I have seen, know of and actually run a kevlar reinforced belt on one of my non Porsches. I have kevlar reinforced hoses on some of my British machines and these are actually quite inexpensive..like twice the cost of OEM. Now my Kevlar reinforced cog belt was like a $100, but the security was worth it to me.

So the QUESTION is: After some 25+ years after the 928 belt was engineered, has it been improved? Has any research been put into this high maintenance item that has the potential of crippling these engines? Has any of the big three looked in to a kevlar reinforced timing belt? I'm not an engineer and would assume this might change things like belt tension and may not even be possible, but thought it was worth asking.

Come on guys, can't we improve on this issue after all these years, or has it already been adressed? TIA

 

Luke,
Some percentage of timing belt failures are caused by the failure of the belt itself. The rest are caused by water pump or tensioner failures or wear on other components like the cam gears etc. The kevlar belt might do away with belt failures, but it wouldn't eliminate the need for peroidic servicing and inspection of the rest of the system.

 

Not to mention plain 'ole stretching.....

 

I agree completely, Luke. There are plenty of instances where a better quality belt would have prevented catastrophe. Every critical component should be manufactured as reliably as practical, and a kevlar reinforced belt would be the next belt on my car if it were available.

 

Vendors, any response????

 

Is the belt NOT kevlar reinforced? I thought most belts were.