Who do you think made this Beck/Arnley timing belt?

[slacktide_bitog]

I might replace the timing belt on my car since I don't know if it was ever replaced in the 25+ years and 150k the car has been driven (TB interval is 105k). I haven't checked the condition of the TB yet, so if it has already been replaced, I won't replace it.

Of course, there's the Mitsuboshi timing belt included in the Aisin kit, but sometimes it's actually cheaper to buy the components separately. The exact same Aisin water pump (don't worry, it's not a Honda), Aisin tensioner, NSK pulleys and Mitsuboshi TB purchases separately can sometimes cost less than the Aisin kit.

The OEM belt is Unitta, but it's over $100, and I'm not paying that! Rock Auto has the Enginetech timing belt which is reboxed Mitsuboshi, but it ships from a different warehouse than the other parts, raising the price by $10 more than necessary. The only timing belts that ship from the same warehouse are Dayco (made in Italy) and Cloyes (reboxed Continental/Contitech, made in Germany).

I did find some (possibly NOS) Mitsuboshi and B/A timing belts on eBay, including this one. It costs less than even Rock Auto. The writing looks different than Mitsuboshi, though it is made in Thailand like Mitsuboshi is. I think it's either Unitta or Mitsuboshi, but I can't find any aftermarket Unitta timing belts to compare it to, and US Gates probably doesn't use the same writing style. Most Bando timing belts I've seen to be made in Germany (could be reboxed Conti)

So what do you guys think?

 

[shortyb]

What brand vehicle is it for? The Unitta may cost more if OEM branded for that manufacturer. It may be less if made by Unitta, but not manufacturer branded due to license contract as a "dealer" part.

 

[GMBoy]

Mitsuboshi timing belts are made in Thailand but when I searched the photos clearly show the Mitsuboshi name printed on the belt. Oddly, and alarmingly, Alibaba shows thailand made timing belts as well with NO names printed on them for under $10 lol - so I don't know if you have a real quality belt or a shady off brand. Buyer beware. I would have no problem just paying Rockauto the extra $10 shipping to get a known quality part.

 

[KGMtech]

I think, just like everyone at BITOG, that you're overthinking this one. Whatever belt is freshest from a good brand is the one.

FWIW, I've tried to find a local source for Mitsuboshi windshield wipers, because they are OEM for my QX60 and they were top notch.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

What brand vehicle is it for? The Unitta may cost more if OEM branded for that manufacturer. It may be less if made by Unitta, but not manufacturer branded due to license contract as a "dealer" part.

Subaru

I think, just like everyone at BITOG, that you're overthinking this one. Whatever belt is freshest from a good brand is the one.

FWIW, I've tried to find a local source for Mitsuboshi windshield wipers, because they are OEM for my QX60 and they were top notch.

I didn't know Mitsuboshi made wipers! However, I have heard good things about NWB and Denso

 

[cptbarkey]

By far the most important parts for an EJ is Japanese tensioners, and rollers. Continental and Dayco belts are fine.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

I finally got to open the timing cover. This is what the TB looks like. Do you think it needs to be replaced? Do you think it has ever been replaced?

165k miles on a 98. I'm leaning towards not replacing it, since it looks so good. The writing is somewhat faded, but the timing belt otherwise looks new, and the timing marks are still visible.

 

[willbur]

I finally got to open the timing cover. This is what the TB looks like. Do you think it needs to be replaced? Do you think it has ever been replaced?

165k miles on a 98. I'm leaning towards not replacing it, since it looks so good. The writing is somewhat faded, but the timing belt otherwise looks new, and the timing marks are still visible.

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I think it's the OE Unita belt because it's significantly more expensive than the aftermarket belts, and if the TB were replaced, a cheaper (i.e. non OE) would most likely be used instead. The Unita printing looks very faded and old on that belt, too. Pretty sure its the OE. "Do you feel lucky?" If you do, keep it; but I would replace it.

 

[Kantaro]

Rock Auto has the Enginetech timing belt which is reboxed Mitsuboshi, but it ships from a different warehouse than the other parts, raising the price by $10 more than necessary. The only timing belts that ship from the same warehouse are Dayco (made in Italy) and Cloyes (reboxed Continental/Contitech, made in Germany).

I hate playing the RA "guess the warehouse" game.

In your case, I could choose the Continental over a questionable belt on eBay. This is not a part that is worth gambling on.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

OK, so now I'm confident that the B/A timing belt is Gates/Unitta. It looks just like the one pictures on the Gates site, confirmed with the 360 view, and I rotated it to see the exact same lettering and arrows, made in Thailand.

Since this particular timing belt was only used on the EJ25D, and Unitta is the OE supplier, it was probably cheaper for Gates to rebox the Unitta rather than making them in the US.

And the good news is that the Gates TB ships from the same warehouse as the Aisin water pump and NSK pulleys

 

[willbur]

OK, so now I'm confident that the B/A timing belt is Gates/Unitta. It looks just like the one pictures on the Gates site, confirmed with the 360 view, and I rotated it to see the exact same lettering and arrows, made in Thailand.

Since this particular timing belt was only used on the EJ25D, and Unitta is the OE supplier, it was probably cheaper for Gates to rebox the Unitta rather than making them in the US.

And the good news is that the Gates TB ships from the same warehouse as the Aisin water pump and NSK pulleys

Score!

 

[dfarr67]

Instead of asking joe blow what you should do- invest in a manual and read... either gamble that the belt is good (until it's not) and don't replace or start from zero with a new oem belt. Pretty simple when you run the repair numbers.

 

[Sayjac]

OK, so now I'm confident that the B/A timing belt is Gates/Unitta. It looks just like the one pictures on the Gates site, confirmed with the 360 view, and I rotated it to see the exact same lettering and arrows, made in Thailand.

Since this particular timing belt was only used on the EJ25D, and Unitta is the OE supplier, it was probably cheaper for Gates to rebox the Unitta rather than making them in the US........

I have a Gates/Unitta belt here for a Honda, and it's made in Japan. The would be the same coo as the original OE Honda Gates Unitta TB. Otoh, the Aisin TB kit for Honda comes with a Mitsuboshi TB made in Thailand. Member @GemStater has an excellent thread (good read) on Aisin Honda kit and other belts used. Perhaps, even likely, the TB manufacturers are different for Subaru. In any case, whether the Thai made belt shown is a Gates Unitta or Mitsuboshi, while I might lean a little towards the former, imo either one a quality belt. I wouldn't have problem using either. And Bando accessory belt I have, made in US.

As for whether belt now still good or not, been said that appearance not a reliable indicator of belt condition While the belt looks ok, may or may not be. It's just what degree of risk you're willing to live with after seeing the belt. Admit, looks wise, looks ok.

I think, just like everyone at BITOG, that you're overthinking this one. Whatever belt is freshest from a good brand is the one.

FWIW, I've tried to find a local source for Mitsuboshi windshield wipers, because they are OEM for my QX60 and they were top notch.

The manufacturer of the OE Nissan wiper blades is actually Mitsuba. They also make Honda blades and refills and the refills are interchangeable. I know because family member owns a Rogue and after I bought RainX Hybrid Expert Fit blades for it I did more research. Saved the OE blades and refilled them with Honda refills. Now afaik, there are more options out there to refill OE Mitsuba blades.

 

[TomYoung]

I might replace the timing belt on my car since I don't know if it was ever replaced in the 25+ years and 150k the car has been driven (TB interval is 105k). I haven't checked the condition of the TB yet, so if it has already been replaced, I won't replace it.

Of course, there's the Mitsuboshi timing belt included in the Aisin kit, but sometimes it's actually cheaper to buy the components separately. The exact same Aisin water pump (don't worry, it's not a Honda), Aisin tensioner, NSK pulleys and Mitsuboshi TB purchases separately can sometimes cost less than the Aisin kit.

The OEM belt is Unitta, but it's over $100, and I'm not paying that! Rock Auto has the Enginetech timing belt which is reboxed Mitsuboshi, but it ships from a different warehouse than the other parts, raising the price by $10 more than necessary. The only timing belts that ship from the same warehouse are Dayco (made in Italy) and Cloyes (reboxed Continental/Contitech, made in Germany).

I did find some (possibly NOS) Mitsuboshi and B/A timing belts on eBay, including this one. It costs less than even Rock Auto. The writing looks different than Mitsuboshi, though it is made in Thailand like Mitsuboshi is. I think it's either Unitta or Mitsuboshi, but I can't find any aftermarket Unitta timing belts to compare it to, and US Gates probably doesn't use the same writing style. Most Bando timing belts I've seen to be made in Germany (could be reboxed Conti)

So what do you guys think?

Just to give a quick answer: you have a timing belt and you have no idea whether it was replaced. The vehicle has 165,000 miles. Of course it should be replaced immediately, with new tensioners and a new water pump. You should know that modern timing belts often look perfect even moments before failure.

 

[cptbarkey]

As I mentioned before, the rollers and tensioners are more important. If they haven't been serviced, you are overdue. If any of them fail, even a brand new belt will get chewed to pieces.

 

[John105]

I hate playing the RA "guess the warehouse" game.

In your case, I could choose the Continental over a questionable belt on eBay. This is not a part that is worth gambling on.

The game I play with my coworkers is too easy, they always get it right the first time.

Me: Mikey, it’s 8 AM on a Friday morning. I’m thinking of a number between 0 and 1, which represents the number of cars in the reserved executive parking spaces for 3 companies.

Mikey: Not this game again. Is it zero?

On the belt I’d just get the kit unless I didn’t need all the parts. On my car normally cam seals are included but not done.

I had one case where it was cheaper to get the whole tensioner than the idler I needed. The other idler was NSK and I did get it a La carte on Amazon. I forget the details but the tensioner can’t be replaced without the timing cover coming off I think so now I have a new tensioner somewhere in the basement with an old idler. I installed the idler only which was squeaking…

 

[14Accent]

I finally got to open the timing cover. This is what the TB looks like. Do you think it needs to be replaced? Do you think it has ever been replaced?

165k miles on a 98. I'm leaning towards not replacing it, since it looks so good. The writing is somewhat faded, but the timing belt otherwise looks new, and the timing marks are still visible.

View attachment 200902

View attachment 200903

View attachment 200904

No way that's the OE belt. I'd say that belt has less than 50k miles on it, maybe even less than 30k. EJ's EAT timing belts, they're toast by 105k and even that's too far IMO. EJ's should be 60k replacements, no more.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

No way that's the OE belt. I'd say that belt has less than 50k miles on it, maybe even less than 30k. EJ's EAT timing belts, they're toast by 105k and even that's too far IMO. EJ's should be 60k replacements, no more.

I wish/hope you're right! I really don't want to spend the $200 and the hours to replace it

However, the thing that scares me is that the serpentine belts were original on the car (were the factory belts and looked very worn and the ribs were cracked). I replaced them earlier this month with OEM belts along with the idler pulley.

I'm not sure how much maintenance the car has had besides oil changes. It may have had the transmission fluid changed at some point because the ATF was red when I changed it.

However, if it does need to be changed, I will replace it.

According to this thread, the date code on my TB 6-28 corresponds to the 28th week of 1996, 2006, or 2016. I don't know how long timing belts sit in Subaru's warehouse before installing them at the factory

I only put about 15k in the time I've had the car, and I got it a few years ago.

 

[brages]

I did find some (possibly NOS) Mitsuboshi and B/A timing belts on eBay, including this one. It costs less than even Rock Auto. The writing looks different than Mitsuboshi, though it is made in Thailand like Mitsuboshi is. I think it's either Unitta or Mitsuboshi, but I can't find any aftermarket Unitta timing belts to compare it to, and US Gates probably doesn't use the same writing style. Most Bando timing belts I've seen to be made in Germany (could be reboxed Conti)

There are just so much fake stuff on eBay... I'd be nervous using a timing belt I bought from them, unless I was sure the seller was legit.

I've replaced a few timing belts and they always looked pretty good condition when I took them off. I don't know if you can tell much by looking at them.

The idea is to replace the parts before they go bad, so I guess it's to be expected that the parts you remove seem like they are still OK.

 

[paulo57509]

Toyota recommends 6 years or 90k miles for timing belt replacement on my LS400. This is the factory original timing belt after 23 years and 90k miles (which ever comes first, blah, blah...). The face of the belt is self-evident; the toothed side still appeared serviceable.

If either time in service or mileage is unknown, just replace it.