Mrs Imprezive

Hi Guys, hubby and myself plan to change cambelt some point v soon, should we put a new tensioner on just to be safe (85k) assuming the one fitted is original. How many miles are they rated for?? 60ish???.

Is there anything else we should watch for/ be carefull of?
Hubby kinda knows his way round an engine,lol

OR- are we safer getting it done in a garage so we have some sort of come back if things go wrong wi the new belt??
Me thinks the latter might be the best option.
Advice apreciated,

Thanks,
Heather.

binxta350

what scooby is it?is it a wrxsti,the best thing to do is take it in and have it done at a garage,it will be ready for one as well at 85k,if it's not already had one,normally their ready at about 65k,it will probably need new tensioner's as well,best to be safe not sorry.Reason for asking if it's a wrxsti is that they are quad cam and it will not be adviseable to touch it you need specialist tools for the jobs

206CC

I would recommend a new tensioner, even if the piston on the old one doesn't look as if it is leaking..
That includes the "new" QA approved tensioners.. The old ones have a Blue paint spot on them and have a tendancy to leak.. The "new" ones have a Green spot on them, but they still leak...

Also I would consider having the Front crank oil seal replaced at the same time as the belt.. Its a fairly common problem, and only takes 15 mins to replace..
Make sure whoever does it bonds the new seal into the oil pump housing with some silicon gasket paste. this will stop it popping out over time..
Most of the leaking seals I have replaced don't leak from the lip that runs on the crank, but leak from the outer edge where they start to be pushed out of the oil pump..
The seal will not completely fall out as it is stopped by the crankshaft toothed pulley..

Scooby Dealer Tech

dnb

binxta350 - all turbo'd Scoobs are quad cam.

It's not that difficult to change the belt - I did mine in the summer and it took no more than a couple of hours.

If it's the second belt then I'd suggest that a new tensioner would be a good idea, along with the crank oil seal.
(I didn't fit a new tensioner, and so far it's been OK - I do keep my eye on it though!)

FERRARINUTTER

Many garages will inspect & reccommend; others will automatically replace, some won't do anything......

At £96 plus vat (roughly) for a tensioner they are not cheap though may well be worth changing.

Mrs Imprezive

Cheers guys, the quad cam thing made me scratch my head, as i also thought all boxters were quad cam- even N/a scoobs, but i'm just a woman,lol
Where would be the best place to get a tensioner and front seal?? Are these dealer parts or can they be sourced cheaper elsewhere?? We have the new belt ( from GGR ) already but were unsure of the tensioner needing replaced or not. So will get them bits sorted asap.

Thanks guys,
Heather
97 5drTbo

caz1562

Tensioners are normally sourced from dealers. However, I got mine from AWD in Perth.

I done the timing belt myself but we had the engine out at the time. Obviously doing it in situ is a tad tricky, but I'm sure you'd manage no problem without any special tools. Make sure the timing marks are spot on plus the GGR belt is a breeze as it has all the timing positions marked so you don't need to count the teeth .

FERRARINUTTER

Shop around as you may find better prices, Simon @ Roger Clark is superb to get pieces from.......

dnb

Some of the NA Scoobs only have two cams.

Mrs Imprezive

lol Dmb, told ya i was just a woman, Caz- we were wondering what the lines were for, thought it might be pully related.
Had a look at ravensblade for info on belt last night, looks a walk in the park i think! also confirmed the marks on the belt.
Will try Jim Clark and AWD for prices though.

Thanks again,
H

dnb

The timing belt on the Impreza is about as easy as it gets. Just watch the top LH side (IIRC) camshaft, as it's the only one that will move when the belt tension is let off. All the others stay still.

I've done a few timing belts now on different cars - and come to the conclusion that transverse mounted engines are a work of evil.
Especially Montego turbo diesels.