montana tom Posted June 13, 2018 Share Posted June 13, 2018 Last summer I installed a timing kit , ntn, koyo , nsk and a mitsuboshi belt. Didn't think anything of it until after the install when I noticed it was mitsuboshi, made in Malaysia...I double checked all the idlers and they were good. I let it leave the shop hoping I wasn't making a costly mistake. In the months since then I have installed over a dozen timing kits, almost all with mitsuboshi belts and every one was made in Japan... Today I went to install a kit in a 96 2.2 and the mitsubishi timing belt is made in Thailand... all the ntn nsk koyo idlers are all still Japan made. I'm wondering if mitsuboshi has moved manufacturing facility's to Asia? Was i getting old stock with the japan made belts ? Or is there knockoff mitsuboshi timing belts being marketed ? A subaru branded belt costs me almost $40.00 more with a kit . I do install them for the customers that want only original equipment parts, but for my resale cars i always used the mitsuboshi belts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 Lucky Texan Posted June 14, 2018 Share Posted June 14, 2018 well, kinda bad news Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosens Posted June 14, 2018 Share Posted June 14, 2018 Thailand is where the rubber comes from if that makes you feel any better. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subaru Scott Posted June 14, 2018 Share Posted June 14, 2018 Really would hate to see Mitsuboshi quality go downhill. Back in the days before timing belts even, Mitsuboshi V-belts were second to none. They would last forever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vtwinjunkie Posted June 14, 2018 Share Posted June 14, 2018 So what are you going to switch to now? I may need to buy a kit soon so I was wondering. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montana tom Posted June 14, 2018 Author Share Posted June 14, 2018 (edited) I think so, $40.00 extra for piece of mind. The one I installed last year is running fine ... but still, I can't afford to have comebacks. Not so much the money but reputation . 200858175013 ebay item # $266 with branded belt Edited June 14, 2018 by montana tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted June 14, 2018 Share Posted June 14, 2018 Always been that way. Mitsuboshi has multiple factories. All of them are "managed" by Japanese oversight. They have upper management Japanese on-site. Thailand and Malaysia are like Japan's Mexico. All those parts are fine I've installed thousands of them with zero failures. I have had two Gates belts come apart before 105k, and all of their kits have Chinese idlers and some weird tensioner made in Canada. I won't buy them for several years now. GD 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montana tom Posted June 14, 2018 Author Share Posted June 14, 2018 Thanks GD that's great news! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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