Timing Belt Cover

[damone]

91 Legacy Wagon L, 180K miles Auto, AWD

 

I purchased the vehicle, and now see that I should have got a better deal.

 

There is no timing belt cover. It looks like the backing plate that the cover attaches to has been broke off (maybe during removal) and therefore I assume it was never put back on.

 

Looks like only a couple of the attachment points are broke.

 

Dont really have expertise to remove timing belt, pulleys, etc... to put backing plate on, but prolly could remove some stuff to put cover back on and only attach at points that are left to attach to and maybe rig some other type of holder/clamp/etc... at broke location or is anything needed at tall as there is it really is only a dust/debris cover right????

 

I have access to a full 3-piece cover and backing plate at the junkyard, but not sure I want to tackle the project.

 

Local Mechanic will cost $300+ to install correctly all three pieces, but I would do th efront cover if I could get away with it.

 

What needs to be removed to place timing belt cover????

 

I had an oil leak fixed at the mechanics (main seal?) and they had to remove the front pulley (which one????) which then failed and crumbled into pieces the day following getting the Sub back from the dealer. Dealer found a pulley at the junkyard and replaced the pulley saying it took a 6-ft long lver bar to break loose the pulley bolt.

 

I assume because it was recently done I wouldn't have that same issue.

 

 

What needs to be off the front of the motor to get the timing belt cover on?

 

Thanks,

D

[idosubaru]

the mechanic would have had to remove the timing belt front cover to replace the front main crank seal...is that missing too?

 

the best solution is to save your cash and do the belt replacement at the next timing belt change. some of us (me included) don't even install the timing belt covers, it's just easier to leave them off and makes future jobs much quicker. being my own mechanic i think it's actually more advantageous as well to have the covers off for other reasons.

 

if/when you decide to replace it:

you definitely don't need anywhere near "all" of the timing cover bolts, there are far more than necessary....so maybe you could sneak the stuff in place without removing all the belts and such.

 

it's hard to say what you need. there are 5 pieces. two rear pieces that are on the passengers and drivers side - behidn the cam sprockets essentially. and then the three front pieces - drivers sides, middle and passengers side. do you need all 5 or just the fronts? the fronts are easy and don't really require anything to replace...maybe remove the fans (super simple). the rears require removing the crank pulley, timing belt and cam sprockets to replace. loosen the cam sprocket bolts before doing anything else, with the timing belt in place. otherwise it'll be annoying to try and hold it.

 

it's not hard to replace them. if you have the tools and time to search here and read Endwrench (subaru's mechanic aid) you'll be able to do it. it's not hard at all. just a couple tricks and hints you can read about here or ask. the EJ22 belts are cake really ,easier than the old school subaru's...which i don't find hard either.

[damone]

the mechanic would have had to remove the timing belt front cover to replace the front main crank seal...is that missing too?

 

the best solution is to save your cash and do the belt replacement at the next timing belt change. some of us (me included) don't even install the timing belt covers, it's just easier to leave them off and makes future jobs much quicker. being my own mechanic i think it's actually more advantageous as well to have the covers off for other reasons.

 

if/when you decide to replace it:

you definitely don't need anywhere near "all" of the timing cover bolts, there are far more than necessary....so maybe you could sneak the stuff in place without removing all the belts and such.

 

it's hard to say what you need. there are 5 pieces. two rear pieces that are on the passengers and drivers side - behidn the cam sprockets essentially. and then the three front pieces - drivers sides, middle and passengers side. do you need all 5 or just the fronts? the fronts are easy and don't really require anything to replace...maybe remove the fans (super simple). the rears require removing the crank pulley, timing belt and cam sprockets to replace. loosen the cam sprocket bolts before doing anything else, with the timing belt in place. otherwise it'll be annoying to try and hold it.

 

it's not hard to replace them. if you have the tools and time to search here and read Endwrench (subaru's mechanic aid) you'll be able to do it. it's not hard at all. just a couple tricks and hints you can read about here or ask. the EJ22 belts are cake really ,easier than the old school subaru's...which i don't find hard either.

 

When I bought the car the cover was missing. The mechanic brought it to my attention when he replaced the front seal.

 

Although the rear pieces are in place, the drivers side is missing some bolt locations (broke off???). So I can just put the front cover on with only removing the fans. By the looks of the pulley grooves I would think there is a pulley (that would need to be removed) on the outside of the cover?????

 

I am fine leaving it as is, but do I have to worry about road debris or dust or water getting in there during normal operation conditons on the roadway.

 

Is there a way I can tell if the belt has been replaced prior to my ownership???

 

Is this a "non-interfernece" motor and I can just run it until it breaks????

 

The 3-piece cover at the junkyard has some pulley grooves, but it is already removed and hid under the rear seat ( ) in case i need it. Do the pulley grooves make it no good?

 

Thanks

[idosubaru]

pulley outside of the front covers? the only pulleys outside of the front covers are the crank pulley and accessory belt related pulleys (all very simple to remove..just a couple bolts).

 

i've run without covers even on my off road vehicles that i've had burried in mud, water, snow, etc and i've never had a problem. the only time i had a problem with timing covers was one that became loose and wore a hole in an ATF hose...so you could argue that stuff has some liability with it as well!

 

plenty of guys...including us that drive off road and in some sever snow areas have run without with no problems for 100's of thousands of miles. if you want more info...just do a search for "naked" or "without covers" or something and read all the opinions. bottom line is you won't have any problems unless you're doing something to intentionally shove stuff up under there in which case you're not using a proper vehicle or driving is the problem, not the covers!

 

can't really tell about replacement unless you know the dealer or shop, prevoius owner or have the records.

 

just get a peak and see if it looks cracked and how warn the lettering is. another major thing to check with a timing belt job is the timing belt pulleys. age makes them low on grease and those can cause premature timing belt failure. if it looks decent, all the pulleys are turning with no visible failure signs (seized, bearing popping out), then you can probably guess...like plan on a timing belt change this winter, or next summer, something like that.

 

how bad was the crank seal leak? oil will degrade the timing belt QUICK. i found that out last year. i installed a timing belt last summer on a friends car and the crank seal started leaking (EA82 engine). it was leaking badly and got on the timing belt. i replaced the seal and just wiped the belt clean. it broke less than 10k miles later, and all the wise people here say it was due to the oil leak. if that's the case for you - plan on a timing belt change sooner rather than later.

 

it is a NON-interference engine. all 1995 and earlier subaru engines are non-interference. so no worries if it breaks (though sometimes it will break your covers!)

 

grooves on the front surface don't harm anything for used parts. i can't see it, but if it bolts up and isn't damaged then use it. the only problem i've seen is ones that have been on overheated engines are warped or melted due to heat, avoid those. but that's normally just inside covers, not the fronts.

 

for installing "new" used covers, just use the bolts holes you have. frankly zip ties are far better than bolts. t he bolts seize in place and turn the inserts they screw into rather than backing out when loosening. this ends up ruining the covers by prying or wahtever means is used to remove them. i just wail them with a chisel and throw them away (like i did just this week on an EJ22). it's a family members car so i don't mind, they know i know subaru's! and i know my grandmother isn't off roading!

 

so yeah - just zip tie some front covers on there and call it a day. then they won't be seized in place next time.

 

pardon the length...hope that helps...

[damone]

pulley outside of the front covers? the only pulleys outside of the front covers are the crank pulley and accessory belt related pulleys (all very simple to remove..just a couple bolts).

 

i've run without covers even on my off road vehicles that i've had burried in mud, water, snow, etc and i've never had a problem. the only time i had a problem with timing covers was one that became loose and wore a hole in an ATF hose...so you could argue that stuff has some liability with it as well!

 

plenty of guys...including us that drive off road and in some sever snow areas have run without with no problems for 100's of thousands of miles. if you want more info...just do a search for "naked" or "without covers" or something and read all the opinions. bottom line is you won't have any problems unless you're doing something to intentionally shove stuff up under there in which case you're not using a proper vehicle or driving is the problem, not the covers!

 

can't really tell about replacement unless you know the dealer or shop, prevoius owner or have the records.

 

just get a peak and see if it looks cracked and how warn the lettering is. another major thing to check with a timing belt job is the timing belt pulleys. age makes them low on grease and those can cause premature timing belt failure. if it looks decent, all the pulleys are turning with no visible failure signs (seized, bearing popping out), then you can probably guess...like plan on a timing belt change this winter, or next summer, something like that.

 

how bad was the crank seal leak? oil will degrade the timing belt QUICK. i found that out last year. i installed a timing belt last summer on a friends car and the crank seal started leaking (EA82 engine). it was leaking badly and got on the timing belt. i replaced the seal and just wiped the belt clean. it broke less than 10k miles later, and all the wise people here say it was due to the oil leak. if that's the case for you - plan on a timing belt change sooner rather than later.

 

it is a NON-interference engine. all 1995 and earlier subaru engines are non-interference. so no worries if it breaks (though sometimes it will break your covers!)

 

grooves on the front surface don't harm anything for used parts. i can't see it, but if it bolts up and isn't damaged then use it. the only problem i've seen is ones that have been on overheated engines are warped or melted due to heat, avoid those. but that's normally just inside covers, not the fronts.

 

for installing "new" used covers, just use the bolts holes you have. frankly zip ties are far better than bolts. t he bolts seize in place and turn the inserts they screw into rather than backing out when loosening. this ends up ruining the covers by prying or wahtever means is used to remove them. i just wail them with a chisel and throw them away (like i did just this week on an EJ22). it's a family members car so i don't mind, they know i know subaru's! and i know my grandmother isn't off roading!

 

so yeah - just zip tie some front covers on there and call it a day. then they won't be seized in place next time.

 

pardon the length...hope that helps...

 

Maybe the bolts were seized and that's why some of the attachment points on the inner cover is missing. Someone chisled them off already, lol.

 

You give good advice, and I think I will just run w/o the covers as I would have to go and purchase them. Maybe when I go and get the clutch pack and parking pawl for the rear extension housing I will grab the covers too.

 

Any tips on installing the clutch pack and stuff in the rear extension housing. Seems it would be hard to have everything line up in order to get the rear cover back on.

 

Thanks

[johnceggleston]

Any tips on installing the clutch pack and stuff in the rear extension housing. Thanks

my only concern would be the correct installation of the parking prawl. if both the one in the your car and the one from the junker are 'apart', it may be hard to figure out exactly how it is supposed to be set up. a couple of good pictures would be worth 2 or 3 sleepless nights .

 

Seems it would be hard to have everything line up in order to get the rear cover back on. Thanks

from my limited experience it is not hard at all to get everything lined up. there are no parts "flopping" around to not line up. you replace the parts, put on the gasket, and bolt it on.

 

please correct me if i'm wrong.

[Gloyale]

my only concern would be the correct installation of the parking prawl. if both the one in the your car and the one from the junker are 'apart', it may be hard to figure out exactly how it is supposed to be set up. a couple of good pictures would be worth 2 or 3 sleepless nights .

 

 

Here ya go, the one on the right has the pawl installed

 

[GeneralDisorder]

Don't sweat the timing belt cover. Run till the belt snaps and then put the covers on when you do the belt if you are so inclined. I generally leave the covers off personally. Road debris is no concern at all.

 

GD