BE AWARE... CHECK YOUR NEW PARTS.

I purchased a Conti belt, idler pulley, tensioner pulley from FCP Groton. Parts came quickly, great prices, and name brands.
I started working on the replacement today. Overall came apart fairly easy. I pulled off the serp pulley on the crankshaft
once I realised the removal and installation of the belt was going to be a pain. 30MM socket and impact zipped it right off.
Removed various parts and started to work on assembly. I pulled the pulleys out of the sealed bags and was going to install
the idler pulley when I thought.... Better check that bolt/nut holding the pulley to the cast part. Good thing I did, the nut was quite
loose. I suspect it was tightend to about 3-4 foot pounds MAXIMUM. Tightened it up and installed on engine. Now the assembly
is binding such that it does not want to move freely on the pivot point as it is tightened.... Removed assembly, looked it over,
seems fine, installed again.... Did this once more before I came to the conclusion that there is something wrong with this part.
Upon close inspection and comparision with the old part, one can see that the sleeve pressed into the cast assembly was not
quite pressed in enough. The result was that as the unit was tightened, it would bind against the washer that is part of the
assembly and is fixed to the bolt next to the engine side. Yet another defective section on this part...I ended up using the new pulley
on the old cast assembly as it was fine at the pivot point... Now it moved freely as expected....

The depth on the T-45 on the idler pully is poor. I was worried about striping it if not careful. Both on removal and installation.
Using a Sears 3/8" ratchet (My SK was too thick) I used a large flat blade screwdriver to apply force to the ratchet between
the frame rail and the ratchet. This worked great as it applied quite a bit of force forcing the T-45 socket into the bolt thus
reducing the probability of stripping.

I want to point out that this in no way is the fault of FCP GROTON. The parts were in a factory sealed bag and the factory
screwed up. If I had not carefully checked this, I suspect down the road I would have lost an engine.

 

I am shocked that this happened to you now. I had exactly the same issue with an INA tensioner roller fromFCP and emailedthem to let them know about it back in October, '07. I am surprised he is still shipping them without checking. The problem is the "axle" that the roller moves in. The new one that bound up on me was (using the feeler gauge in my eye) 0.020 shorter than the original. My solution was to use the new tensioner assembly with the "axle" part of the old one. I had the thing on and off 6 or 7 times before I figured out it was a part problem and not a Lee problem.


...Lee

 

Thanks for sharing the info, I'm sure it would help many 850 owners.

I did strip that T-45 when I did mine, and my solution was to use a 10WR Vise-grip and grabbed the flange of the bolt to turn it CCW. After breaking the initial torque, the rest became a snap. I bought the timing belt kit from Auto Parts Warehouse (before I found FCP Groton) and the new kit fit like it should.

I think I have a write-up on timing belt replacement in General Volvo Chat, under "Member Write-up".


JPN

 

Rather than starting another thread....

Are the Volvo timing belts date coded? I think that the belt I removed was the original, but I cannot tell.
It is a Volvo stamped part.

 

I don't think the belt is date coded, but most mechanics will put some kind of stick on the cover when they change the belt with the date and mileage. They should be changed every 70K or five years whichever comes first.

Thanks for sharing the info dwh. I will probably buy my parts from the dealer after reading that when I do my timing belts next time.

 

The '93 models require belt replacement at every 60,000 miles, due to narrower belt. All other models follow Jim's notes.


JPN

 

Interesting enough, from CARFAX I was able to determine that this car was bought new by first owner, sold to 2'nd owner at 52K miles and serviced by said same dealer when 2'nd owner bought vehicle. Since I was in the area, I stopped by the service dept and asked for service history. The service rep pulled up the VIN and stated that the owner serviced his vehicle on schedule, in some cases, earlier as in the 120K mile done at 107K. I asked specifically about the timing belt and got an odd look, then the statement that they ALWAYS put a sticker on. We went out to the car, he took a look for the sticker and found none. Well he stated, it was likely done since the timing cover was clean. Seems to me....
(1) The dealer would have records as to what exactly has or has not been done by the dealer. I suspect they have records
as to what was done by "any" Volvo dealer.
(2) I wonder if they charged the former owner, but did not do the service?
(3) Belt looks old but who knows. The fixed idler pulley when spun makes a slight noise meaning the bearings are dry and headed
on the way out. The tensioner pulley when spun made no noise but it was clearly older. All pulley parts I pulled were INA.
The fixed pulley part number is F-212600 5. Don't know if this part number may be a Volvo original PN# on this vehicle.

When in doubt, just spend the $130 and replace all parts. AND check everything, even if it is new.
By the way this 94 has 107,800 miles and likely the original parts despite being "dealer serviced" BAH

 

Rubber parts usually start deteriorating after 5 years. I make my personal timing belt service label that I put on the belt cover with both-sided tape. I also keep my personal logbook on MS-Excel, which you can find at:

https://volvoforums.com/m_48928/tm.htm

I would leave that dealer alone, as they do not seem honest.


JPN