Well guys.... Heres a little update. It was a bad water pump. Real bad. The car just rolled over on 145k. The original owner never had the original timing belt and water pump replaced. After taking everything apart, I realized how lucky I was that the pump was the only thing to go. The belt was severely cracking.
My mother had an '86, then upgraded to a '93 Pajero (so euro) 2.5TDI GLS. Not what you're looking at but I'll share some stuff FWIW. She sold the '93 in 2010. It was a pretty good car. Big and slow, but surprisingly comfortable, especially in the front. These are not as refined as a Range Rover etc, and they feel a bit like farm equipment at times. Got around really well in snow and cold with its advanced 4WD system, could put it in 2WD and get power oversteer too (I managed to smash a fence this way). Interior never felt top quality, but held up really well in terms of wear and tear. Floaty steering feel, squishy manual gearbox, easy clutch, squishy but decent brakes, turbo lag diesel engine. The timing belt snapped (probably because the mechanic did not replace it properly) and the head cracked, which cost a lot of money to replace and was difficult to source. Overall, not a great driving experience, but a decent and solid car that will do whatever you ask of it without grumbling.
It is still a really great product that will last longer than an ordinary belt.
Never heard of them before, but I just installed a Gates Racing (blue) timing belt on my 2.8L Passat.
Well to clarify. I just bought a belt from the dealer and it is a gates. So if your belt looks pretty beat up then its stock. I would change it asap as others sugested. Its cheaper in the long run.
They haven't been out long enough to give concrete evidence. I will say that RAI's clearly reselling a belt made elsewhere so who knows what you're getting and Gates has a long track record for selling pretty tough belts.
my dad has a 97 and that car has been pretty much great to him. never had a tranny issue or a head-gasket. the only problems he has had are have the timing belt snap on him (we think due to improper installation), leaking valve cover gasket (it is a PITA to change) and a heater core leak nothing insane though.
I bought a Mitsoboshi (not misspelled) from autohauz az a bit ago and it had a more round, but not completely half moon round, tooth profile than I've seen before on Contitech timing belts.
Bumping this necro-thread to add my review for anyone searching the archives. Bought the ultimate plus with Gates belt kit. Car started rattling like a diesel last night. Quick inspection shows a loose timing belt, hydraulic fluid everywhere and a dead tensioner. Total mileage since install 28,225 and less than two years (21 months). I was lucky to have caught it before it jumped teeth and pistons met valve train. Just wanted to caution people to pay attention to the warning signs. If your car sounds like a diesel or a spray bomb being shaken, take a quick look under the timing belt cover and replace what you need to before driving any further...
So my gates racing belt snapped. This is the reason i bought gates so my t belt wouldnt break, 40 miles after valves were replaced t belt breaks. Fantastic. They have great QC. Just kidding. There had to have been a flaw, the way it broke
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