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Timing Belt, when to change? Timing Chain

88K views 48 replies 20 participants last post by  Big Cam 
#1 ·
Does CRSX sell timing belts for us? If not, where do you guys recommend I get my timing belt from? I'v just reached my 60,000M mark and its time to get a new one.
 
#4 ·
i knew that as well...but my car, it sounds squealy when i start it sometimes(usually after it rains) and it will stay sounding like that until the car is warmed up...should i replace mine soon? or is that normal? im at 96k
 
#22 · (Edited)
if engineered correctly (and it is), if the timing chain does stretch, it will do so by such a small amount where it will not matter.

material science lesson:

elastic deformation: material deforms due to imposed stress, but returns to it's original size once the imposed stress is removed (like foam or a spring).

plastic deformation: material is placed under imposed stress beyond it's design limits, and deforms beyond it's maximum design allowance. the sample's mechanical properties begin to differ drastically from their initial values, and the sample will eventually fail (break).

think like taking a paperclip, and bending it with your fingers. if bent only slightly, the paperclip will snap right back to it's original shape (elastic deformation). if you bend the snot out of it, it will stay bent (plastic deformation). keep bending it, and it will snap (metal fatigue/failure).

given that the chain is intended for the life of the car, it's safe to say that any stresses imposed on the chain by the engine are well within the elastic design limits of the chain & the material(s) it is made of.

i can has /thread?

:D
 
#36 · (Edited)
oh, pretty cool. it's a bucket follower setup with a hydraulic control spring. many motorcycles these days have bucket follower valvetrains, but they use solid steel shims as the adjustment dynamic. cost effectiveness as one reason, and the mechanical stresses of the high rpms the engines achieve.

when you said that i was a hydraulic lash adjuster i honesty imagined a rocker type system, and didn't see how it would have "infinite adjustability". have they stopped using this system to date, or is it still in service?
 
#38 ·
still in service. i can't think of any showroom mazda piston engine that redlines higher than 7k (rotaries being the exception- they have no valves). this relatively low rpm limit allows them to get away with hydraulic lash adjusters. i think all of mazda's valvetrains since the end of the 1980s are maintenance free. maintenance free meaning they have hydraulic lash adjusters (here on referred to as HLAs). i know the miata has had them since their first generation. back in the day my dad's 1993 626 with a KL03 2.5L V6 had them. i remember how excited he was that he didn't have to re-lash the valves as there were 24 of them on that motor. that would have been a bitch. i remember helping him re-lash the valves on his 1985 prelude (12 valve) when i was a kid.

solid steel shims are typical for high rpm applications. their lack of reciprocating mass is their ace in the hole for high rpm operation. typically the HLA will float at high rpm due to the inability of the HLA's stock spring valve to keep the oil in place with the rigors of high rpm operation. also typically the HLA will be the initial cause of float due to it's weight.

there are kits that take out the HLA and convert to shim-and-bucket setups for those that like to rev high.
 
#39 ·
i believe the RSX-S manual states every 100,000 miles or excessive ticking noise, whichever happens first. people here will tell you to do it every 10k miles. my dad's '85 prelude required this service @ 10k intervals, and it had an aluminum head just like the K20A2. i for one would go with every 10k miles, especially if you rev hard & frequently.
 
#40 ·
Good info in here, I was bout to lock this when I saw it bumped,but now I'm thinking of making the title very search friendly.
 
#44 ·
Sort of like hydraulic lifters? I know the pedestal mount non adjustable rockers in some older small blocks used hydraulic lifters and they basically never needed (well, you couldnt.....) adjustment. The only real way to adjust them was to add shims under the actual rocker mounts, and some OHC engines have hydraulic lifters with non-adjustable valves as well
 
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