Check your timing belt!!

road1will · Post by **road1will** » 20 Mar 2012, 19:07

I replaced the timing belt, tensioner, idler, and water pump on my 04 XC90 with exactly 80,000 miles today. The belt was very worn and had some very deep cracks. Also, grease was seeping out of both the idler and tensioner. I do not think it would have made it to the reccomended interval of 105,000 miles.

The job is VERY easy and anyone with basic auto knowledge can do it. I did it in a little over an hour, and the parts don't cost much at all.

Do yourself a favor and go pop off that timing cover and check it out!

Burke031 · Post by **Burke031** » 20 Mar 2012, 19:35

I have a 2003 that needs this done. Do you have any links to tutorials or pictures that show how to do it. I would like to be able to do it myself.

Thanks
Joe

huzzsaba · Post by **huzzsaba** » 20 Mar 2012, 22:56

Totally agree with checking the timing belt ahead of time. I recently bought my xc90 with 135k miles on it and the belt was never replaced. As soon as i got the car home, the first thing i did was change everything on that side including the water pump.

the replacement for the 2.5T engine is exactly like the 99+ V70s and to some extent like the first generation S40/V40s with the 1.9t engine. the only difference would be the differences in the serpentine belt tensioner, and the addition of the motor mount on the S40/V40s.

the S40/V40 diy is on volvospeed's bay 13 page.

edit: here is a great link to the 2.5T timing belt replacement. Second link on this page........

http://www.freewebs.com/howardsvolvos/engine.htm

99VulvaS70 · Post by **99VulvaS70** » 29 Apr 2012, 21:21

I will be doing the timing belt on our XC90 in the upcoming weeks as well. I checked the pdf file in the above listed link and it mentions a special tool called a "counterhold".

Is this actually necessary?

Post by **jimmy57** » 29 Apr 2012, 23:42

No counterhold is needed.
What you should do is paint mark crank and each cam gear. You will find the factory marks on cam gears to be hard to see and they will not be exactly lined up with the notches on the top plastic cover.
If you mark the cranks then if it happens to move you will know. Cam gears being marked will eliminate that question in your mind if the gear moves, "was that mark a little left of the notch or right of the notch?"