NOS (new old stock) Timing Belts

[xsport]

There was talk about dayco not being able to hold the tolerances of the teeth on the belts , but which came first .. gates or dayco is a mystery...

[Arctic]

I wouldn't anything else but Gates, I have just purchased two sets for my Freelander 2 SD4 and TD4.

Had them on my tourer before i sold, tourer before that, and my Freelander1 TD4.

FL2 Kit.
1

2

[xsport]

Same as i use ... You get what you pay for ...

[xsport]

Just out of interest. When i fitted my gates belt to the KV6 , i fitted their belt tensioner as well. Now i dont know for sure if it is hydraulic or spring or both ,what i do know is that all of the tap tap tap , on start up has never happened since, same oil etc. This is the third belt changed now , and each were set up correctly with the correct tensions and clearances. I always thought this noise was tappets awaiting oil circulation ,or even piston slap . It makes me wonder if the rover tensioner bottoms out on to the belt during rest ,and then taps due to belt slap, until it resets itself. Just my observation and theory ...

[Typhoon190]

This is poor. Like paying full price for fresh food then went out of date a week ago. It might just be OK, but you might get food poisoning. I would feel cheated.

[TeeCeeColley]

Originally Posted by xsport

No dates on the belt then .. ?

This prompted me to go beyond the 24 Aug 2018 date shown on the printed label and to look at the date code on the belt supplied. You won't believe what I found. 12124077. See picture attached. Yes, the belt had actually been manufactured in 2012, way older even than the dated label used to seal the bag.

A quick check on Dayco's website brought up this info "Dayco stamp a sequential number in their belts. The first two numbers indicate the year, the next two indicate the week and the fifth number tells us the day of the week. The final three digits on the code represent the position of the belt in the mould".

It didn't take long for me to find this official response from Dayco to a customer query.

"Thank you for reaching out to Dayco Products. Attached is a official statement from Dayco Products regarding the shelf life of Dayco Timing belts."

"In general timing belts have a shelf life of 5 years

To read the date code from a Dayco belt there should be somewhere on the belt an 8 digit code
Examples:
20 075113, 20 = 2020, 07 = 7th week, 5 = work day (5 = Friday), 113 is the position on a sleeve
Or
153218 21, 21 = 2021, 15 = 15th week of the year, 3 = Wednesday, 218 = position on the sleeve.

Hope this helps"

I spoke to a local motor factor who handles Dayco products and showed him the belt supplied. His comment?

"That belt was manufactured in 2012. Someone has found some old stock that would've been thrown away and rebagged it in 2018. They're taking the pis$, do not use it"

The UK supplier (chosen because they seem highly regarded on this forum) has refunded me the proportion of the order paid for the belt and I have sourced one locally with a manufacturing date of 2022.

[Matt_75]

Originally Posted by TeeCeeColley

To read the date code from a Dayco belt there should be somewhere on the belt an 8 digit code
Examples:
20 075113, 20 = 2020, 07 = 7th week, 5 = work day (5 = Friday), 113 is the position on a sleeve
Or
153218 21, 21 = 2021, 15 = 15th week of the year, 3 = Wednesday, 218 = position on the sleeve.

Thanks for this very useful bit of info. I've just done a timing belt myself and this is the one I removed, it's a Rover branded one which I know was fitted by an ex-Rover dealer in 2008.



It features the same style of date code markings, suggesting it was made by Dayco unless all manufacturers use a consistent format?

The packaging on your photo looks very similar to that which was on the parts I've just fitted, so I suspect it's probably from the same supplier. Only difference is that my main timing belt came in a plastic bag with no label at all. I must admit, this has got me a little concerned now as I've finished fitting mine and I really don't want to discover I've just gone through the pain of fitting a 12 year old belt. The two mini belts had 2023 printed on the box.

Glad to hear you got yours sorted though.

[dave lincs]

I fitted a dayco belt a few weeks ago to a v6 which was also from a well know supplier I did not look at the date code but will be removing a cover to inspect soon

[Matt_75]

Yep, it was a 2012 belt I fitted

I wish I'd known that these were date codes prior to fitting.

[dave lincs]

If a supplier is selling 2012 belts and people are having them fitted without checking then I feel that they should be getting this sorted and paying for the job to be done again?