97 Talon T.BELT busted - Bent valves

[kriss440]

Hi Guys,

my Gf's Talon TSI busted the timing belt last tuesday,

She say the car just shut-off while driving about 30 mph...

So ALL the valves are bent, there are marks on the pistons as well, but no damage to the cylinder wall.
Beside the surface marks on the pistons i cant tell if the damage are serious and worth changing the pistons??

Whats your experience with that?

Im ok with replacing the head and related component,
the pistons too if realy necessary.

But not if it is going to rehappen anytime soon!!

So what can be the cause of that belt failure????


thanx!!

[dirtyglhturbo]

if the pistons just have small imprints, which they prolly do, you'll be fine with a valve job. its usually the exhaust valves. have a machine shop verify that for you. the belt prolly failed due to a bad tensioner, but i'm not there, so its just a guess. i'd replace the tensioner, and the waterpump. spin any other pulleys to make sure they are good too. do that, and you will have a sucessfull long lasting repair.

p.s i really recomend oem parts for this, but its your call

[89turbodude]

^+1

and the timing belts on those should be replaced at 60k I think it is, they are known to snap after mileage

[2.2LturboI]

Hey and if for some odd reason You dont want to fix it you can part it out to me =).

[detobias]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dirtyglhturbo if the pistons just have small imprints, which they prolly do, you'll be fine with a valve job. its usually the exhaust valves. have a machine shop verify that for you. the belt prolly failed due to a bad tensioner, but i'm not there, so its just a guess. i'd replace the tensioner, and the waterpump. spin any other pulleys to make sure they are good too. do that, and you will have a sucessfull long lasting repair. p.s i really recomend oem parts for this, but its your call

+2

did my TSi twice in the last 2 yrs; 2nd time due to a failed tensioner (small hydraulic piston, not the roller itself) which DID give me warning by clack-clacking at low revs ; too bad I ignored it

PS its a b*tch job, *but* you can port the exh mani and turbine inlet and "O2 Housing" while yur at it

[kriss440]

I wont take any chances with it so ill change the auto-tensionner and the roller too , thanx for the advices

[dodgeshadowchik]

yes, the talon/eclipse run interference engines, which means regular timing belt changes are necessary. usually at 60K intervals, like mentioned above.

[detobias]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kriss440 I wont take any chances with it so ill change the auto-tensionner and the roller too , thanx for the advices

well the rollers probably OK but I guess it is cheap insurance

and the tensioner is a bit expensive.. 70 or so IIRC

BUT cheaper than 8 new exh valves, DAMHIK

[kriss440]

Im still trying to figure how the hell they didnt put releif for valves clearance in those pistons!!

[dodgeshadowchik]

interference engines are the way they are to squeese more power from the small displacement.

virtually all of the newer, espically forgein cars, are interference and require regular timing belt replacements. Even the 2.0L dodge neon is interference....

[detobias]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dodgeshadowchik interference engines are the way they are to squeese more power from the small displacement. virtually all of the newer, espically forgein cars, are interference and require regular timing belt replacements. Even the 2.0L dodge neon is interference....

^ +1 ; or to squeeze more power from a big engine too

almost impossible to get high compression ratios (CRs) without being interference

[wolf20043]

I would personally change the whole timing assembly. I have over 5 grand invested in Julias 92, and would hate to loose the t-belt due to skimping on parts. Both tensioners, idler pulley, water pump, and belt. Valves are not too bad to change, but you will need to check the guides to be sure they did not break as well.
Mike

[GLHExorcist]

...as a side note, while changing all that, check the crank seal and make sure it's not leaking. That's what killed mine twice. (Oil + rubber = other things then pregnancy!)

[Mr Peepers]

Take the burrs off the nicks on the piston tops and you should be good to go.

When you bend the valves I've noticed the valve guides crack as well. A complete used head can be had for probably cheaper than refurbishing the one you have. A non turbo head will bolt right on as well (if it's a 1g) and the only difference are the cams which you can swap from your old one.

As far as parts for the timing belt job/misc gaskets to throw everything back together most people will say OEM but I've also had luck with partsdinosaur.com -it's much much cheaper.

Oh, and some causes could be contamination to the belt whether it's oil/coolant/etc, excessively worn timing belt(60k+), balance shaft belt breaking(often neglected during timing belt change) and getting sucked into the timing belt, or the tensioner failing.

EDIT: Just realized it said 97 in the headline... Any turbo 95-99 will swap. Use vfaq.com to aid you through the timing process.

[GLHExorcist]

I thought that the Turbo heads had ss valves and the n-a heads had reg iron valves no?