Thread: Timing Belt

You may have just answered your own question!

Why risk it? You're going to have to part with the cash at some stage.

Hi Andrew,
Rubber components have usually safe life up to eight years, obviously this is dependant on how the rubberised components are treated, after that all bets are off. At work our general rule around rubberised components are five years on the shelf and eight years installed. This applies to drive belts, O-rings, straps, gasketing and "other stuff". After five years on the shelf you would also expect to get eight years in service, (you the owner don't know how long the belt has been made before it was fitted to your engine unless you ask to see the box) this would mean that the belt had been a drive belt for a LR for 13 years. When you buy the replacement timing belt it could have already have been made for 3 to 4 years (unlikely being a Land Rover).

I'm not sure what the shelf life of the rubberised components is in LR warehouses.

Hi Andrew,

Was in the same position as last year. Decided to replace and I'm glad I did. The belt had signs of wear and looked like it needed replacing. I've also have done a timing belt in a Lancia Beta coupe and am pretty weary of chancing the belt.

Cheers Ian

I missed mine on kms and did it at about 7 years (and 197,000km). No bad wear. However.... I failed to proceed on the weekend and ..... front timing belt tensioner snapped off (215k km) . Many many sad face. Still investigating the damage. Not sure about valves etc etc.

Did mine early at 102,000 just under 7 years as I was concerned with the oil pump housing. Had the latest housing fitted from new and belt and tensioner a were like new. Most km have been towing. No way of telling what housing you have until apart.

I did mine a few months ago at around 172K from memory. Mine is an 05 so 10 yrs on the belts. Front belt was actually in reasonably good nick. The HP fuel pump not so good, the rubber was starting to go hard and there where several cracks through the belt. I think the extra heat from the exhaust that runs under it dosent help. But good to know that the HPFP belt would have been the most likely to fail - ie no major damage can happen when that one breaks