I am replacing my....well...lots of stuff on my ea82t and upon removal of the t belts etc. my t-belt cover bolts spun freely in the dumb plastic so after hours of negotiating I was forced to break them to get to the belts. the passenger cover against the block was even melted and deformed:mad:

 

I could probably rig them to work but it would be too shady...I know some run without them and I understand there could be costly risks of stray rocks, mud, etc. but has running with no covers damaged anyones car out there?

 

Should they stay or should they go now? how much would I expect to pay for jy units? they are scarce here anyway...from what I seem to read, these are a PItA anyway.

 

So the question is: keep them or toss them?

All advice and opinions welcome!

thanks

eric

find a way to put them on unless you want to change timing belts on a regular basis timing belts hate weather

I've been trying to think how to make a cover that was snap on.

 

Messin wtih those plastic holes sucks. I too had a few that just spun so I broke those and put the covers back on with the remaining bolts.

I too have had some of the nuts spin in the rear half of the T-belt covers. But instead of breaking the cover, I used a thin putty knife slipped beteen the halves, then spun the bolt while prying on the putty knife. This spun the nut out of the rear piece.

 

Now, I was able to use pliers to hold the nut, and turn the bolt out of it. Won't work if they are to rusted in, though. Maybe good rust penitrant will help there.

 

After I was done with the repairs under the covers. I found a longer bolt of the same thread size. Spun the nut on the bolt, held bolt head with pliers, then heated the nut abit with the propane torch, then stuck it back in the hole. You have to hold it there for abit, and keep it straight. This will re-melt the plastic around the nut, and keep it from spinning. Use Anti-sieze on the bolts when putting the covers back on.

My opinion is that if the car will be driven on-road (~100% asphalt) then no t-belt covers is a good option. I've done it on a couple of cars of mine that I know would be seeing mostly highway miles, and the timing belts still appear to be in great shape, even after 50,000km on one of the cars.

 

If you travel on more gravel roads, or in conditions (like winter) where there is lots of sand or gravel on the road, no covers is also an option. For extra safety, though, keep an extra set of t-belts in the car. In both of my coverless cars, I keep the old belts from the last change in the back of the car. With the covers off, it would probably only take me 30 minutes max. to change the t-belts, and I could get home from wherever I am, and re-do the belts properly once I get there.

 

If you do a lot of off-roading in mud, deep water, and places where debris can end up all over the engine bay, then find a set of mint covers off a wreck, use lots of anti-seize on the bolts, and buy a new set of dust seals every couple of belt changes.

Originally posted by nutt7

how much would I expect to pay for jy units? they are scarce here anyway...from what I seem to read, these are a PItA anyway.

I have a spare set for a NA. If the non-turbo ones will work for the turbo, I will put them all in a box and you can have them for $10, shipped (basically, free). I know that two of the lower tabs are missing nuts, but I just run longer bolts for those and put nuts on the backside. One of the covers has about 1/2 cracked off one tab.

 

I bought a used engine to get a decent shortblock, then I put new heads on it and transferred all my external stuff, so I've got these left over.

 

The shoulder bolts rust pretty solid to the nuts here on the west coast, so I can only imagine how bad they must be on the salty end of the US.

Al -

 

I'll take those N/A Timing belts if the other guy doesnt want them. I need a spare set.

 

PM me if he doesnt take em, and I will get a money order in the mail ASAP

Originally posted by torxxx

I'll take those N/A Timing belts if the other guy doesnt want them. I need a spare set.

 

PM me if he doesnt take em, and I will get a money order in the mail ASAP

 

If Nutt7 doesn't want them, they're yours. I don't need spare parts around, I just forget I have them anyway. I'll be cleaning up and getting rid of the remains of the two EA82s I've got, in about another week or two, but I recalled that I have at least those T-belt covers and that they were in pretty good shape -- I cherry-picked between the two sets for mine, but they're all decent enough to use.

 

Anyway, we'll have to wait to see if Nutt7 wants them.

Al, I will buy those from you and if they dont fit I will sell them to torxxx for the same price...let me know how you want to do this...thanks

eric

hey Al, sell those to torxxx...I am going to risk it and run no covers for now...I really need my car together by tuesday. I appreciate the offer though:)

eric

Originally posted by torxxx

I'll take those N/A Timing belts if the other guy doesnt want them. I need a spare set.

 

PM me if he doesnt take em, and I will get a money order in the mail ASAP

Can't PM: I don't have it enabled. Email me at asavage@iname.com . No rush, I'll get them in a box tomorrow, just email me the destination address. Don't bother with a MO, when you get the box, just send a cheque for the shipping amount and use the return address on the box.

i run without belt covers. i drove 2300 miles west with open covers and used belts. the RX has open belts. the motor we put together for alleyboy has open belts

 

i have never had a problem wiht the belts jumping, or debris. i keep the plastic piece behind the idler pul;ley there, because that looks to be the only place anything can find its way in the belt(debris)

 

the weather may shorten the life of the belt, for example, a new belt may go as long as 100,000 miles, but should go all of its recommended 60,000 miles at least.

 

and with open belts, you can replace the belts in 20 minutes, all you have to do is take off the ps and alt belts. saves you from having to pull the crank pulley, the ac mounts, and the dipstick

 

the oil pump is also easily serviced from under the car

 

i swear by it

thanks milesfox. I feel a little more confident now about this...I think I am going to rig up a 'debris shield' under the belts to make it a little safer, like an extended splash guard. I will make it out of my old civic hood:-p

ran me turbo wagon myself for 16k without t-belt covers.. and the previous owner (from this board) ran it for 30k like that and they were still holding..

 

i'd say if you just drove around on pavement all teh time its fine, but if your going mud boggin or somethin put the covers on..

 

my wagon was 2wd so i couldn't go bogging, lol..

I like the extended splash guard idea to keep debris off the belts.

 

Time to get a street sign and do some cutting.

Originally posted by nutt7

thanks milesfox. I feel a little more confident now about this...I think I am going to rig up a 'debris shield' under the belts to make it a little safer, like an extended splash guard. I will make it out of my old civic hood:-p

 

if you can find the turbo heat shield for the t-belt covers, that would work nicely for the bottom half, stock replacement for whatever reason

Originally posted by MilesFox

)

 

the weather may shorten the life of the belt, for example, a new belt may go as long as 100,000 miles, but should go all of its recommended 60,000 miles at least.

 

 

 

Actually exposure to cooler air would perhaps lengthen the life of the belt. Think about it. Heat is the enemy to everything rubber and plastic and being next to the engine inside a sheild would hold in tons of heat. I vote for the cooler, longer lasting no cover version.

 

Bill

i bet the belts we put on alleyboys turbo will last 100,00 miles, since he drives 30 or more miles daily, i would say sitting and dryrotting is the belt's enemy

I've put over 10,000 miles on my wagon with no covers. I've never had any trouble. It seems to me that if you drive mostly on pavement, it is very unlikely that any large debris could get past the radiator and interfere with the belts. Still, I keep my old belts and an extra 12mm wrench tucked away in the back in case of emergency.

I usually beat the covers off with a hammer and a long screwdriver, toss them in the can, and move along. Everysingle bit of the covers too, front, rear, middle. My GL-10 has run w/out them for 21k miles now. The DL will too. The RX when i had it running did as well.