Buckle Your BeltĪs the ‘80s rolled on, electronics, emission controls and technology were on solid cruise control and like flipping a switch, timing belts were suddenly in the picture.Īlthough timing-belt-driven overhead camshaft engines weren’t new by any means, the value of the design began to be recognized and auto manufacturers started to change over to this concept. The tried-and-true timing chain was simple and generally dependable, but times were changing. They ran quieter than a traditional steel gear, but they wore out a lot quicker and created problems long before vehicle owners expected, which didn’t do much for their reputation. So, we just drove the cars until they wouldn’t drive any more.Įarly engine design was split between gears or chains, but chains ultimately became more popular because they took up less space and ran quieter, and by the early ‘80s, the majority of cars produced had timing chains.Īn evolutionary change of timing-chain design included nylon-tooth cam gears.
TIMING CHAIN VS TIMING BELT FOR HONDA CODE
And why? There was no crank sensor or cam sensor, and no computer to translate the signals into a crank/cam correlation diagnostic trouble code (DTC). They wouldn’t know at all until they started to get a hard-start or no-start symptom. When the chain or the drive gears began to wear, engine performance would suffer, but it would degrade slowly, and most vehicle owners had no idea there was a problem. A traditional, old-school timing chain was tight upon installation, and the overall timing set consisted of a crankshaft gear, a camshaft gear and a chain. At least nothing of which the owner was aware.Ī timing chain, just like a belt, is there for one reason: to connect the crankshaft to the camshaft at exact points so the valves open and close at the correct time for engine operation. What happened when they did? On an old car, nothing right away. In the case of timing chains, they sometimes wore quicker than a lot of people realized. But the statement, while true, doesn’t always mean they built them better.
Or would they? A lot of people still say, “They don’t build them like they used to.” This is true, and coming from someone who is an old-car enthusiast, I’ll defend a level of workmanship that we don’t see in today’s vehicle. They were lubricated by the engine oil, so if you changed it on a regular basis, the timing chain would hold up well. Generally speaking, they were dependable and didn’t require any specific maintenance. For many years, timing chains were the go-to for engine design.
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