A vehicle’s timing belt goes around pulleys — the crankshaft, camshaft(s), tensioner and sometimes water pump.
When everything is correct, the belt keeps the crankshaft and the camshafts in correct timing, and if it fails on an interference engine you could catastrophic damage to the engine, such as bending the valves or breaking the pistons.
New timing belts should be installed between 50,000 and 105,000 miles. This depends on the make and model of a vehicle, the manufacturer recommendations, and the driving conditions.
From my personal experience, even though it has been recommended to change the timing belt at 90,000 miles, I haven’t had a problem pushing it to 105,000 miles. But these were Toyotas with two-inch-wide timing belts.
If the belt is a one-inch wide belt, you might want to keep it closer to 60,000 miles.
Not to sound derogatory, but the soccer mom — or dad — minivan gets driven hard like a high performance vehicle, just from running around and the stop-and-go driving. So you may want to stay on the manufacturer’s recommendation.
Besides, you don’t want to be stuck on the side of the road with a bunch of kids.
This article was written by HomeTowne Auto Repair & Tire, an authorized Michelin and BFGoodrich tire dealer in Woodbridge. The auto repair shop performs various services, including oil changes, alignments and computer engine diagnostics.
