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Tim
I always approve of upgrades that are functionally better than stock and this appears to be one for the 993. It's always a plus when Andreas posts his pics.
This thread pushed me over the edge and I ordered up the Clewett System two weeks ago. Installed it yesterday and I am very happy with the quality and simplicity. Swapping belts is a 30 sec activity. I have a brand new fan bearing for sale since the Clewett setup eliminates it.
This thread pushed me over the edge and I ordered up the Clewett System two weeks ago. Installed it yesterday and I am very happy with the quality and simplicity. Swapping belts is a 30 sec activity. I have a brand new fan bearing for sale since the Clewett setup eliminates it.
This thread pushed me over the edge and I ordered up the Clewett System two weeks ago. Installed it yesterday and I am very happy with the quality and simplicity. Swapping belts is a 30 sec activity. I have a brand new fan bearing for sale since the Clewett setup eliminates it.
This thread pushed me over the edge and I ordered up the Clewett System two weeks ago. Installed it yesterday and I am very happy with the quality and simplicity. Swapping belts is a 30 sec activity. I have a brand new fan bearing for sale since the Clewett setup eliminates it.
Did you have to grind off the bracket for the old sensor?
Did you have to grind off the bracket for the old sensor?
You need to grind a very small portion off. I laid the bracket in place, scribed a line, and only needed to remove about 3mm of the raised portion. Took about 5 min. You don't actually file or grind down the surface the the factory belt sensor mounts (where the bolt goes), just a few mm of the raised portion to the right. Initially I was a little concerned about, but once I saw how little I needed to remove, i didn't think twice. It such a small amount of material, I had to double check and make sure I was doing it right. I will see if I can get a camera in there for a pic2
The material removed is maybe 3mm thick, and roughly the size of a pencil eraser (if pencil erasers were triangular). It in no way impacts the ability to revert back to the stock configuration.
I will take the dissenting position and share my personal experience. I put the RS pulley on my car right after I bought it. Adjusted properly, the v-belt system is utterly reliable, almost bulletproof. Just for kicks I left the same belt on my car until it started showing signs of wear, which took 12 years and 60,000 miles. The v-belt and shim system is not the least bit complicated if you take a moment to understand how it works. When people get snapped belts, etc, it's almost always because they are installed too tightly, which is an incredibly easy problem to fix. The Clewett part is nicely designed but completely unnecessary, like aluminum valve covers.
No arguing this system looks great, and clearly appears to be a well-engineered, high-quality piece. But I agree with Churchill ^^^.
Great that you guys all did the swap. But I habitually weigh cost vs performance whenever considering upgrades: this seems like a high cost where the stock system has never --never-- given my a hint of trouble since 2001 when I bought her, and she now has 175k on the clock. That, to me, is evidence enough that there is no "problem" to be sorted here. Not to dismiss others who have had issues with their belts, but I can't help but speculate that something else was awry that could have been addressed to fix the issue. And let's face it, any given belt can fail, but one belt failure --to me-- does not define that a systemic problem exists, let alone one that requires a hefty sum. As one mere additional data point to offer, I've replaced all belts together (makes for easier record keeping) at regular 4-5 year or so intervals, and I've never had one snap, shred, or do anything that it wasn't supposed to do. Just offering my piddly $.02 mind you.
And in full disclosure, loooong ago, very early in my 993 ownership, I had replaced my leaky valve covers, which seemed the bane of so many 993 owners, with those beautiful billet ones. Gorgeous, and completely leak free these mannnnny years. But suffice it to say, as I learned more --and hung out here on RL learning from the cognoscenti-- one apparently can get leak-free covers without said expense. Lesson learned ...but for the sheer beauty of the said engineering, I get it!
No arguing this system looks great, and clearly appears to be a well-engineered, high-quality piece. But I agree with Churchill ^^^.
Great that you guys all did the swap. But I habitually weigh cost vs performance whenever considering upgrades: this seems like a high cost where the stock system has never --never-- given my a hint of trouble since 2001 when I bought her, and she now has 175k on the clock. That, to me, is evidence enough that there is no "problem" to be sorted here. Not to dismiss others who have had issues with their belts, but I can't help but speculate that something else was awry that could have been addressed to fix the issue. And let's face it, any given belt can fail, but one belt failure --to me-- does not define that a systemic problem exists, let alone one that requires a hefty sum. As one mere additional data point to offer, I've replaced all belts together (makes for easier record keeping) at regular 4-5 year or so intervals, and I've never had one snap, shred, or do anything that it wasn't supposed to do. Just offering my piddly $.02 mind you.
And in full disclosure, loooong ago, very early in my 993 ownership, I had replaced my leaky valve covers, which seemed the bane of so many 993 owners, with those beautiful billet ones. Gorgeous, and completely leak free these mannnnny years. But suffice it to say, as I learned more --and hung out here on RL learning from the cognoscenti-- one apparently can get leak-free covers without said expense. Lesson learned ...but for the sheer beauty of the said engineering, I get it!
Edward
For me, it was just a preference. In 13 yrs of ownership, I never had a belt failure either so that wasn't my motivation. That said, I liked this system enough to make the switch.
For me, it was just a preference. In 13 yrs of ownership, I never had a belt failure either so that wasn't my motivation. That said, I liked this system enough to make the switch.
That is a good reason to do it. These cars are expressions of preference -- we aren't driving Camrys after all. It's your money, buy the car you want and modify it how you like.
I've had a Clewett pulley for about 6 years now and made the switch after issues with my v belt. It's undoubtedly a better system and more reliable, but the biggest factor to me was if it were to break on the side of the highway at night I could easily fix it and be on my way. You can't do that with the standard set up.
Peace of mind and trouble free motoring is well worth the price tag.
04-09-2020, 10:59 AM
