Belt cover(s).....

[lkurek]

Guys....

Other than the "you might get something in the belt" responses, is there any reason why I can't ditch the timing belt guards on the front of motor? I had an old Chevette that I pulled the covers from the timing belt.....and it made NO difference. If GM just puts these on to protect people from putting their fingers in them.....well......

Thx!

[SappySE107]

Let me know how long the belt lasts without the covers on there.

[lkurek]

OK......and why should it matter if they have a cover or not on them? As long as I am not spraying WD40 or something all over the belt (as an example), what impact could it have?

Does anyone have any eral world knowledge?

Seriously......it had ZERO impact on belt life on my Chevette back in the day, nor has it been an issue for my sisters Escort POS.

All I recall was that the covers were put on for "safety" reasons..... And I like to see the spinning pulleys and be able to check on the condition of the belt regularly

[patgizz]

i fail to see why one would chance something getting in there. checking the belt regularly requires pulling a pair of easily accessable bolts.

[RednBlack]

OK......and why should it matter if they have a cover or not on them? As long as I am not spraying WD40 or something all over the belt (as an example), what impact could it have?

Does anyone have any eral world knowledge?

Seriously......it had ZERO impact on belt life on my Chevette back in the day, nor has it been an issue for my sisters Escort POS.

All I recall was that the covers were put on for "safety" reasons..... And I like to see the spinning pulleys and be able to check on the condition of the belt regularly

I've run without them on cars before. No trouble. But it is flirting with disaster.
The covers keep out more than just big particles. Say a coolant line breaks...

Remember, the LQ1 turns some cool rpms. Although non-interference, sitting on the roadside is a PITA.

But, it is your car.

Pros and cons, in my eyes say, leave them on.

[z34phoenix]

if you want to see cut a hole and glue in a piece of clear plastic! i live near the beach and the amount of sand that blows in the air is amazing even if your not driving within a mile of the beach you still get sand on it and in the engine compartment! like everyone else says... its your engine. but dont start bitching about how hard/expensive the Tbelt is to change when something goes down there!

[HayesPerformance]

Unless Your doing it JUST at some car show to show off some fancy polished or Colored timing gears for looks, and then after putting them BACK ON, then great, otherwise its a unwise thing to do!

The ONLY time I see any Pro racers have them off is on FWD ( Honda's for eg. ) that are used in Drags where access for a Very quick change on the timing gear adjustment is needed, EVEN then some Cut two round holes in the cover SO the timing can be adjusted WITHOUT removing the cover.

Regards,
Dave

[Jogasz28]

Having just completed a timing belt replacement on my 3.4L DOHC, I do remember the factory manual and several warnings from others about keeping any oil from getting on the timing belt. Oil reduces the belts life.
My timing belt cover was cracked in several places. I repaired it and gladly reinstalled it. It seems to me to be a no-brainer.

[series8217]

I wrecked my 3.4 DOHC Fiero back in November and one of the timing belt covers got shattered, allowing glass from the also broken rear window to get into the timing belt area. This glass got ground up into dust and would have done some nice polish work on the cam cogs if I had let the motor run longer without removing the belt and cleaning up everything. ALSO one piece of glass got between the belt and a cog.. instead of getting crushed to bits the glass simply busted through the belt so the belt was reduced to half strength there due to the split area. The same thing could happen if a rock got in there.
Also consider the fact that at the very bottom of the timing belt area, there is only a fraction of an inch of clearance between the belt and the aluminum cover. The cover is machined here to provide the necessary clearance. If anything gets in the cover and falls down to that point (which it will since its the lowest spot) it will be smashed between the belt and the cover. That's going to do some damage. It could even jam up your intermediate shaft and cause internal damage to your motor. You COULD modify the cover to prevent this from happening. I don't think its worth the risk.

[RednBlack]

You could get really inventive. Make some clear Lexan covers.

[z34phoenix]

yeah! or go buy a honda engine! they have all the kits stocked and ready for you!

[lkurek]

I'm not too worried about messing up belts and getting stuff tossed/stuck in there. Seriously, I have done this on a couple engines in the past, with no problems. Even if there WAS, I can just drop a new belt on if it starts to get messed up.....

Thanks for the many opinions guys

[z34phoenix]

wow you sound a little over confident about doing the timing belt on this car! have you done it before? there is a reason why GM charges near 2grand to change it... there is over $200 in parts alone you need when doing a std replacement... and this is without .....
never mind... run it without the cover! just DO it.

just be sure when the motor is scrap that you post the engine in our forum for parts.

[SappySE107]

The timing belt is easy. 2 grand? I charge 300 plus parts. Its only hard if a lock ring or cam bolt wants to ruin your day. I know the hours on it are close to actual if you are good at it.

The problem is, the author doesn't care about throwing the belt and losing the timing, and says so in the first post. The answer to the question is no, there is no other reason other than what you don't care about. Apparently GM likes to waste money on those sorts of details.