Timing Belt Replacement.
Discussion
Hello folks,
I last changed the belt on my Elise 5 years ago. It’s probably done about 4000 miles in that time maybe less. Truth be told it’s a bit of a pig of a job. Not difficult, just an absolute faff jacking the car up etc. I’m not looking forward to to it again.
I changed the belt on my MK 1 Scirocco last year after ~ 4 years of service - about 2500 miles. Absolutely nothing wrong with belt and tensioner. But, it’s a doddle of a job.
Had the belt, tensioner and water pump done on my MK 3 Scirocco last year at a main dealership (expensive). It hadn’t been changed before ~ 60 K miles, 9 year old car. I retained all parts and inspected them - probably could have gone another 20 K.
Just changed the belt and tensioner on my Corrado, after 4 years of service and ~ 30 K miles. Belt not too bad, tensioner a bit tight.
So the question is? Should I really get my backside into gear and change the belt on the Elise - and soon?
Advice would be welcomed.
I last changed the belt on my Elise 5 years ago. It’s probably done about 4000 miles in that time maybe less. Truth be told it’s a bit of a pig of a job. Not difficult, just an absolute faff jacking the car up etc. I’m not looking forward to to it again.
I changed the belt on my MK 1 Scirocco last year after ~ 4 years of service - about 2500 miles. Absolutely nothing wrong with belt and tensioner. But, it’s a doddle of a job.
Had the belt, tensioner and water pump done on my MK 3 Scirocco last year at a main dealership (expensive). It hadn’t been changed before ~ 60 K miles, 9 year old car. I retained all parts and inspected them - probably could have gone another 20 K.
Just changed the belt and tensioner on my Corrado, after 4 years of service and ~ 30 K miles. Belt not too bad, tensioner a bit tight.
So the question is? Should I really get my backside into gear and change the belt on the Elise - and soon?
Advice would be welcomed.
The consequences of failure are too ‘orrible to contemplate, change periods are as much about age as mileage. They are a b
h to change (having changed around 160 Elise belts). I would grit your teeth and get on with it ASAP. (I would use only Gates belts, auto-tensioner is 5497XS, manual tensioner is 5416XS).
Dave
h to change (having changed around 160 Elise belts). I would grit your teeth and get on with it ASAP. (I would use only Gates belts, auto-tensioner is 5497XS, manual tensioner is 5416XS).Dave
Jim H said:
probably could have gone another ...
The point of the scheduled service is to ensure the belt is always replaced before there is any risk of it failing. You would expect every belt that comes out to look as if it could have been left in service for much longer - if not, the service interval was too long.Many thanks for the advice folks, and yes I probably did know the answer all along.
Dave would you recommend I do the water pump also? I changed that in 2020. As you know that is an additional PITA job. Draining down the system and re-bleeding after filling.
In my 22 years ownership of the Elise, the first few years servicing was carried out by Lotus. Then I switched to independents. I’d been using an independent for a number of years as I trusted him. I always explained: ‘do everything that needs doing’ - don’t worry about cost. He’d never mentioned about the water pump in the two timing belt changes he had done. He changed the timing belt in 2019, 2020 the pump failed. We were in Lockdown at the time and I was dammed if it was going back to my trusted independent, I had all the time, and I’m not completely useless on the spanner’s.
I’ve got all the correct tools to do the job. And yes I always use Gates belts / kits.
Dave would you recommend I do the water pump also? I changed that in 2020. As you know that is an additional PITA job. Draining down the system and re-bleeding after filling.
In my 22 years ownership of the Elise, the first few years servicing was carried out by Lotus. Then I switched to independents. I’d been using an independent for a number of years as I trusted him. I always explained: ‘do everything that needs doing’ - don’t worry about cost. He’d never mentioned about the water pump in the two timing belt changes he had done. He changed the timing belt in 2019, 2020 the pump failed. We were in Lockdown at the time and I was dammed if it was going back to my trusted independent, I had all the time, and I’m not completely useless on the spanner’s.
I’ve got all the correct tools to do the job. And yes I always use Gates belts / kits.
Hi Stevie.
Yeah, they are not that hard, I printed off the tech wiki from SELOC today as a refresh. That doc helped me a lot last time I did it in 2020.
It’s the absolute faff getting the car jacked up high enough to get the swing on the breaker bar to back off the crank bolt.
They are not easy to jack up (safely) Elise’s. All aluminium and fibre glass. One slip and you are in a world of pain.
I’ve never had the clam off so I’m not sure that would make it easier. The big issue is cracking the crank bolt.
It’s always garaged, it’s never ‘lived’ outside.
Yeah, they are not that hard, I printed off the tech wiki from SELOC today as a refresh. That doc helped me a lot last time I did it in 2020.
It’s the absolute faff getting the car jacked up high enough to get the swing on the breaker bar to back off the crank bolt.
They are not easy to jack up (safely) Elise’s. All aluminium and fibre glass. One slip and you are in a world of pain.
I’ve never had the clam off so I’m not sure that would make it easier. The big issue is cracking the crank bolt.
It’s always garaged, it’s never ‘lived’ outside.
Crank bolts are always a PITA. I recently bought a decent impact gun and big battery, and it removed one which is torqued (on refitting) to 300Nm, so its much easier. Of course, it was on a transverse engine and I was able to gain access via the wheelarch, unsure if your car is an inline engine and doesn't have the same access for this.
ta264 said:
Unfortunately there's not a chance of getting an impact gun on an Elise crank bolt. It needs a svelte breaker bar and a cut down socket at the best of times!
Exactly..It’s a 22 mm socket shaved down by length (with an angle grinder) And I hate modifying tools.
Then you’ve got a 3 ft long Breaker Bar on it. The whole car is above you supported on axle stands.
With an Allen Key jammed into the flywheel.
There is absolutely no way I could have got the correct torque the last time I did this job. No way you’d get a torque wrench in there. I did if FT ( f
king tight) with a very fine dob of thread lock.Jim H said:
Hi Stevie.
Yeah, they are not that hard, I printed off the tech wiki from SELOC today as a refresh. That doc helped me a lot last time I did it in 2020.
It’s the absolute faff getting the car jacked up high enough to get the swing on the breaker bar to back off the crank bolt.
They are not easy to jack up (safely) Elise’s. All aluminium and fibre glass. One slip and you are in a world of pain.
I’ve never had the clam off so I’m not sure that would make it easier. The big issue is cracking the crank bolt.
It’s always garaged, it’s never ‘lived’ outside.
I have a VX220....it's really not that difficult around the engine bay with the clam off.Yeah, they are not that hard, I printed off the tech wiki from SELOC today as a refresh. That doc helped me a lot last time I did it in 2020.
It’s the absolute faff getting the car jacked up high enough to get the swing on the breaker bar to back off the crank bolt.
They are not easy to jack up (safely) Elise’s. All aluminium and fibre glass. One slip and you are in a world of pain.
I’ve never had the clam off so I’m not sure that would make it easier. The big issue is cracking the crank bolt.
It’s always garaged, it’s never ‘lived’ outside.
Although one of the first things I did when I got the car, was make the clam hinged and accessible. Plus adding accessible jacking points at the rear.
But if just doing one side, they're dead easy to jack up.
At the rear I made a jacking beam I can easily access to lift the rear of the car up easily and support it that way if needed.
To save the hassle of the jacking up why not see if there’s a rent a ramp place near you. Last one I used was £40 for the day, it makes life easier on these tricky jobs. I’ve just bought another car that’s sensitive to being jacked due to aluminium and a windscreen that cracks easily & this is what I’ll be doing for the jobs that require being off the ground.
Jim H said:
Exactly..
It’s a 22 mm socket shaved down by length (with an angle grinder) And I hate modifying tools.
Then you’ve got a 3 ft long Breaker Bar on it. The whole car is above you supported on axle stands.
With an Allen Key jammed into the flywheel.
There is absolutely no way I could have got the correct torque the last time I did this job. No way you’d get a torque wrench in there. I did if FT ( fking tight) with a very fine dob of thread lock.
Which thread locker…..It’s a 22 mm socket shaved down by length (with an angle grinder) And I hate modifying tools.
Then you’ve got a 3 ft long Breaker Bar on it. The whole car is above you supported on axle stands.
With an Allen Key jammed into the flywheel.
There is absolutely no way I could have got the correct torque the last time I did this job. No way you’d get a torque wrench in there. I did if FT ( f
king tight) with a very fine dob of thread lock.
In answer to which Thread Locker?
I only put it on the first 2-3 threads of the crank bolt (very marginally). It would have been one of the Locktite products. I’ve worked in engineering all my life - and often surplus from employment works its way into my garage!
I honestly couldn’t see a way of getting a torque wrench getting into that gap. And it would have been an expensive process buying and trying..
I only put it on the first 2-3 threads of the crank bolt (very marginally). It would have been one of the Locktite products. I’ve worked in engineering all my life - and often surplus from employment works its way into my garage!
I honestly couldn’t see a way of getting a torque wrench getting into that gap. And it would have been an expensive process buying and trying..
If it helps anyone this is the torque wrench I used on my Elise:
https://amzn.eu/d/jdXBPmN
It's a Draper 30357.
https://amzn.eu/d/jdXBPmN
It's a Draper 30357.
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