Had a busy week in the workshop post Billing, as usual had a few cam belt jobs in and one in particular should serve as a warning to how NOT to get the job done, it is not a technically hard job but familiarity makes it much easier, no doubt many garages are more than able to perform a belt swap but can make mistakes due to lack of direct experience in the 300zx.
This particular zed had some known history and was said to have had a belt change prior to the present owner buying it.
Looking throught the attched pics what was obvious from the copious amounts of orange sealant everywhere was someone had definately been in there lately. However to start the intake turbo pipes where the wrong way around streaching one and compressing the other. The top two plastic belt covers had bolts missing, when releasing the adjuster pulley wheel for the air con belt the assembly had been put together incorrectly so the face of the cover washer was scrapping the front face of the pulley wheel.
More dismantling and low and behold no thermostat fitted! now could of been done to help the car run cooler who knows, but one thing it can do is not let the car attain running temperature correctly which in turn could potentially use more fuel.
As the bottom pulley wheel was been removed it was obvious from the damage to it that it had been removed with a hammer previously and not the correc t puller.
The lower belt cover is made of steel and when removing this you can see from the picture the case was bent in and the belt had been rubbing on it. (note hammer use on pulley above)
The water pump was well not totally worn out but was also not the original as orange sealant had oozed out the sides when fitted previously, but the state of it leads me to believe it was most likely a used pump that had been fitted!
Following a replacement of said items and replacement of missing bolts fluid and filter changes this zed was not only running a lot happier but had luckily avoided the traumer of a failure in this area, this is mostly due to the owner not taking for granted that the belt had been done from a passing comment of the seller, seems whether it be a private sale or a trade sale be CAREFUL I for one supply a photo journal with all cam belt changes for service history purposes and this in turn proves without a doubt the work has been done. Again be careful who does your belt just because it is a garage or a mechanic who is generally good they need to be familiar with the 300zx to give the best service, there are few dedicated members on this forum who are able to do this very well.
Hope this helps with how NOT to get your belt changed
Had a busy week in the workshop post Billing, as usual had a few cam belt jobs in and one in particular should serve as a warning to how NOT to get the job done, it is not a technically hard job but familiarity makes it much easier, no doubt many garages are more than able to perform a belt swap but can make mistakes due to lack of direct experience in the 300zx.
This particular zed had some known history and was said to have had a belt change prior to the present owner buying it.
Looking throught the attched pics what was obvious from the copious amounts of orange sealant everywhere was someone had definately been in there lately. However to start the intake turbo pipes where the wrong way around streaching one and compressing the other. The top two plastic belt covers had bolts missing, when releasing the adjuster pulley wheel for the air con belt the assembly had been put together incorrectly so the face of the cover washer was scrapping the front face of the pulley wheel.
More dismantling and low and behold no thermostat fitted! now could of been done to help the car run cooler who knows, but one thing it can do is not let the car attain running temperature correctly which in turn could potentially use more fuel.
As the bottom pulley wheel was been removed it was obvious from the damage to it that it had been removed with a hammer previously and not the correc t puller.
The lower belt cover is made of steel and when removing this you can see from the picture the case was bent in and the belt had been rubbing on it. (note hammer use on pulley above)
The water pump was well not totally worn out but was also not the original as orange sealant had oozed out the sides when fitted previously, but the state of it leads me to believe it was most likely a used pump that had been fitted!
Following a replacement of said items and replacement of missing bolts fluid and filter changes this zed was not only running a lot happier but had luckily avoided the traumer of a failure in this area, this is mostly due to the owner not taking for granted that the belt had been done from a passing comment of the seller, seems whether it be a private sale or a trade sale be CAREFUL I for one supply a photo journal with all cam belt changes for service history purposes and this in turn proves without a doubt the work has been done. Again be careful who does your belt just because it is a garage or a mechanic who is generally good they need to be familiar with the 300zx to give the best service, there are few dedicated members on this forum who are able to do this very well.
Hope this helps with how NOT to get your belt changed
Jeff TT