bearing seals, o-rings, etc).
The assumption is that they're churned over regularly and not kept for too long.

My understanding is that not only UV that damages rubber, but the tiny traces of ozone kills them .. causes cracks with are the major issue, especially with stressed rubber components like timing belt, fanbelts, tyres, etc.
Obviously Ozone is in nanoscopic amounts down here at ground level, but even those small amounts does a lot of damage over time.

[Rick Fischer]

Ozone - "Click", Yep. Tick :0)

Ozone, UV, and evaporation of volatiles. :0)