Hello fellow Probe owners. My Probe has accumulated 180k miles and so it's now time to replace the timing belt. I've let Ford do it before (60k and 120K miles) but I've decided to do it myself this time. In addition to replacing the belt, I'm also replacing the timing belt tensioner and idler pulleys as well as the tensioner spring. I feel that after 180k miles, it's probably the prudent thing to do. BTW, I'm using genuine parts, not after market stuff. Any helpful hints will be appreciated! Aloha, Michael

Alex, I had my timing belt changed by the local Ford dealer. The cost for doing this is as follows: timing belt (part # F3ZZ 6268 A): $60.36 labor $206.00 You can see the belt itself is a small part of the cost. While you have the front of the engine torn apart, you should have the mechanic check the timing belt tensioners, and replace if they are at all questionable. They're not that expenseive (I think about $80.00 each; you need two), but if they fail between now and your next belt change (60,000 miles from now, right?), you'll be doing this all over again too soon. Hope this helps. Mike 1994 base/5-speed

mike,      how much did ford charge you for the latest timing belt replacement?                                                                         probep7

I have two links for you: http://www.egr.msu.edu/~spadaben/timing/leskatimingbelt.doc - Word document with pictures of timing belt replacement on a 2.5 motor (GT) http://www.probetalk.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1700974768 Probetalk thread with a walkthrough for a 2.0 If you're not very mechanically inclined I'd recommend you let a mechanic do it. I'd also add that as long as your at it you may want to do the accessory belts, water pump, as well as the oil pump is you have lifter tick that the 2.0's are notorious for. Hope this helps. MULTI 94GT

Hello
to all,
Is it realy worth the money to sup up a probe?
not sure what to do any more?
Air Hoge

Colin, Thanks for the e-links. I clicked on the second one, which has some real good info on what's involved with this procedure. FYI, I successfully replaced my timing belt and both idler and tensioner pulleys within about seven hours. I used both the Ford repair manual for my Probe ('94) and the Haynes manual for Probes and Mazda MX6's. The Haynes manual has you remove the water pump pulley while the alternator/water pump belt is still attached, which is not too hard to do (not much space to work, however). I didn't change the oil pump or the water pump, but it might have been prudent to change them too, as if either of these fail in the next 60k miles, I'll have to remove the timing belt to get to them. I also just supported the engine with a scissors jack on the floor used when I removed the right engine mount. One thing I did in addition is paint match marks on the timing belt, cam sprockets, and the crankshaft pulley - I transferred the marks I painted on the old belt to the new one, which made matching up the new belt's cogs with the cam and crankshaft sprockets very easy. I also got the Ford part which holds the cam sprockets in place when the timing belt is removed - well worth the price! I think it was about 10 bucks, but the Ford guys had a hard time finding out how to order it (it was listed in the Ford manual). Pepito4677, FYI, the last time I had Ford change my timing belt, they charged me about $360, of which labor was about $260. They took about five hours, as they had a hard time lining up the cam sprockets after the old belt was removed (they didn't have the Ford tool that locks the sprockets in place). After I put everything back together, the car started up like the engine had never been apart! Needless to say, I was overjoyed! Again, thanks for the info. If any one else is considering doing this, drop me a line and I can let you know my experiences. Aloha, Mike >