esprit22 79 Posted March 19, 2018 Report Share Posted March 19, 2018 How long have you (or would you) leave between cam belt changes? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CarBuff 188 Posted March 19, 2018 Report Share Posted March 19, 2018 Depends on which type belt you have fitted... A-prefix, B-prefix, or blue Gates Racing. Trapezoid or round teeth? , Quote Atwell Haines '88 Esprit Succasunna, NJ USA Link to post Share on other sites
Buddsy 1,576 Posted March 19, 2018 Report Share Posted March 19, 2018 Its 2 years buddsy Quote "Belief is the enemy of knowing" - Crrow777 Link to post Share on other sites
esprit22 79 Posted March 19, 2018 Author Report Share Posted March 19, 2018 Yeah, I know that 2 years is what Lotus say, but do you keep to that no matter what? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
pete 1,629 Posted March 19, 2018 Report Share Posted March 19, 2018 3 maximum Quote hindsight: the science that is never wrong Link to post Share on other sites
CarBuff 188 Posted March 19, 2018 Report Share Posted March 19, 2018 Factory recommendation (at least in the USA) was 2 years/25K miles on the A-prefix black belts...3 years/36K miles on the B-prefix belts. The Gates Racing blue belt is not a factory part so it's anybody's guess. BUT the Gates literature says they are : "3x Stronger and 3x more Heat Resistant than Stock Belts. High Saturation HNBR Elastomeric Composites Assist with Exceptional Durability and Heat Resistance. Reinforced Tooth Jacket Provides Extra Wear Resistance, Doubling Tooth Strength. High Strength Glass Cords Further Increase Durability. " Quote Atwell Haines '88 Esprit Succasunna, NJ USA Link to post Share on other sites
ChrisJ 1,411 Posted March 19, 2018 Report Share Posted March 19, 2018 I change them as follows Two for LC - Turbo Esprit Three for HC - Excel SE Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CarBuff 188 Posted March 19, 2018 Report Share Posted March 19, 2018 Also, don't forget: the time interval is for belts that are tensioned. So if you assemble a motor (or your Esprit is off the road for some reason, maybe @Barrykearley hasn't bought it yet) you need to start counting the minutes THEN. 1 Quote Atwell Haines '88 Esprit Succasunna, NJ USA Link to post Share on other sites
Buddsy 1,576 Posted March 19, 2018 Report Share Posted March 19, 2018 I thought the time was from when it starts the heat cycles. buddsy 1 Quote "Belief is the enemy of knowing" - Crrow777 Link to post Share on other sites
CarBuff 188 Posted March 19, 2018 Report Share Posted March 19, 2018 Sure, heat cycles could be a failure or age factor. BUT, if you think about it, the stress on a timing belt is worse (in certain places along the length) than if the engine is running. Those stressed areas are the parts that will fail. We've had local owners who 'winter' their cars for 6 months a year and then had an older black belt fray and unravel. That with less than 10K miles (admittedly, 10 years or more. I would NEVER let a TB go THAT long.) 1 Quote Atwell Haines '88 Esprit Succasunna, NJ USA Link to post Share on other sites
top-plumber 531 Posted March 19, 2018 Report Share Posted March 19, 2018 Just bought a blue belt from Gary Kemp. He states that they were manufactured for the American market to guarantee 100k in the first instance and then upgraded again to 150k. This was to prevent cambelt failure on new cars within the first few years. The car manufacturers would have been made liable for the damaged caused due to failure. As a consequence the blue belt was developed. The colour is purely to identify the product. Gary was explaining that the rest of the timing pulleys, camshaft etc would most likely wear out first, not as a consequence of the blue belt just because they last so long. I’m changing the tensioner from the semi automatic to the manual tensioner and only expect to change tensioner bearings and perhaps camseals anytime in the future. Just keep putting the same belt back on. Thats the plan anyway.. I will let you know in 10 yrs or so.. 1 Quote Suspension, brakes, chipped, chargecooler rad and pump,injectors,ignition coils and leads, BOV, highflow cat and zorst, Translator and tie rods, Head lights, LEDs to tail lights and interior,Polybushes to entire front end, Rad fans, rad grill, front end refurb with aluminium spreaderplates and galvanised bolts. Ram air, uprated fuel pump, silicone hoses through out, wheels refurbed and powder coated,much more, all maintenance. Link to post Share on other sites
Gold FFM Escape 743 Posted March 20, 2018 Gold FFM Report Share Posted March 20, 2018 I agree the blue belt should last (a lot) longer then 2 years. But it's still cheap enough to refit a new one if you take it off for the tensioner bearing or such. I use a standard belt and will replace every 2.5 to 3 years, which will be about 25k miles. Quote I have made many mistakes in my life. Buying a multiple Lotus is not one of them. Link to post Share on other sites
peteyg 300 Posted March 20, 2018 Report Share Posted March 20, 2018 For one reason an another I'm just about to change mine again. It's been on for nearly 5 years.... Quote Pete '79 S2 LEW Miss September 2009 Link to post Share on other sites
esprit22 79 Posted March 20, 2018 Author Report Share Posted March 20, 2018 Thanks for the comments guys, just booked mine in to GST, guess I shouldn't push my luck any further. 20 hours ago, top-plumber said: Just bought a blue belt from Gary Kemp. He states that they were manufactured for the American market to guarantee 100k in the first instance and then upgraded again to 150k. This was to prevent cambelt failure on new cars within the first few years. The car manufacturers would have been made liable for the damaged caused due to failure. As a consequence the blue belt was developed. The colour is purely to identify the product. Gary was explaining that the rest of the timing pulleys, camshaft etc would most likely wear out first, not as a consequence of the blue belt just because they last so long. I’m changing the tensioner from the semi automatic to the manual tensioner and only expect to change tensioner bearings and perhaps camseals anytime in the future. Just keep putting the same belt back on. Thats the plan anyway.. I will let you know in 10 yrs or so.. Interesting, not heard about this blue belt before, what is the cost of it? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
pete 1,629 Posted March 20, 2018 Report Share Posted March 20, 2018 About £120 I think Quote hindsight: the science that is never wrong Link to post Share on other sites
Popular Post Chillidoggy 4,243 Posted March 20, 2018 Popular Post Report Share Posted March 20, 2018 4 Quote Margate Exotics. Link to post Share on other sites
top-plumber 531 Posted March 20, 2018 Report Share Posted March 20, 2018 28 minutes ago, pete said: About £120 I think Kemp’s charged me £150 it was on eBay for £155... huge discount i here you cry. Not sure who else stocks them.. 1 Quote Suspension, brakes, chipped, chargecooler rad and pump,injectors,ignition coils and leads, BOV, highflow cat and zorst, Translator and tie rods, Head lights, LEDs to tail lights and interior,Polybushes to entire front end, Rad fans, rad grill, front end refurb with aluminium spreaderplates and galvanised bolts. Ram air, uprated fuel pump, silicone hoses through out, wheels refurbed and powder coated,much more, all maintenance. Link to post Share on other sites
CarBuff 188 Posted March 20, 2018 Report Share Posted March 20, 2018 (edited) No brush needed. Looks the business with blue silicone hoses! Edited March 20, 2018 by CarBuff 1 Quote Atwell Haines '88 Esprit Succasunna, NJ USA Link to post Share on other sites
esprit22 79 Posted March 21, 2018 Author Report Share Posted March 21, 2018 So how long will you leave the blue belt before changing it ? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
pete 1,629 Posted March 21, 2018 Report Share Posted March 21, 2018 150,000 miles according to @top-plumber Quote hindsight: the science that is never wrong Link to post Share on other sites
esprit22 79 Posted March 21, 2018 Author Report Share Posted March 21, 2018 Yeah noted, well i'm about to have my belt done at a cost of £500ish, would make financial sense to have a blue belt fitted then would never need to have it changed again as only do about 1200 miles a year! or does it degrade with time I wonder...hmmm Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andyww 1,238 Posted March 21, 2018 Report Share Posted March 21, 2018 Presumably blue belt only for later HTD round tooth pulleys? The other aspect of timing belts is the older rubber have a shelf life so make sure the date code is not ages old. Also tensioner bearings never seem to be as long lasting as they used to be in the old days. There seems to be a lot of low quality bearings around these days. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CarBuff 188 Posted March 21, 2018 Report Share Posted March 21, 2018 For the trapezoidal tooth belt, the blue Gates Racing belt part number is T104RB. They are slightly narrower (as are the later Esprit's Gates belts) but they work well. http://www.lotustalk.com/forums/5002618-post1.html For the eccentric type tensioner bearing, a good brand Flennor FS03299 Quote Atwell Haines '88 Esprit Succasunna, NJ USA Link to post Share on other sites
jonwat 364 Posted March 21, 2018 Report Share Posted March 21, 2018 4 hours ago, esprit22 said: Yeah noted, well i'm about to have my belt done at a cost of £500ish, would make financial sense to have a blue belt fitted then would never need to have it changed again as only do about 1200 miles a year! or does it degrade with time I wonder...hmmm Don't forget about the tensioner bearing, that's going to have to be changed long before 150K, can the tensioner be removed without removing/releasing the belt? Quote Cheers, John W http://jonwatkins.co.uk Link to post Share on other sites
top-plumber 531 Posted March 21, 2018 Report Share Posted March 21, 2018 4 hours ago, pete said: 150,000 miles according to @top-plumber According to Gary Kemp actually Pete. I wouldn’t presume to have his knowledge or skills. However I am inclined to believe that 100k is achievable with a high degree of confidence. ✌️ 2 hours ago, Andyww said: Presumably blue belt only for later HTD round tooth pulleys? The other aspect of timing belts is the older rubber have a shelf life so make sure the date code is not ages old. Also tensioner bearings never seem to be as long lasting as they used to be in the old days. There seems to be a lot of low quality bearings around these days. I have changed all the pulleys as I think the HTD tooth is more reliable also. Quote Suspension, brakes, chipped, chargecooler rad and pump,injectors,ignition coils and leads, BOV, highflow cat and zorst, Translator and tie rods, Head lights, LEDs to tail lights and interior,Polybushes to entire front end, Rad fans, rad grill, front end refurb with aluminium spreaderplates and galvanised bolts. Ram air, uprated fuel pump, silicone hoses through out, wheels refurbed and powder coated,much more, all maintenance. Link to post Share on other sites
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