hi,just a little query about my magna advance th series 1999 model.I found the other day with the
cover off my timing belt it appeared to be rather slack,on staerting the engine the belt had retensioned itself,from the auto tensioner I expect.Is it usual for the belt to go as slack as it does,
with the engine stopped? vittorio

hi,just a little query about my magna advance th series 1999 model.I found the other day with the
cover off my timing belt it appeared to be rather slack,on staerting the engine the belt had retensioned itself,from the auto tensioner I expect.Is it usual for the belt to go as slack as it does,
with the engine stopped? vittorio

Not really no. As the tensioner is just a piston that works 24/7 it should be working the same when the engine is off than it is when on. Replace ASAP.

Edit: what the heck, I beat Max

Edit: what the heck, I beat Max

Clever you!

I actually disagree with the rest that you wrote, actually, sorry to say!

Sorry but no, the belt will not remain in tension at all while the motor is off due to the fact the force from the stationary cams being pushed by open valves is greater than the auto pre tensioner can handle

This is the cause of those cold start rattles, the auto tensioner gets lazy and causes the tensioner pulley bracket to slam into the auto tensioner

Provided the belt is adjusted correctly, there is no harm in there being some slack after shut down at all.

Sorry but no, the belt will not remain in tension at all while the motor is off due to the fact the force from the stationary cams being pushed by open valves is greater than the auto pre tensioner can handle

This is the cause of those cold start rattles, the auto tensioner gets lazy and causes the tensioner pulley bracket to slam into the auto tensioner

Provided the belt is adjusted correctly, there is no harm in there being some slack after shut down at all.

Well there you go, I'm glad Mal cleared that up.

I guess I've always had really good condition tensioners on my engines as I've never noticed any slack :)

I had to replace m belt even though it had been replaced 40,000 prior by previous owner. Had very bad crashing noises on start up, mechanic found belt was very slack and tensioner seized. Ended up just belt was replaced and nothing else. Cam seals, tensioner, crank seals and water pump had to be replaced.

I had to replace m belt even though it had been replaced 40,000 prior by previous owner. Had very bad crashing noises on start up, mechanic found belt was very slack and tensioner seized. Ended up just belt was replaced and nothing else. Cam seals, tensioner, crank seals and water pump had to be replaced.

Any responsible mechanic should be suggesting to replace the tensioner at the same time.

I think these issues stem from people trying to be cheap and only getting their timing belts done and refusing the extra to get the tensioner done.

Thank goodness it didn't turn south.

Again sorry but I do not agree here at all

We do many belt changes where we do change tensioner and idler pulley and seals but NOT the actual tensioner. If handled properly generally these do not have many issues. More is communication with the customer to determine if there have been any issues in the past at all.

IF the mechanic only changed the belt and not the pulleys then that is just plain stupid

IF the mechanic only changed the belt and not the pulleys then that is just plain stupid

+1
The price difference between belt only and belt + pulleys is pretty minimal anyway.
(I ordered a belt from OS, they sent me belt + pulleys instead. Win! lol)

Water pump and tensioner are more on a "let's look at them first" scenario in consideration with km on the clock.

many thanks for your comments re timing belt tension on my th magna,would $700.00 odd,be a fair price to replace the belt only?
location lauriton nsw Iam too old to do it myself now. vittorio

I would spend the extra to replace tensioner, cam seals,pulleys, water pump etc while everything is off. Be careful of the quality of the seals also, make sure they are good japanese quality. Pay the extra and have peace of mind.

I've had two timing belts done now on both of my Magnas. My instructions to the mechanic were, "use the Gates kit with all the pulleys, etc and also change the water pump and seal". The reasoning is the same as barryb, above. While you have everything off you may as well spend a bit extra and do the whole job rather than having to revisit the pump and spend a fortune later on.