[RobTheHillbilly]

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After reading quite a bit here lately about the timing belts I'm starting to get a bit paranoid about mine. My SE-i has 50,600 miles on it and I don't know if the PO ever changed them before my Dad got it in 2002. Is it something that I need to do ASAP or just ride it for the rest of the season and do it in the spring. I have no garage to do it in over the winter but it is stored in a building at Dad's over the winter and there is no room to work in it.

 

[Ken Bergen]

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Your belts might break tomorrow or last for another twenty years.
New belts could also break break tomorrow. It's up to you to roll the dice.

 

[jwhitmore44]

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I sure wouldn't want to tell you to ride it the rest of the season and then have a belt go before you get it put away. I think most will say if you have any doubts to replace them. It doesn't take all that long to do and the days are still warm,although they are getting shorter. I think most say the service interval is 60,000 miles or 5 years which ever comes first.

 

[sctrucker]

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i am a big fan of replacing belts anytime there is the slightest doubt of heir origin, so you know what i say,,, the sei looks intimidating but its not bad at all

 

[roscoepc]

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Rob, mine had the original belts on when I got her in '04 and I didn't change them till March of '08... After I removed them they appeared to be in very good shape but appearences can be decieving and I'm glad I changed them when I did!! If we hook up at that ride in Johnson City tommorrow, we'll do some talking about it!



See ya then!!:coollep::coollep:

 

[John Goodell]

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On a Wing with unknown service history, I would change the belts.

 

[wingsam41]

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I'd change em just to be sure. By the time you get the cover off to look at them you may as well replace them. I did mine. Turned out they had been changed and werent bad but at least now I know.

 

[Gone14s]

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I'd lay odd's they are it least loose if they have not been changed.

But for your own pieace of mind I would change them.



When I got mine it was the first thing I did. When I pulled thetiming belt covers the belte where real loose. Needless to say with nice new belts it ran better.



Just have to remove the lower fairings and the rad.

It's easy to be honest with ya. Then just follow the book about how to install, you should be fine.



Kurt

 

[RobTheHillbilly]

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Going to be changing them this week, I found that the Dayco 95070 is supposed to be the same belt as OEM Honda for about 1/4 the $$. While I'm in there it was suggested to me by roscoepc to change the thermostat as well. Where is the best to get one. I usually get most of my parts for Bike Bandit but $38 seems a bit steep to me. Anyone know of one from maybe Stant that would work?


Thanks for all the help!!:claps:

 

[Terryj630]

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I just changed the timing belts on my 1500 Sunday, the PO kept very good maintenance records and no where in the records did I see timing belts replaced. The belts were in good shape just a little loose, so while I was there in the first place I replaced them. It was allot easier then I expected.

 

[Bellboy40]

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RobTheHillbilly wrote:

Going to be changing them this week, I found that the Dayco 95070 is supposed to be the same belt as OEM Honda for about 1/4 the $$. While I'm in there it was suggested to me by roscoepc to change the thermostat as well. Where is the best to get one. I usually get most of my parts for Bike Bandit but $38 seems a bit steep to me. Anyone know of one from maybe Stant that would work?
Thanks for all the help!!:claps:

You might be better off going ahead and getting the OEM type thermostat. I have read that the OEM type has a larger opening for coolant than the after market ones. Some have had overheating problems using the aftermarket thermostats. Look at this link:

http://www.goldwingfacts.com/forums/forum7/6686.html

 

[joedrum]

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id say inspection is at least needed if i break into a motor and the belts have play they were probably put on that way ...ive watchted many motors with the the right and thebelts loose ....theres no doubt in my mind that loose belts get stressed like there not suppose to ...when i see that i change them or at least put them on right....that motor i got from you was well matained and the belts were perfect ....the motor is in the bike and when it proves itself totaly i will put new belts on ....changeing belts right is one of the most credical things on a oldwing it seems to run about 50-50 on weather they have been done right....

 

[tracker]

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i would change them,then you could ride and not think about the belts! takes about 6 hours to change taking of the plastics and changing coolant at the same time.

 

[RobTheHillbilly]

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OEM Honda belts:$78.28 ea
Dayco 95070 belts $11.32 ea

Same specs on both belts, so I ordered the Dayco belts and will be ordering a thermostat this evening. Maybe this will be a weekend project this weekend if everything comes in.

Thanks for all the advice!!:claps:

 

[JerryH]

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I changed the belts on my LTD (got mine from NAPA), which is the same as the SEI, and it was easy. An LTD/SEI is no harder than any other bike when it comes to changing the belts. I did mine after changing the coolant, and I drained the coolant into a clean pan, and reused it, since it was still new, and was expensive motorcycle specific coolant.

I don't know about the t-stat on an LTD/SEI, as the FI computer is partially controlled by coolant temperature. Otherwise I'd be tempted to run it without a t-stat here in AZ. Run old cars that way all the time.

 

[Bike...and Dennis]

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Western is 10 bucks cheaper on the thermostat.

http://www.westernhonda.com/fiche_section_detail.asp?section=146820&category=MOTORCYCLES&make=HONDA&year=1986&fveh=3451

I put a thermostat from NAPA in mine and it works OK. It was 180 instead of 190 degree and during the cold months it runs a little cool, but I don't think it's enough to worry about.

As far a running without...As I understand that can make the machine run hotter. The thermostat slows the flow of the coolant so it stays in the radiator longer.

 

[RobTheHillbilly]

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Well yesterday I psyched myself up and jumped in to change the timing belts and thermostat. Turns out it was a much simpler job to do than what I originally thought. The only "problem" I has was when I put the radiator back on and realized that I had forgotten to tighten the top hose clamp.
I'm glad I did it, the timing belts had so much slack in them that they were just riding on the tensioners. Once I got the old belts off and the new ones on I set into replacing the thermostat. Only problem I have is that Honda could have made the neck on the radiator a bit longer to make it easier to get antifreeze in and to make it easier to get the cap on.
I also made me a trip to Harbor Tool and got one of the Bad Boy horns, when wiring one of them up be sure to get a better relay than the one that comes with the horn. The coil that is in the one with the horn will not be able to hold the voltage needed to run the horn.

Total time was about 4 1/2 hours to do everything.
Total $ around $50 for belts and t-stat and radiator hose.
Total for the help from every one on this forum to help me get it done PRICELESS


Thanks to all for the help!!!:claps:

 

[wilf]

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Hey Dennis
Cold month's who are you kidding:ROFL:

 

[Bike...and Dennis]

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wilf wrote:

Hey Dennis
Cold month's who are you kidding:ROFL:

Hey...we have winter too.

Some days the temperature here has been know to plummet into the mid seventies.

Honestly though, in 1972, or '73 I worked a club in Saskatoon called "The Embers", I think. The reasons I remember that is

1: Theclub had burned down and they rebuilt with that name and...

2: The temperature got down to 50 below zero.

To a bunch of California kids, that was pretty brutal. We did find out that, at that temperature, if you spit, it truly does freeze before it hits the ground.