timing chain life

[gumby]

i know there are to many variables for an accurate answer but here it goes. whats the average life of an sohc timing chain before it needs to be replaced?

[steve s14]

i've seen them last over 200 thousand miles but if you haven't replace the plastic chain guide out of the engine with the new metal and plastic one and the smaller bolts. it's a good idea to remove the timing cover and replace them along with the front cover oil galley o-ring, crank seal, new chain and sprockets, etc.

[gumby]

yeah ive read that about the plastic guides before. why the hell would nissan put plastic parts inside an engine. is it just me or is that incredibly stupid.

[ArcherV20]

They aren't plastic guides. They are like extremely strong iron. Would take a long time of hard driving to snap. I removed mine because of the noise it made.

[ricebike]

i think some engineer made a big mistake when it came to this part. I mean they have to stay w/in budget so some parts are made to the lowest bidder. but at least most SOHC were taken care of during that recall.

I've changed mine out @ 135K, keeping old parts. seemed like the previous owner had already done the recall d/t metal-backed plastic guides. plastic was there to keep it 'quiet' is my guess.

<I think Arch was referring to DPHC engines, doh!>

PS: how's your car holding up? w/ the welded bracing on the chassis?

[steve s14]

yeah ive read that about the plastic guides before. why the hell would nissan put plastic parts inside an engine. is it just me or is that incredibly stupid.

yeah but it's not just nissan, other car companies use plastic chain guides too, like toyota in there 22r and 22re motors.the difference is that when nissan noticed that the guides were breaking, they just didn't say oh well and keep producing the same failing part.they took the time to stop production of the old part and redesign it which i can't say the same for toyota.nissan > toyota

[wanna240now]

no offence.....but are you joking??????

Nissan>Toyota.???? thats hilarios!!!!!(sp)

come on now......how many nissans can you name that went over 250k. miles???

NOW.....name how many toyotas crapped out BEFORE 250k miles????

Toyotas are GREAT vehicles. Esp. the 22r models. Those motors are practically indestructible....

[Red coupe]

toyota isnt the company to just say oh well, but the plastic guides arent the huge deal you making them out to be, even replacement oem guids have plastic wear surfaces, plastic isnt just one material, there are many kinds, hell some engines even make the cam shafts sprokets out of plastic, It can be very hard durrable cheap stuff, thats easy for the manufactures to form into lots of usefull shapes. the probelem is when they dont design the part as a whole right not just the use of something non-metalic...

[steve s14]

i own a toyota pickup truck and the chain guide broke and the chain sawed right through the cover. needless to say i was pretty disappointed to find that the new part was the same crappy part and design as the old one.i worked for toyota and nissan and i did more engines and transmissions in my 2 years at toyota than practically my whole career at nissan and i've worked at nissan for over 12 years.on average, i replaced or rebuilt 3-4 engines or transmissions a month at toyota compared to nissan where it would be unusual if i did more that 2 a month.i'm not saying that making plastic engine parts is a bad thing, hell i could careless if it was made out of paper as long as it works properly and as designed. my point is there is a difference in mentality between the two companies. one cares about overall profits where as the other cares about that and customer opinion.if you need anymore examples of why nissan is > than toyota. let me know because i can write a book about the stuff i've seen.

[steve s14]

come on now......how many nissans can you name that went over 250k. miles???

NOW.....name how many toyotas crapped out BEFORE 250k miles????

Toyotas are GREAT vehicles. Esp. the 22r models. Those motors are practically indestructible....

let me count the ways, several of my friends own maximas, one has 220k on the clock, it's a 97, another has 260k a 96 max, almost 300k on a 95 max. my buddy owns a 92 tt 300z with about 270k on it and the all important fact is that none of these cars had, as of yet, any major engine repairs.a couple of people that i know have camrys and almost all of them are dealing with some sort of oil leak or another, and most of the ones that are 4 cyl are burning oil from the valve stem seals (a 98)or have a oil sludge problems (a 96 camry and a v6 sienna 2002 that burns about a quart or more between oil changes)indestuctible may be your opinion but i'll stick to nissans or hondas thanks.

[gumby]

funny you should mention about the toyota burning oil. my moms '96 corolla with 110K started drinking oil out of nowhere. a switch to 10w30 cured it. runs as well as ever and hasnt burned any noticable amount in the last 15k. i guess the rings/valves were just worn.