Timming belt too TIGHT!!!

[James8485]

ok hope someone can enlighten me on this......

got this car its a 1.6TD anyways pump was all rebuilt as welll as motor and and it went through a big puddle and sucked up water bending a connecting rod so mtor was taken apart to replace the bent rod but when the timing belt was put back on after everyting was fixed it was suposly put on to tight?

i was told bearings in the pump where ***ed because of this, is this all that would be damaged or would this have dont other damage on anything else motor wise?

please any input would be very helpful

[theman53]

I think it would be the bushings on the input shaft and maybe the seal. I don't think unless it was ran too long that anything else could be too messed up. I am not a pump guru though. I bet Burn your money or some others that mess with the pumps could give a definative answer.

[burn_your_money]

If the pump bushings get too worn the transfer pump will get chewed up as well as the housing. They have to be REAL bad for that to happen though (usually) Other things will go bad as well but that's the worst and most common.

[8v-of-fury]

what is the proper tension to put on the tensioner then?

I have often wondered if I installed mine to tight, i didnt wrench on it.. just enough to take slack out of the belt.. and so it can twist 45degrees ()

[rabbitman]

Wiggle the IP shaft in the direction the belt pulls and see how much slop there is.

[wolf_walker]

An old dipstick with an L bent in the end, especially the VW type with the round ring you pull on it with, makes a good adjuster, keeps you from twisting on it too much.  It really don't need to be that tight. 

[Vincent Waldon]

what is the proper tension to put on the tensioner then?

The (sad) truth is that there's only one scientifically valid answer: 12-13, as measured by a timing belt tension measuring tool.



Everything else is subjectively based on how muscular your favorite hand is    and what "easily twist to 45" means to you.  VW abandoned the "45 degree" advice by the time they got to the AAZ block... and then eventually solved the whole thing with automatic tensioners.... whew.