Whisper

So I finally managed to get my self and the engine specialist from the shop I took it to in the same place at the same time, and pulled the head off to see how bad the damage was.

Here's what we found:





Note the blackened area on each valve, showing the exact part where it slammed down on the piston. I don't have the photos of the pistons (the lighting wasn't very good), but each one was dented about 1/4 inch by the valve impact.

Now here's the weird part.

This is what the timing belt looked like:





Note in the second picture, how the other teeth on the belt are cracking and ready to go. I was literally able to pry one off with nothing but my fingernails.

My P.O. informed me when I bought the car (beginning of this summer) that the time belt and water pump had been done 6000 miles before.

But I'm confused. How does a timing belt become so frail that quickly? I could have torn it apart with my bare hands, easily and without breaking a sweat.

Anyway, I'm left with the choice between paying for a full rebuild (pricey, because I lack the expertise to do it myself), or finding an intact engine somewhere to drop in there.

Does anyone know where I can find a late model n/a engine for sale?

Can anyone explain how on earth this happens to a new timing belt?

Any assistance will, as usual, be greatly appreciated.

Jfrahm

Either the PO lied or the shop decided the tbelt was OK and took the money but did not change it. Or there was a misunderstanding and the shop checked it but did not change it and thought that was what the customer wanted.

-Joel.

Van

They could have used a cheap after-market belt, too.

GMS

Never accept anything a seller tells you without documentation...............

V2Rocket

the seller was a very reputable rennlister. if he said the belt was changed then it was changed. i have dealt with him before and he is a great guy.

your belt may have been rubbing on a roller that locked up. this same sort of damage happened to my balance shaft belt not too long ago; half the teeth were missing on one side because they ground off by rubbing a roller. the belt may have just been improperly tensioned or the roller could have been faulty.

Whisper

I'm reluctant to call him a liar, or assume incompetence. He's a respected Rennlister. But I'm honestly quite puzzled.

Whisper

I don't think it was a roller. Nothing was frozen, everything turned smoothly.

Tension I don't know about. What stuck out at me was that the teeth were all torn from one direction. If you look at the second picture, you'll see a little split at the base of the tooth. They were all split from that same direction.

Would too much tension on the belt tear at teeth like that?

V2Rocket

they could have been rubbing on something a little too much as the belt traveled around the gears.

LeMans71

I'm still learning about these engines, but as a general mechanic and looking at the damage to the belt, it looks to me that the engine locked up FIRST, then the belt sheared on one of the toothed components. Any chance it locked due to a leaky injector? Camshaft bearing failure? Dropped valve? Maybe the belt was improperly tensioned and skipped some teeth allowing p/v interference?

V2Rocket

the belt failure would have caused the interference.

Euro951

60,000 miles is alot for a belt, especially if the car is run hard, ect.... Change it at 30,000.

AX993

I believe Whisper stated "My P.O. informed me when I bought the car (beginning of this summer) that the time belt and water pump had been done 6000 miles before." Not 60,000 miles.

2BWise

Rule of thumb is 30,000 miles or 3 years, whichever comes first. Sounds like the belt was oldand/or cheap and the rubber had degraded. Might have only had 6,000 miles on it but when was it last replaced.

AX993

Good Point !

moorepower

I don't suppose it was a Flennor brand belt, was it? They often don't fit the cam gear teeth correctly new out of the box. Maybe it was replaced and seemed to fit OK, but it eventually sheared the teeth off because of the stress of not lining up just right. What kind of markings are on the belt?