Re: Tensioner

[Joe Elliott <jee@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I don't like Brand X's use of the timing belt to drive the water pump 
(at least they're using the backside), but what I like even more than 
the generous pulley contact are the guides that they employ on the 
left cam pulley and on the crank pulley--even if their tensioner does 
fail, the belt is held against the pulley so that a couple teeth will 
still be in contact and hopefully get the job done.  It makes me 
wonder how hard it would be to tap some threads in the Alfa V6 heads 
and add some little pegs to do the same job on our cam pulleys.

-Joe


At 11:57 AM +0000 6/11/03, alfa-digest wrote:

> Date: Tue, 10 Jun 2003 18:08:57 -0700
> From: Gerry Lehmann <lehmann@domain.elided>
> Subject: Re: Tensioner
>
> Yes, I couldn't agree more that the real design issue is the extent 
> that the belt contacts the pulley.  Compare the Alfa V6 belt contact 
> area (particularly around the passenger side cam which has less than
> 90 degrees contact) to the "brand X" V8 in the link below, where 
> every pulley has 180 degree wrap, and the difference is shocking. 
> Although this one is probably a bit over engineered (check out the
> tensioner).  It has a recommended belt life of 90k miles and belt 
> slippage and such is absolutely unheard of.
>
> http://home.san.rr.com/glehmann/4.2Front.jpg
>
> Sure wish that Alfa had split the difference.
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