WJM Posted July 2, 2004 Share Posted July 2, 2004 Well...the 88 RX...was headed over to Pleiades' place...had pulled some good front axles to restore it to FT4WD...i had everything else (minus a small intake peice, and an inner fenderwell cover) restored to Stock OW condition....mechanically atleast. No spare tire (mount was cut to make roon for an IC), fan shoud still gone, and some interior stuff (stock radio, floor mats, some dash peices) still no quite done yet.....So, it running beautifully. Quiet...strong...peaceful....had enough tools minus a jack to change just the axles....headed up a long hill after a slow tight corner...no power. NO rpms, no oil pressure....some vac....Drivers side T-belt. Pull car off on a small side private property access road...oh, thats right...its got stock T belt covers...and rust is holding the elec fan onto the rad. Great...Pleiades was so very kind to bring parts and tool enough to fix it...both belts, the idle'ler came apart, and the tenioner (what I seen of it) was messed up...i beat most of the covers off with a hammer large sscrew drive....but as night fell...the light stopped working, and the mosquitos came out to play...in FORCE. Hot humid...no breeze....1 minute left on the cell phone....Oh and dont foget to throw in the freshly wet red mud/clay....Rescue comes 1 hour later in the form of a 1996 Outback, my dad. So...saturday's project: Rescue RX. More tools, more parts, and bring Pleiades's stuff back. Get the RX home...and finnish it! Wait...i need gas $ for the wagon...its got none. Anyhow, I hate t-belt covers, if not for those, I would be home with the RX right now..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephenw22 Posted July 2, 2004 Share Posted July 2, 2004 That's the reason why I leave the covers off. Even though I live about 3mi. off the main road over some rough gravel and dirt roads, it's still not worth putting the covers on. We had a wet spring here, and I slogged through a lot of mud and water, but the belts don't seem to be wearing out any faster than when the covers are on. All I do is carry a set of old t-belts and tensioners in my car. Last time a t-belt broke on one of my cars, it only took me an hour to replace everything. You just have to figure out what your time is worth to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nutt7 Posted July 2, 2004 Share Posted July 2, 2004 i took my coverless wagon through mud and rocks and I thought all was ok, then one day while changing the oil I noticed the driver t belt had a tear about 1/3 of the width of the belt. a rock must have got caught in there. but its been 3 months and it is still holding...oh yes, i too hate t belt covers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baccaruda Posted July 2, 2004 Share Posted July 2, 2004 seems to me that a nice compromise would be a little undershield, maybe using the cover's stock lower mounting locations. I wouldn't think you'd have much to worry about EXCEPT from undercar ricochets... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbone Posted July 2, 2004 Share Posted July 2, 2004 In the short expeirence I've had with EA82's, the T-belts have been a hassle. But I wouldnt run without them, they are there for a purpose. There has to be a way to do away with the nuts and bolts, these are the culprits. If we could find some clips that would go from one side to the other, these would be the ticket. Easy to remove and replace, quick and simple. If anyone has a source for something like this, speak up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subiemech85 Posted July 2, 2004 Share Posted July 2, 2004 something like "jeep" hood latches, possibly the stretchy rubber type found on new holland spreader shields Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garner Posted July 2, 2004 Share Posted July 2, 2004 I wonder if those really strong rare-earth magnets could be set in the front covers and screws in the rear covers?... Just a thought, those magnets are so frickin' strong I bet they would hold just fine. The other problem is the crank pulley has to come off. Perhaps one could make that piece into two pieces that are split down the center of the hole. I hate these things too but I will continue to use them garner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WJM Posted July 2, 2004 Author Share Posted July 2, 2004 The center peice is the main issue...and w/out the engine being out of the car, its a pain to slip the belts on with the back covers on...it wraps around the sprocket/gear/pully really closely.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWX Posted July 3, 2004 Share Posted July 3, 2004 or you could run a complete engine under cover( like a rally car) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MilesFox Posted July 4, 2004 Share Posted July 4, 2004 if we could pretend the car never came with covers, you could have fixed it in 20m minutes! clip on belt covers would defeat their own purpose if we couldnt make a quick disconnect crank pulley and dipstick, clutch fan. those are the hassles in my experience i fixed a timing belt off the side of the road(in town, took all afternoon) about 4 hours. not too fun. open belts on the next car, broke one, fixed it in 45 min in the dark with a flaslight, 75 miles from home next time in the rx, open belts, fixed it in the time it took for danny to take his dads car home and come back with the truck(in town, 20 min) all the broken belts withthe open application was from the use of existing/used belts. THOUSANDS of miles , 2 trips west and back, no poroblem. baja'n no problems. no excess wear, oil leaks stay off the belts! the whole idea that i am preaching is over the road troubles, quick repair time, get going before the state patrol finds you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beavis Posted July 4, 2004 Share Posted July 4, 2004 I dunno why you guys hate the covers so much. It's just like 10 easily accessable bolts. The bottom ones can be a problem if they just turn and don't come out though. I only torque the crankshaft to 45ft/lbs so it can be taken off with an adjustable open end wrench which I keep in the car, if I ever need to do a roadside repair. My biggest complaint is the fan becaue I have big hands. Is there any easy way to deal with those four bolts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MilesFox Posted July 4, 2004 Share Posted July 4, 2004 a longer 10mm wrench. makes it MUCH easier. 7/8 wrench to hold the shaft i personally would not want to take all the fan, pulley, and dipstick, outer covers off to get the inner cover off(to get going again) . the time it takes to do all that i would be done. just my preference, anyway. i would play with timing belt covers if i was bored, or if it was someone elses car and they wanted keep them on. i dont mind doing so if the motor is out and apart Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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