Replacing the timing belt Chevrolet Lanos 1.5l 8V

What is a timing belt and its purpose?

A timing belt is an elastic toothed ring, which has a certain diameter (depending on the car brand and engine type), and serves to connect the crankshaft to the camshaft (or shafts, as in the case of Lanos 1.6). This element is made of rubber and fiberglass threads (cords), the quality of which affects the strength and duration of the service life. The rubber coating has a thickness of 5 mm. Nylon teeth play an important role in the design of the timing belt, due to which it not only drives the camshaft gear, but also ensures synchronization between the crankshaft and the camshaft. This allows us to guarantee a high service life of the product.

An alternative to a belt is a chain drive, which has gained less popularity due to its inherent disadvantages. The belt design is used on most vehicles, including Lanos, Chance and Sens cars. It is important to note that this type of transmission device is used not only on Lanos with a 1.5 engine, but also with 1.6-liter engines.

Over time, the belt drive wears out and can break, which can have serious consequences for the engine. The resource depends on many factors, but it is important to know that for each make and model of car the corresponding service life of the product is indicated. If on Lanos cars this resource is up to 60 thousand kilometers (although the original devices last much longer), then on models of other cars this value can reach 90 thousand or more. This information is indicated in the technical documentation for the vehicle.

About the car

The car does not spoil the owner with an abundance of cool bells and whistles; a standard set of instruments, levers, and switches is installed. The interior has rounded shapes that follow the contour of the body. The upholstery inside the cabin is made of both fabric and plastic, in approximately equal proportions. This ratio does not allow for good insulation from noise, so the operation of the engine at high speeds can be clearly heard in the cabin. The car belongs to the budget class, so the factory did not pay much attention to this.

The Lanos engine runs on AI-95 gasoline; the power system uses an injector. The cylinder head is cast from an aluminum alloy and contains 8 valves driven by a single camshaft. The valve mechanism is driven by a timing belt.

Timing belt

If you carry out scheduled maintenance work on this car in a timely manner and with high quality, it will please its owner for a long time.

Working principle of the timing belt

For the operation of the engine, it is important to ensure the supply of a fuel-air mixture to the cylinders, as well as the removal of exhaust gases. This is what the gas distribution mechanism, consisting of many elements, which is driven by the shaft, is responsible for. The force on the timing shaft is transmitted from the crankshaft using a timing belt. However, power transmission is not the only function assigned to the belt drive.

In addition to transmitting force between two engine components, the belt drive is also responsible for the synchronous operation of the cylinder-piston group and the distribution mechanism. In simple words, it is thanks to it that the cylinder valves in which the fuel assemblies are ignited alternately open and close. If the synchronization is disturbed, which manifests itself even when several teeth of the belt are displaced, the engine will operate unstably or will not start at all.

How to determine the need to replace the timing belt

First of all, you need to rely on recommendations from the manufacturer of a specific car brand. For Lanos and Chance cars, the timing belt should be replaced no later than every 60 thousand kilometers (not 90, as many people think) or after 4-5 years. However, replacement may be necessary earlier, which often depends on such important factors as the quality of the product, the absence of exposure to negative factors (for example, oil and antifreeze should not get in), correct installation (tension), and the nature of the ride. All this directly affects the life of the timing belt.

The need to immediately check the condition of the timing belt and replace it also arises in the following cases:

Product age. This means not only the mileage, but also how many years the belt has been operating on the car. If the vehicle is not used often, and over 10 years the mileage on the odometer is no more than 50 thousand km, then you should not delay replacing the belt drive. Over time, temperature changes cause the condition of the part to deteriorate, and it can break at any moment. That is why in the regulations the manufacturer indicates the timing belt replacement interval not only in the form of vehicle mileage, but also the age of operation.
Belt damage. To inspect the product, you will need to remove the timing case cover. However, in this case it will be possible to inspect only the outside. And its ideal condition does not always indicate the serviceability of the product. To assess the condition of the transmission device, it is necessary to inspect its inner side, on which the teeth are located. Cracks, chips, abrasion or missing teeth are all the main signs that the belt has become unusable and needs to be replaced.
The engine does not start. This phenomenon occurs when the starter idles without load. In this case, you should make sure that the timing belt is intact, and also check that the marks on the camshaft and crankshaft match.

In addition to the timing belt breaking, it may slip. This happens due to its stretching, as well as when the tension is incorrectly installed or the tensioner roller is faulty. In any case, if the timing belt shows signs of even the slightest unsuitability (even if it has not reached the end of its service life), it is necessary to immediately replace it. It is not recommended to wait for a break, as in this case repairs will be expensive and time-consuming.

This is interesting! When the timing belt breaks, not only the valve timing is disrupted, but also the valves are bent due to their collision with the pistons.

It is important to know

To ensure that the drive replacement process is successful, ensure that all marks are completely aligned. Otherwise, the installation will have to be repeated. And if you neglect re-installation if the marks do not match, it may turn out that the belt will be tensioned too much, and this may cause it to break.

If your car does not have air conditioning, then the procedure for replacing the drive will be much simpler, since you will not have to remove the air conditioning belt. If you have an air conditioner, you can remove its belt only by loosening the roller. Some may say that it is not necessary to loosen the roller; you can pry the belt with a screwdriver. But this way it can be damaged, and even barely noticeable damage will certainly lead to its early wear.

When buying a new consumable, inspect it carefully. It happens that the new consumables already have cracks. Therefore, bend the belt and inspect the bases of its teeth. It is quite possible that the consumable was manufactured a long time ago and can no longer be used.

As you can see, there is nothing complicated here, and even an inexperienced car enthusiast can handle the procedure for replacing the timing belt.

Which timing belt to install on Lanos and Chance

As for manufacturers, belt drives are produced by various companies Dayco, KAP, Flennor, Dongil, AE, Dongshin and others. Naturally, preference should be given to the original
GM, which has serial number 96352407, as well as the Gates analogue with number 5310 XS.
It is important to note that the timing belt size for a Lanos 1.5 8 valve car is 17 mm wide and consists of 117 teeth.

Lanos with a volume of 1.6 have two camshafts, so the timing belt for them is correspondingly longer in length. The original belt for Lanos 1.6 from GM has code 96814098. Its width is 25 mm and the number of teeth is 127. The recommended analogue of the timing belt for Lanos 1.6 from Gates is number 5419XS.

It is not recommended to choose Contitech brand products, since, according to car owners, the quality of this brand’s products has significantly decreased. Preference should be given to Bosch brand products. The company values its reputation and produces high-quality products, albeit at high prices.

This is interesting! When choosing a timing belt, consider not only the brand name, but also the cost. High-quality products will not be cheap, and even if you come across devices priced below 800-1000 rubles, then avoid them. A high-quality belt for Lanos costs at least 1000 rubles or more than 400 hryvnia.

Sequence of actions (also for cars with air conditioning)

The hood of the car is opened, using a set of open-end wrenches, the air filter and the air supply pipe that is attached to it are removed (to remove the pipe, the fastening clamps are loosened with a flat screwdriver).
There are 3 bolts on the power steering pulley. They are weakened. After this, the top bolt on the generator is unscrewed (there it is 1). As a result, the tension of the alternator belt weakens and it can be easily removed. Next, the power steering pulley is removed.
The timing belt cover is secured with four 10mm bolts. These bolts are unscrewed, after which the cover is removed.
After opening the belt cover, the crankshaft rotates until the mark on the pulley matches the mark on the top cover (the coincidence of these marks means that the piston of cylinder 1 has reached top dead center).
If there is no inspection hole, the right wheel of the car is jacked up and removed. Then the right fender liner is unscrewed. Behind it there is an air resonator, which is also removable. This gives access to the plastic protective panel, behind which the belt is located.
The protection is removed using a 10-mm open-end wrench (it is held in place by 2 bolts and 2 nuts). In some Chevrolet Lanos models, this panel may be made not of plastic, but of steel.
The bolt on which the crankshaft pulleys are attached is now visible. It is unscrewed with a wrench (and its wrench should be very long, and the socket head should be 17). All this is done in order to loosen the tension roller from the air conditioner drive (provided that the car has this device). Through the above procedure, the tension roller is released so that the air conditioner belt can be removed freely.
Access to the crankshaft and timing belt is provided. There are 2 marks on the crankshaft (one on the key and one on the tooth). Before further actions, you need to remember their position.
On the lower protective plate covering the belt, use a 10mm socket to unscrew 3 bolts.
The tension roller is fixed in the retracted position using a screwdriver. There are holes on the bar of this roller that must be aligned.
Now the timing belt is removed and inserted into the slot, which is located next to the power steering housing.
When installing a new belt, be sure to ensure that the mark on the tension roller bar exactly matches the slot on the bracket.

Video on the work + information about tags

How to set timing marks when the belt breaks on a Lanos

For cases where the timing belt breaks while the engine is running, it will be necessary to correctly set the timing marks separately for the camshaft sprocket and the crankshaft. How to do this, detailed instructions are described below.

Initially, it is necessary to align the mark on the camshaft gear by turning it clockwise using a ratchet wrench.
The photo shows the marks for aligning the camshaft gear.
By the way, if you are wondering whether the valves on Lanos 1.5 and Chance 1.5 bend, then the answer is yes.
When the timing belt breaks on a Lanos, the valves bend, but it all depends on when the break occurred. If at idle or during startup, then the probability is extremely low. The greatest danger is when the belt breaks at high speed and under load. In this case, before replacing the belt, you should check the serviceability of the valves. So that you understand what bending the valves on Lanos means, below is a photo.
To check the serviceability of the valves on a Lanos, you should rotate the camshaft sprocket 360 degrees, and at the same time listen for characteristic knocking sounds. Their absence does not at all guarantee that the valves are not damaged, and their malfunction can be more accurately identified in two ways: by installing the timing belt and starting the engine, and also visually, but for this you will need to remove the valve cover.
After setting the marks on the camshaft gear, we move on to the crankshaft. To do this, you need to unscrew the spark plugs (it is not necessary to unscrew all of them, but only the one that is located in the well of the first cylinder).
Remove the left wheel, and using a wrench with an extension, unscrew the crankshaft pulley mounting bolt. To do this, engage fifth gear, depress the brake pedal, and the bolt breaks off.
Remove the crankshaft pulley and screw the bolt back into place, through which the marks will be aligned. We turn the crankshaft and make sure that the marks on the gear and the lower part of the timing case match. The mark is also duplicated on the engine block.
Read also: How to remove the speed sensor drive of a VAZ 2110 8 valve
An assistant should place the tip of a screwdriver into the spark plug hole, and at the same time report when the piston in the first cylinder moves to the top position (TDC).
The mark on the pulley must coincide with the mark on the timing case housing.
Actually, this means that the phases of the gas distribution mechanism are installed correctly. You can begin installing the timing belt.

To summarize, the timing belt is the most important structural element of the engine. Its malfunction is fraught with serious and expensive breakdowns, and a possible replacement of the valves is not the worst thing. After all, if they break, the pistons can be damaged, which will lead to the need to replace them, and this is a more expensive engine repair.

To eliminate the possibility of such situations, it is recommended to regularly replace the timing belt every 60 thousand kilometers or every 4-5 years, and for replacement use only original and high-quality products with a minimum service life of at least 100 thousand kilometers.

When to change to Chevrolet Lanos

The instruction manual for the Chevrolet Lanos 1.5 states that the timing belt should be replaced every 75 thousand km. But most car service employees adhere to the idea that it needs to be changed earlier - every 60 thousand km. To find out that the belt needs to be replaced, it is enough to conduct a normal visual inspection. The prerequisites for substitution are listed below:

When the belt bends, transverse cracks between the teeth are clearly visible.
Very thin, barely noticeable cracks appeared specifically at the base of the teeth.
The thickness of the belt is uneven along its entire length, it has delaminated and traces of oil and dirt are clearly visible on it.

All this indicates that it is time to change the belt. If this is not done, it may break off right on the move. And when this happens, bent valves in the engine will become the least of the driver's problems.