I recently followed the excellent guide on the forums to change my timing belt on my 2.0 99 Focus. It went well, although I'm not totally happy with the result.
The timing kit I received from a motor factors had an extra small pulley and the idler was larger than the original. The thread here does mention a larger idler and says to use it. The idler included in my set was slightly too large which made the belt very tight and it wasn't possible to set the tension correctly as it was so tight. I went ahead anyway thinking it was correct. The engine ran but due to the larger circumference of the idler the timing was out very slightly and it was running lumpy. I've since corrected it with the TDC pin and cam locking bar and adjusted the cam pulleys to set the timing correctly. I should add that I had two other part suppliers order in a timing belt kit specially for my car (double checked with the VIN and registration plate) that had identical pulleys, they were adamant that it was the correct and only kit for my car, after seeing it they agreed it was wrong but couldn't suggest any other alternatives.
However, the larger pulley also was rubbing very slightly on the metal cover (that the Aux belt idler bolts on to). They pulley has worn slightly on the edge due to this, I've kept an eye on it for the 6 weeks or so since I changed the belt and there's no damage or wear to the belt as a result so I've left it like that.
Tonight the issues began. I heard some strange noises under the front right corner of the car when driving, I thought nothing of it at first. I then thought I heard something fall off and go under the wheel so I pulled over and had a look around, nothing obvious missing and nothing on the road that I could see (although it was dark). I was near home anyway so I kept going, then it started making this ungodly screeching noise, sounded very much like a slipping aux belt so I had another look, revved it up a bit under the hood, still couldn't make out where the noise was coming from or what was wrong so being only 30 seconds from home I kept going. When I got back there was an awful burning smell of rubber or plastic under the hood and an amount of smoke when I opened it up. Again, I still could not find the source of the smoke or see anything wrong. I noticed that the noise only occurs when travelling under 20mph, over this the noise completely goes away. It still drives well though and doesn't handle any differently despite whatever has happened. There is a slight oil leak around the cam/rocker cover so I'm going to give that a clean up and torque up the bolts correctly to sort that out, the gasket is in good condition and not broken or cracked anywhere so hopefully won't need to be replaced. I did think maybe that gear selection felt very light but I may be imagining it.
I've checked oil and coolant, both within acceptable levels. No sign of damage or any issues anywhere that I can see. I'm not happy to continue driving it as it is now. Can anyone suggest what the issue could be or what I can check?
The timing kit I received from a motor factors had an extra small pulley and the idler was larger than the original. The thread here does mention a larger idler and says to use it. The idler included in my set was slightly too large which made the belt very tight and it wasn't possible to set the tension correctly as it was so tight. I went ahead anyway thinking it was correct. The engine ran but due to the larger circumference of the idler the timing was out very slightly and it was running lumpy. I've since corrected it with the TDC pin and cam locking bar and adjusted the cam pulleys to set the timing correctly. I should add that I had two other part suppliers order in a timing belt kit specially for my car (double checked with the VIN and registration plate) that had identical pulleys, they were adamant that it was the correct and only kit for my car, after seeing it they agreed it was wrong but couldn't suggest any other alternatives.
However, the larger pulley also was rubbing very slightly on the metal cover (that the Aux belt idler bolts on to). They pulley has worn slightly on the edge due to this, I've kept an eye on it for the 6 weeks or so since I changed the belt and there's no damage or wear to the belt as a result so I've left it like that.
Tonight the issues began. I heard some strange noises under the front right corner of the car when driving, I thought nothing of it at first. I then thought I heard something fall off and go under the wheel so I pulled over and had a look around, nothing obvious missing and nothing on the road that I could see (although it was dark). I was near home anyway so I kept going, then it started making this ungodly screeching noise, sounded very much like a slipping aux belt so I had another look, revved it up a bit under the hood, still couldn't make out where the noise was coming from or what was wrong so being only 30 seconds from home I kept going. When I got back there was an awful burning smell of rubber or plastic under the hood and an amount of smoke when I opened it up. Again, I still could not find the source of the smoke or see anything wrong. I noticed that the noise only occurs when travelling under 20mph, over this the noise completely goes away. It still drives well though and doesn't handle any differently despite whatever has happened. There is a slight oil leak around the cam/rocker cover so I'm going to give that a clean up and torque up the bolts correctly to sort that out, the gasket is in good condition and not broken or cracked anywhere so hopefully won't need to be replaced. I did think maybe that gear selection felt very light but I may be imagining it.
I've checked oil and coolant, both within acceptable levels. No sign of damage or any issues anywhere that I can see. I'm not happy to continue driving it as it is now. Can anyone suggest what the issue could be or what I can check?
