Jump to content
SAU Community

Gates Timing Belt Whirring Noise

SeaNo180

By SeaNo180,
in General Maintenance

 Share

Recommended Posts

SeaNo180 Apprentice

SeaNo180

Posted
Posted

Hey all,

over the weekend i did a major service on my r33 rb25det, changed the water pump and put a Gates high performance timing belt kit (yes i changed the idler and tensioner etc)

Now when my car gets hot it makes a slight whirring sound..

i have read many topics which say the belt is too tight, others say that the Gates performance belts make this noise because they are a hard composite material..

What are other peoples suggestions? Does anyone have this timing belt kit (blue belt) and have no noise?


If so, can i adjust the idler without taking the bloody balancer off again?


Cheers

Link to comment
https://www.sau.com.au/forums/topic/444746-gates-timing-belt-whirring-noise/
Share on other sites
89CAL Grand Master

89CAL

Posted
Posted

My gates belt is fine. And have to agree I wouldnt try and do it without pulling the covers off properly.

I tried to do something with the bottom cover after I'd put my balancer on and it just wouldnt happen. Luckily for me it was only something minor and cosmetic so I just got over it, but yeah its not really possible to pull it off on an engine stand let alone in the car.

jiffo Mentor

jiffo

Posted
Posted

Yes this topic has been discussed countless times and it's always the same reply, incorrect tension.

Set the tension correctly and your belt will run as silently as a stock belt.

Set it too tight and once the engine's hot, the belt is over tensioned.

That's the idler bearing you can hear complaining, noise will reduce once the bearing tolerances increase.

I saw this mod on the GTROC forum.

Would still be a finicky operation and totally unnecessary if the owner had used a Nissan belt.

post-73571-0-06277300-1403469542_thumb.jpg

AngryRB Grand Master

AngryRB

Posted
Posted (edited)

Mine has always made that noise with the old Nissan belt then with the new belt, a mechanic friend dripped some water over the belt while it was running and it went silent so Ive

been bit confused about where the noise comes from.

How can you know if you have the right tension, is there a special tool for measuring it?

Edited by AngryRB
scotty nm35 Grand Master

scotty nm35

Posted
Posted

The Gates belts are Kevlar, which won't stretch much, if at all. As the block expands with heat it needs to either stretch a little or be run a little slack when cold. I would prefer to just run the Nissan belt.

  • Like 1
jjman Mentor

jjman

Posted
Posted

to give the SAU mechanics a bit more info to go on id recommend you get your phone and make a video of

1: the noise (which can help determine if it is the belt or the idler).

2: take off the cam cover and video yourself manually twisting the belt by hand to show us how much tension is on it.

Bottom line is that noises from cam belts are common and most likely nothing to worry about. But if indeed it is too tight, then you need to worry about it...

jiffo Mentor

jiffo

Posted
Posted

Some posters are missing the point.

If the belt runs silently when the engine's cold, then becomes noisy once at operating temp., something's wrong…...

Too tight.

What astounds me is that after years of discussion about noisy belts, growling idler bearings etc, a topic like this is still posted.

It's old news. Just do the job right.

jjman Mentor

jjman

Posted
Posted

Some posters are missing the point.

If the belt runs silently when the engine's cold, then becomes noisy once at operating temp., something's wrong…...

Too tight.

What astounds me is that after years of discussion about noisy belts, growling idler bearings etc, a topic like this is still posted.

It's old news. Just do the job right.

maybe, maybe not. This has always been the fact with the timing belt noises. You cant say for certain without a bit of testing that it is or isn't a problem. i.e. that it is or isn't just belt noise or noise from incorrect tension.

djvoodoo Experienced

djvoodoo

Posted
Posted

Had my Gates racing belt put on 10,000km ago. Still whines slightly when warm. Belt was put on by a very well known garage in Sydney (lots of love for the workshop here on SAU too)

Had many knowledgable mechanics say they are slightly noisier than normal belts (and trust them over joe blo in the interwebs)

jiffo Mentor

jiffo

Posted
Posted

Unsure if the Joe Blow reference was directed at me, couldn't really care but I will offer some insight for those interested.

I've experimented with belt tension a fair bit, a lot more I'd hazard than any workshop where the obvious criteria is to get the vehicle serviced and out.

I fitted up belts and ran the vehicle at operating temp with NO bottom belt cover. Continually did tension checks as well as monitoring the harmonics these strange 4-pulley systems generate.

Can honestly say I've only read of one other owner who has also gone to this much effort and it is a lot of work.

But I'm 64, retired and have time on my hands for such investigations.

Yes I got Gates belts to run silently, but as I said ages back, they're simply not worth all the hassle. Unless one is doing this work on a daily basis, you will forget the exact tension required. Job then has to be done twice.

Yes a brand new idler will groan if belt tension is too tight. Slacken the belt slightly and the noise disappears.

This is idler noise, not tensioner which I've never had make a noise as it's on the slack side of the belt.

If a tensioner groans, you're so far over tensioned it's ready to snap the idler stud.

All these noises are so easy to pin point with the covers removed, no guesswork at all.

  • Like 2
djvoodoo Experienced

djvoodoo

Posted
Posted

Unsure if the Joe Blow reference was directed at me, couldn't really care but I will offer some insight for those interested.

I've experimented with belt tension a fair bit, a lot more I'd hazard than any workshop where the obvious criteria is to get the vehicle serviced and out.

I fitted up belts and ran the vehicle at operating temp with NO bottom belt cover. Continually did tension checks as well as monitoring the harmonics these strange 4-pulley systems generate.

Can honestly say I've only read of one other owner who has also gone to this much effort and it is a lot of work.

But I'm 64, retired and have time on my hands for such investigations.

Yes I got Gates belts to run silently, but as I said ages back, they're simply not worth all the hassle. Unless one is doing this work on a daily basis, you will forget the exact tension required. Job then has to be done twice.

Yes a brand new idler will groan if belt tension is too tight. Slacken the belt slightly and the noise disappears.

This is idler noise, not tensioner which I've never had make a noise as it's on the slack side of the belt.

If a tensioner groans, you're so far over tensioned it's ready to snap the idler stud.

All these noises are so easy to pin point with the covers removed, no guesswork at all.

Wasn't directed at you at all. Just meant it in a non dscriptive sense.

  • 3 weeks later...
XGTRX Veteran

XGTRX

Posted
Posted (edited)

I've experimented with belt tension a fair bit, a lot more I'd hazard than any workshop where the obvious criteria is to get the vehicle serviced and out.

With all due respect Sir there are many workshops that will only use gates belts that whine their whole life and they stand by their products and services and have had no failures in drag, track, and street cars hundreds upon hundreds of times over. And furthermore would be more than happy to rebuild an engine if they did. Just saying that not all of them have the criteria you suggest. Reputation has a lot to do with it. Edited by XGTRX

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing


  • Similar Content

  • Latest Posts

    • GTSBoy
      What brakes on R34 GTT(Europe)

      By GTSBoy · Posted

      I would just put EBC back on the "I would not use their stuff" pile and move on.
    • Duncan
      What brakes on R34 GTT(Europe)

      By Duncan · Posted

      Can I suggest you try EBC directly again and link them to as many competitor catalogues as you can to show their listing is incorrect, eg https://dba.com.au/product/front-4000-series-hd-brake-rotor-dba42304/ If you have access to an R33 GTST VIN and your VIN, you could also use a Nissan Parts lookup like Amayama to show them the part number is different between 33 GTST and 34 GTT which may get their attention
    • Kapr
      What brakes on R34 GTT(Europe)

      By Kapr · Posted

      So i got reply from EBC and they just this site where you can clearly see those 296mm fronts on R34 GTT. I send them photos and "quotes" that 296mm are not for 34 GTT and they are too small. But it will be very hard to return them cuz nobody here knows 100% and they just copy those EBC catalogue :-D https://ebcbrakesdirect.com/automotive/nissan/skyline-r34
    • 04-LOOX
      R34 GTR Vspec Garage Sale - All must go!

      By 04-LOOX · Posted

      Hi, is the HKS  Tower Bar still available ? negotiable ? 🤔
    • Duncan
      Duncan's V37.......race car?

      By Duncan · Posted

      From there, it is really just test and assemble. Plug the adapter cables from the unit into the back of the screen, then the other side to the car harness. Don't forget all the other plugs too! Run the cables behind the unit and screw it back into place (4 screws) and you should now have 3 cables to run from the top screen to the android unit. I ran them along the DS of the other AV units in the gap between their backets and the console, and used some corrugated tubing on the sharp edges of the bracket so the wires were safe. Plug the centre console and lower screen in temporarily and turn the car to ACC, the AV should fire up as normal. Hold the back button for 3 sec and Android should appear on the top screen. You need to set the input to Aux for audio (more on that later). I put the unit under the AC duct in the centre console, with the wifi antenna on top of the AC duct near the shifter, the bluetooth antenna on the AC duct under the centre console The GPS unit on top of the DS to AC duct; they all seem to work OK there are are out of the way. Neat cable routing is a pain. For the drive recorder I mounted it near the rear view mirror and run the cable in the headlining, across the a pillar and then down the inside of the a pillar seal to the DS lower dash. From there it goes across and to one USB input for the unit. The second USB input is attached to the ECUtec OBD dongle and the 3rd goes to the USB bulkhead connected I added in the centre console. This is how the centre console looks "tidied" up Note I didn't install the provided speaker, didn't use the 2.5mm IPod in line or the piggyback loom for the Ipod or change any DIP switches; they seem to only be required if you need to use the Ipod input rather than the AUX input. That's it, install done, I'll follow up with a separate post on how the unit works, but in summary it retains all factory functions and inputs (so I still use my phone to the car for calls), reverse still works like factory etc.
×
×
  • Create New...