You will find in this section the causes and remedies to the main problems related to timing belts: clean break, ragged break, loose teeth, side wear, worn land area, irregular wear on belt back, worn teeth, cracks on the belt back, tooth swelling.
Clean break
Causes:
- Incorrect handling during installation
- Use of inappropriate tools during installation
Actions:
- During the installation operations, do not twist or bend the belt excessively
- During assembly, do not use inappropriate tools or levers to fit the belt on the pulleys; if there are flanges on the pulleys, do not force the belt and fully loosen the tensioner to guarantee minimum amplitude of the belt
- Replace the faulty belt
Ragged break
Causes:
- Penetration of foreign matter in the transmission
- Locking of a transmission component
- Excessive assembly tension
- Contact with fuel, petroleum derivatives or solvents
Actions:
- Check the correct fastening of the transmission components and protective case, and its integrity
- Check the wear condition of the components and verify their correct operation
- Tension the belt correctly
- Replace the faulty belt
Loose teeth
Causes:
- Low working tension of the belt
- Loss of tension in the belt
- Penetration of foreign matters in the transmission
Actions:
- Check the belt tension and tension it correctly
- Check the integrity and correct fastening of the tensioner and other transmission components
- Replace the faulty belt
Side wear
Causes:
- Misalignment of the tensioner or one of the transmission components
Actions:
- Check the integrity and correct fastening of the tensioner and other transmission components and reset the alignment if necessary
- Replace the tensioner and/or pulley if worn
- Replace the faulty belt
Worn land area
Causes:
- Excessive tension
- Worn pulleys
Actions:
- Replace the worn rigid component
- Replace the belt and reset the correct working tension
- Replace the faulty belt
Irregular wear on belt back
Causes:
- Locking of a transmission component
- Worn pulleys
Actions:
- Replace the worn rigid component
- Replace the belt and reset the correct working tension
- Replace the faulty belt
Worn teeth
Causes:
- Irregular tension
- Pulleys with worn teeth
- Belt tooth profile not compatible with the pulley notches
Actions:
- Reset the correct belt tension
- Replace the worn rigid component
- Check compatibility between the belt tooth profile and the pulley notches
- Replace the faulty belt
Cracks on the belt back
Causes:
- Operation at excessively high or low temperatures
Actions:
- Check the working environment temperature and use belts produced with heat-resistant compounds
- Replace the faulty belt
Tooth swelling
Causes:
- Contamination by solvents, lubricants or coolant
Actions:
- Handle with clean hands as much as possible
- Remove any contaminant leakage from the engine
- Replace the faulty belt