Technical Cam belt fail

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Technical Cam belt fail

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Feb 24, 2014
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Anyone had this happen? Happened at extremely low speed so hoping no damage to valves. Any way of checking this and is there a how to on replacing cam belt on a 1.9 jtd?
Suggestions greatfully received (please! I got everything crossed!)
 
Anyone had this happen? Happened at extremely low speed so hoping no damage to valves. Any way of checking this and is there a how to on replacing cam belt on a 1.9 jtd?
Suggestions greatfully received (please! I got everything crossed!)

Hi.
LOTS of threads on JTD belt failures,
biggest thing is to know WHY before you trash another top-end;)

generally it'll be another bearing in the belts run.. that's why it's best to do the waterpump , as well as idlers,

GUIDES will have several JTD ones - some from ALFA sites

Charlie
 
Thanks chaps.
Will have a look in the morning as to the condition of the belt as there was no debris on the road (fingers crossed its not too bad!)
Then will check out the how to guide as I would like to save £200 ish in labour!
 
It's a pretty simple job...hardest part is putting that bloody aux belt back on!!
Recommend having a helping hand for that..the rest is straight forward
 
First step in diagnosing possibly bent valves is to check the valve clearances. If they're a bit big, they're bent.
However, if valves have hit pistons, even if lucky not to bend them, they may have compressed the piston top and jammed the rings. Only real way to tell is to remove the pistons, which is a big job. Might be possible with the sump and head off.
Slow engine speed usually results in less damage, so cross fingers, fit a new belt and give it a try. Belt failure at slow speed is quite common as stresses tend to be higher then, at faster speeds some momentum reduces the belt stresses. When belts were a new thing, it used to be quite common for failure to occur as the engine was turned off, the little kick as it stops was often the last straw for a struggling belt.

Good luck.
 
Well I took it all to bits this morning to find that the cam shaft pulley drive dog had snapped off. I'm hoping this means the 'dog' gave way before the valves hit the pistons hard enough to bend. I'm going to leave the rest up to my mechanic now. I'm thinking the worst now though. Is it worth putting a replacement engine in? Car is an 06 with 97k on the clock.
 
Have you tried turning the crank with a socket on the crank pulley to see if you come up against anything 'solid'? That may give you an idea of how bad things are.
 
Dog breaks when camshaft will not turn.
a) Piston hit valve, so bent valve will not move.
b) Cam seized due to lack of oil.

a) Replacement engine, if known good is a good option.
b) Replacement head will do the job.

Remove cam cover and see what you find.
Cheers portland_bill
I have cranked over the cam and the engine and nothing is resisting movement. Plenty of oil circulating so I have found a replacement on flea bay for £350 just waiting to hear on millage of said lump. Not looked at just the head as if valve has hit the piston wouldn't the piston be more damaged than the valve? Steel meets ally= win for steel!
 
When valves and piston meet, damage will depend on angle of valve, where on piston it hits, and how hard.
If it hits hard near the outer edge of the piston, it compresses the ring grooves and seizes the rings. New pistons is the correct repair. If the valve hits nearer the middle, often the damaged area can be cleaned with a light file, to prevent hot spots, and all is well.
If valves are hit hard enough, or at an angle, valve guides can break, or heads can crack. Only a proper examination will tell.
A good replacement engine fixes it all.
 
Bringing up an old thread I know but did you find out if piston hit valves.
I have a 06 plate 1.9 jtd with cam belt gone.
 
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