About the timing chain and timing belt!

1. How do car owners distinguish between timing belts and timing chains?

In fact, it is very simple. You can open the hood of your car and face the engine. Generally, the engine of a family car is horizontal. If you observe the left side of the engine, if there is a plastic shell on the left side, then there is a high probability that the timing belt is inside this plastic shell. If you want to confirm it further, you can unscrew the fixing buckle or bolt on the plastic shell, and then remove the shell to see what the timing belt inside looks like. Here I also want to tell you that most family cars use dry timing belts, that is, although this belt is inside the engine, it is separated from the engine oil and the belt is completely dry. And the timing belts of all cars, whether rubber or metal, are sealed by the timing cover, which is a shell.

But many car owners mistake the transmission belt outside the engine for the timing belt of the engine! The belt outside the engine is called the transmission belt, which is used by the engine to drive other parts such as the compressor and generator. Although they are both belts, they are two completely different systems!

But if you see a completely sealed metal shell on the left side of the engine, then the metal engraving is most likely the timing chain. Because the timing chain needs oil lubrication, the lower end of the chain is soaked in the engine oil, so a metal sealing shell is needed to seal it to ensure that there is no oil leakage. Of course, some models are exceptions now, such as Honda's 1.0T 3-cylinder engine, which also has a metal timing shell. Because it uses a wet timing belt, it is the same as the timing chain, and the lower end must also be soaked in oil, so the surface of the belt is lubricated with oil, so a metal timing shell must be used.

So in general, for most family cars, as long as you can see the material of the engine's timing shell, you can basically tell whether the engine of this car has a timing chain or a timing belt, which is very simple.

2. If your car has a timing chain, how many kilometers should you drive before replacing it?

As long as you maintain the engine according to the cycle required in the manual and use genuine engine oil and oil filter, the timing chain does not need to be maintained or replaced. At least the timing chain of a family car will not break down within 300,000 kilometers. Of course, there are some exceptions. For example, the timing chain of some car engines has been exposed to elongation in large quantities before. This is mainly caused by unqualified timing chain materials. Of course, if your engine is not maintained on time, or if you use inferior engine oil for a long time, it will also cause the timing chain to be damaged in advance.

So when your car has difficulty starting, the idle speed is too low or the idle speed is unstable, it will shut down by itself after starting, and you will hear a metal friction sound coming from the engine compartment, but this sound will slowly disappear after driving. It is very likely that the timing chain is elongated or the timing chain tensioner is damaged. In general, the timing chain and the timing chain tensioner should be replaced together.

Here we also remind everyone to go to a professional and reputable merchant to buy the timing chain!