Which is better than a belt or a chain. Which timing belt to choose: with a chain or with a belt? The main characteristics of the timing belt drive

"I'm going to buy a car with a timing chain. Before that, I only encountered a belt, great experience in service, no. There are many "horror stories" about the cost of repairs and expensive consequencesif not done on time. Should I take an engine with a timing chain, or is the belt better? "

The question of which is better, a chain or a belt, cannot be answered unequivocally. Both drives have their pros and cons.

Let's start by taking apart the belt. One of the main factors in its favor is the relative cheapness of the timing kit and the ease of replacement. Taking this into account, work can be carried out earlier than the deadlines stipulated by the regulations, which means a decrease in the chances of any problems arising. The specified belt service life, depending on the manufacturer, can be up to 150,000 km, but in our conditions it is customary to change the timing every 60,000 km, that is, about once every three years.

The resource of the timing belt as a whole is better not to count only in kilometers traveled. He is negatively affected low temperatures and pollution, but it also does not depend, for example, on oil pressure. When untimely replacement belt, there is a risk of its breakage, which threatens the pistons with valves. If the engine is not running on high revs, then you should not be afraid of the belt. Otherwise, it is still better to opt for a chain.

Unlike a belt, it is extremely difficult to break a chain - its main problem is stretching and jumping onto a tooth. In this case, the valves and pistons stop working synchronously, the result of their "meeting" can be disastrous for the wallet.

The main thing that scares off motorists in timing chains is their high cost. On average, it costs about three times more to replace a set than a belt. The maximum cost may even exceed all reasonable limits, especially for V-shaped engines... Many motorists complain about the clang of the timing chain after 120,000 km, while others do not happily remember it even after 200,000 km. In general, it is necessary to consider a single car individually: in many cases, the resource of the timing chain is designed for the entire service life of the engine, which in our conditions means up to overhaul.

When buying a car with a timing chain, this unit should be given special attention, in advance to find out the prices. When inspecting a car, pay attention to the characteristic crackle, clank or clatter in the engine compartment, this is especially noticeable when starting up "to cold".

What do servicemen think?

Andrei: "The chain" runs "longer than the belt on average twice, regardless of the engine model. Accordingly, the timing belt is used in service more often. critical situations it is extremely rare to bend the valves, these are isolated cases. The sprockets are erased faster, the gas distribution process is disrupted, the engine begins to triple. I have been riding with the chain for the tenth year, no problems have arisen. "

Vladimir: "IN modern cars chains are most often used. For example, only they are installed on BMW and Mercedes. But since our car park is not the richest, it turns out that half of the cars are with a timing belt, half with a chain. In a personal Audi with 60,000 kilometers, the chain is already making itself felt - a replacement is necessary. It was a surprise even for me. Each manufacturer has its own timing for replacing the timing chain, some even have it designed for the entire service life of the engine. The disadvantages, of course, include the cost of replacing the kit. There are three belt replacements per timing chain set, so there is no fundamental difference in price in the end. Timely service closes all the questions, therefore, when choosing a car, I do not advise, in principle, to pay attention to this parameter. "

Replacing the timing kit for the Infiniti FX35 cost the owner 3.5 million rubles for parts and $ 200 for the work itself

Therefore, it is impossible to recommend a chain or a belt, since this choice is at the level of confrontation between "mechanics" and "automatic", gasoline and diesel engines... And, as both car owners and servicemen correctly note, the question is not about the "best" drive, but about its timely maintenance.

Andrey GORELIK
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Which timing drive is better? This question is one of the ten most philosophical automotive questions, along with left and right hand drive, gasoline or diesel, mechanical or automatic transmission gear. Some motorists will give their vote for the belt drive, while the second will give preference to the chain mechanism. The same applies to all of the above issues. Let's try together to figure out which gas distribution mechanism is better, cheaper and what are the pros and cons of the two camshaft drive options.

It should be noted right away that today all more car manufacturers go exactly to the belt drive and abandon the timing chain. But all the same, some drivers still have a distrustful attitude towards the "elastic" drive. A large number of motorists, especially the older generation, call the metal option almost eternal. Are they right?

Modern timing chain

In the past, timing chains were a really hassle-free piece. The thing is that it was usually made of two, and sometimes of three links (rows). Tearing such a metal track was very problematic. They really "served" hundreds of thousands of kilometers. Over time, the chain could stretch out and begin to ring unbearably, which led to a jump of one or two teeth. Even so, breaks occurred much less frequently than belts.

Compared to the belt, the chain is noisy, stretches, but the sound insulation of modern power units allows you to remove this drawback quickly and efficiently. In the cabin, the "rustle" of the chain is practically inaudible. It is worth noting that old chain motors are indeed more reliable than new ones. Modern units cannot boast of similar reliability. Why?

There are a number of reasons for this. Now engines have greatly reduced their weight, have become shorter and smaller in volume. This is due to the so-called "EURO norms" - it is necessary for the car to be lighter, more compact, respectively, consume little fuel and emit less harmful substances in atmosphere. These requirements were reflected in the timing. Its drive is also greatly facilitated.

Also, now all car manufacturers are trying to increase the volume of the cabin, by reducing the volume engine compartment... Therefore, it is very important that power unit was as compact as possible. The chain drive was the first to suffer from such changes, so the chain was shortened and lightened as much as possible. Now it looks more like a bicycle. Due to this cut, not only the block head has decreased, but also the block itself. Therefore, there was no need for a large oil bath (the classic chain was constantly rotating in oil).

At first glance, everything is fine - the chain has been reduced, the volumes and dimensions have decreased, less oil is needed, and the weight has decreased. Great, right? But there is one important "BUT" ... such a thin product began to break.
True, before finally failing, the chain begins to make noise louder than usual. Many drivers do not pay attention to this, blame it on the weather, or simply may not hear because of the good "noise" of the engine. All this leads to an open circuit and costly repairs.

Thus, the timing chain has become the same consumable as most of the engine elements. Now it is extremely difficult to find an engine in which the chain would change only during overhaul (as it was before). As a rule, it is changed like the belt - from 100,000 km. Plus, due to the complexity of the design, timing chain diagnostics are now very expensive. It can be concluded that the modern chain mechanism in terms of reliability and resource is very close to the timing belt.

Do you have a car on a chain? Don't be in a hurry to get upset. Yes, there are really many disadvantages, but there are also advantages:

it rotates in a closed space, practically does not come into contact with air, which means there is no debris, dust and moisture that accelerates wear.
temperature is practically not important to her. She is not afraid of either cold or heat, unlike a belt.
accuracy of adjustment. The chain has a more precise adjustment mechanism, it does not stretch as much.
resistance to short-term overload.

Timing belt

This is a completely different design, despite the identity of the functions performed. The belt looks like this - a rubberized tape (maybe on a fabric basis or other wear-resistant material) inside which there are teeth. These teeth mesh with gears that are attached to the camshaft.

The advantages of the belt mechanism:

dry construction. That is, there is no oil here. It is located outside the power unit, rotates in the air, although it is closed with a special casing.
the belt is elastic. It effectively dampens vibrations that can affect shaft life in multi-cylinder engines.
there is practically no effect of temperature on the operation of the motor. If the oil is cold in winter, this does not affect the noise of the engine (the chain mechanism needs to be warmed up to effectively pump oil into the hydraulic tensioner).
silence of work.
ease of diagnosis and repair. There is no need to disassemble the motor, you don't even need to remove the head cover. The protective cover is simply removed.
repair price. It is cheaper both in production and in replacement. Changing the belt together with mechanical tensioners is several times cheaper than replacing the chain.
compactness of the part. Motor with belts is lighter, shorter and smaller in volume.

Negative points:

pollution. Since the belt rotates in the air and is only protected by the shroud, dust, dirt, water and even oil can get on it. All this negatively affects its resource.
aging and cracking. The belt changes not only by mileage, but also by years. For example, if the car has been parked for a long time without operation, and the mileage is only a few tens of kilometers, the belt still needs to be changed. Its material is prone to aging and from time to time it simply cracks.
tendency to slip. When exceeding the maximum load (with a sharp start from a standstill), the belt may slip. Sometimes even the teeth that are engaged are broken.

So which is better: a belt or a chain? It is extremely difficult to give a definite answer. It is necessary to look at the specific engine model, as well as its operating conditions.

Every driver has probably at least once wondered what is better to choose - timing belt or chain... This question is one of the most popular, akin to the dispute about mechanics and the machine. The belt is increasingly preferred by many car manufacturers. It is installed on Volkswagens, Toytas and Opels with V8 and V6 engines.

However, among the people, the disputes do not subside. In our material, we will try to dot all the points above and, understand all the pros and cons regarding the most acceptable version of the camshaft drive.

Chain: features, service life, replacement cost

If we talk about the chain, then this method has been tested over many years of operation, it is relatively light and if we take into account the total cost of the engine, the chain will make up a small part of it. Of course, such an engine makes a lot of noise. It's true. But cars do not stand still, but develop, improving the sound insulation of the body and interior. Modern iron horses so good that in most cases the noise of the motor is not heard at all, and if it does come, it is not at all annoying. For example, the engines from Volkswagen EA111 series - 1.6-liter naturally aspirated and 1.4-liter TSI - they have identical chains, and the atmospheric one is much noisier. In this case, the problem lies deeper. In old motors, double-row chains were installed, because it is impossible to immediately cut off this mechanism. But with wear, the chains stretched and made a lot of noise. At the same time, rarely jumping a couple of teeth on the drive gears.

When special attention was paid to the length of the motor, the situation changed. In order to be able to increase the volume of the passenger compartment, they began to reduce the engine compartment. On front-wheel drive cars, they began to install motors across. At the same time, they began to shorten the length of the chain. All chains became single-row and acquired a good compactness. Now the thickness of the chain is even powerful engine comparable to the thickness of a bicycle chain.

Chain width is important not only because there is a need to lighten the chain. Another factor is the position of the chain in the oil bath of the motor, inside the unit. Because of this, the block and cylinders and its head must be longer by the width of the chain. All this is extra metal that makes the mechanism heavier. In addition, thin chains began to break frequently. Loud noise - one of the signs that the chain has begun to fail. The fact is that along with the noise of the engine, the noise from the circuit is not too expressive, so you can easily miss the moment when it suddenly breaks.

Double-row chains in this case, they were more profitable, because they could continue to work after breaking one branch, because the load on both branches was distributed more evenly. The teeth of the stars wore out more slowly, so if the chain was made of strong alloys, it could be considered "eternal". In this case, it was necessary to replace the chain only during the overhaul of the motor.

The trend towards lighter construction and the desire to extend have created new problems. Chains have lost their durability and no longer outperform timing belts. At the same time, the design with a chain is much more complicated than an analogue with a belt, and replacing the chain is quite expensive, besides, diagnostics technical condition this detail is very complex.

The average cost of replacing a chain mechanism on a four-cylinder engine is at least $ 500, and replacing a timing belt will cost $ 150-200. Therefore, when buying a machine with a chain motor, it is worth especially carefully to diagnose the timing drive. It is important to take into account all the nuances and check every little thing.

Why are chain motors still popular today?

Someone may have the opinion that the chain mechanism is completely unusable and is a relic of the past. However, this is an erroneous opinion, because if it were true, the belt would have come to the fore long ago.

Chains have their own advantages. The first and main advantage is full protection from any adverse external factors: contact with moisture and precipitation, exposure to temperatures. The chains will be free from frost and heat, dirt and snow, which the belt is afraid of. The second important advantage of the chain is the accuracy in timing. Under heavy loads, the chain cannot deform, therefore, even at high speeds, the original installation of the shafts will remain in the motor. And this, in turn, can be called a guarantee of maintaining the high power characteristics of the motor. The third advantage is good resistance to periodic overloads, which rarely occur, but are many times stronger than the nominal ones. In such a situation, a serviceable chain tensioner will not jump from tooth to tooth, and the valve timing will not be violated.

It is important to understand that systems with variable timing phases should be equipped with simpler phase shifters on chain-driven camshafts. They do not need sealing, because the phase shifters work on the principle of oil circulation. The chain needs oil to operate, and the belt does not tolerate contact with this oily liquid.

Actually, these are all the advantages of a chain drive. To summarize: the resource of modern-type chains is not much higher than that of belts, and in exceptional cases belts demonstrate even greater performance. Considering the high cost of replacing the chain. Price is the determining factor, so the chain is changed only in extreme cases, and this is quite dangerous. In this way, using the belt looks more practical and safer.

In the chain drive, the hydraulic tensioner does not work well if the oil pressure is low, therefore, the chain jump during the start and sudden pressure drops may occur, which means poor compatibility with start and stop systems, as well as oil pumps that can be adjusted. This unit is quite costly to expose. It often happens that the tensioner does not work properly during reverse rotation motor, for example, while performing any operations in a car service or when you put the car in gear up a hill, in this case, the chain will easily jump a couple of teeth, so during the start of the engine everything will end in failure.

Belt advantages

One of the main advantages of a belt is its ability to bend in different directions, that is, elasticity. This allows the drive to perfectly cope with torsional vibrations, which on multi-cylinder engines with a complex design can have a strong effect on vibration loading and shaft bed life.

Another advantage of the belt is its quiet work... The belt is usually long enough to allow good pull-up with a mechanical tensioner without affecting the timing settings. They do not need additional lubrication. The belt is able to work equally well on both cold and warm engine. The resource of the part does not depend in any way on the materials used for the lubrication, as well as the oil pressure.

It is not difficult to diagnose a belt malfunction, and it is easy to replace it without even disassembling the engine block. Cheap belt - another plus of the mechanism, moreover, it can be easily replaced according to the regulations, without waiting for the critical level of wear of the part. Finally, thanks to the belt, the engine can be equipped with a more compact and lighter cylinder block.

Disadvantages of the belt

Of course, the belt, like any other mechanism, has its drawbacks. One of the biggest is vulnerability. Sadly, the belt is afraid of oil, water and cold weather. The materials from which the belts are made are prone to aging, and the belt resource is measured not in kilometers, but in years. So, if the car was parked in the garage, the belt still gets old and fails.

If the load on the belt is increased to the limit, it can slip. This also applies to a sharp twisting of the engine. When belts are installed on latest enginesthis increases the risk of oil getting on the belt. Previously, motors were widespread, the design of which assumed protection against the lack of reliability of the timing belt drive. If the belt suddenly breaks, camshaft immediately stops moving in sync with the crankshaft. Because of this, the pistons will immediately start hitting the valves that have remained in the "open" position.

Summing up

What to choose for? If we compare all the characteristics of the chain and the belt, weigh the pros and cons, in the end it turns out that these two mechanisms oppose the stability and quality of the belt resource and affordable price for its replacement, and a chain that is more resistant to adverse effects, the replacement of which is quite expensive, and the work largely depends on the lubrication and operating modes of the motor.

Car manufacturers are constantly looking for the right solution. The two sets of characteristics compete with each other, so there is no advantage to one side. Opinions are usually divided. Volkswagen engines in the most affordable price segment most often use a belt, rather than a bad chain. Even on the most powerful motors the German automaker also has belts.

The mid-size EA888 engines still use a chain mechanism, which works quite successfully there. Sometimes Volkswagen masters even combined two mechanisms. In this case, the chain was used to synchronize the rotation of two camshafts, and one of them was driven by a belt.

Opel, along with General Motors, now use a timing chain drive for all engines, including the smallest. Even despite the relative reliability of the chain drive of the mid-size engine family. However, the manufacturer had no problems with the belts.

Moreover, each type of drive has certain advantages and disadvantages, obliging the owner to take into account various nuances during operation.

As for the car enthusiasts themselves, practical exploitation has further divided the supporters and opponents of this or that decision into two opposite camps. Next, we will consider the features of the timing belt and chain, talk about the pros and cons of chain and belt drive types, and also try to answer the question of which is better, a timing chain or belt.

Read in this article

Timing chain drive or timing belt

Let's start with the fact that the chain has been installed on motors for a long time, the solution is time-tested and has proven itself to be quite reliable. Many drivers in the CIS have got used to the timing chain since the time of the "classic" VAZ, and the chain drive is also installed on a huge number of old foreign cars.

However, today more and more more cars new generation are belt driven. The timing belt is commonly used on both low-volume engines and powerful V-shaped power units.

For this reason, many novice drivers are often interested in how to find out if a timing chain or belt is worth. It is usually easiest to look at the engine from above or from the side. The definition is simple enough. If there is a cover-cover outside the internal combustion engine (often made of plastic), then this is a motor with a belt. The chain drive is located inside the internal combustion engine as the chain needs lubrication.

So, back to the comparison. If you contrast the two types of drive, at first glance it might seem that the chain is definitely more reliable and durable compared to the belt. The only drawback of the chain is the increased noise level of such motors, which is easily compensated by the improved one.

At the same time quieter and light belt The timing belt is a "consumable" with a fairly limited service life, its condition must be constantly monitored and must be changed after a strictly defined period of time. Failure to do so could result in belt breakage, resulting in costly iCE repair... However, in practice, not everything is so obvious. Let's figure it out.

Timing chain: cons

At the very beginning, we note that the generally accepted comparison of the two types of drives described above is relevant only in relation to fairly old motors, on which reliable three or two-row chains with a long service life were installed. The main advantage can be considered the fact that such a chain needs to be rarely serviced and cannot be cut off immediately.

As a rule, chains on old generation internal combustion engines serve at least 250-300 thousand km. and more, then the chain is gradually stretched and a characteristic noise appears. However, the chain does not slip on the gears, the valve timing does not go astray, the engine continues to run at exactly different speeds.

At the same time, the situation changed markedly after car manufacturers focused on the production of more compact internal combustion engines. The main task was to reduce the weight and size of the power unit, which made it possible to reduce the length of the engine compartment and increase the interior space.

As a result, the engines became smaller and lighter, the transverse arrangement of the motor began to be encountered much more often than the longitudinal one, since the popularization of front drive... It is quite obvious that against this background, the dimensions of the timing chain also decreased, instead of wide three and two-row solutions, single-row narrow chains began to be installed.

Let's add that reducing the width was necessary not only to lighten the chain. The fact is that structurally the chain is located under the cover and is lubricated with engine oil from an oil bath. Without going into too much detail, the total length will depend on the width of the chain. Naturally, it was the chain that was already made and lightened.

At the same time, lightweight chains began to break much more often, their resource significantly decreased compared to their predecessors. For example, a two-row chain had a more distributed load and remained operational even after one row was broken.

With this design, the teeth of the sprockets themselves were also subject to less wear, which made it possible to achieve a very long service life of the entire mechanism. In practice, the chain could make noise, but it cared for as much as the engine itself until the moment of overhaul. As for single-row lightweight solutions, these chains are less noisy, while it is not always possible to hear that the chain is stretched / worn out and will soon break. The service life of such chains rarely exceeds the mark of 150 thousand km, often replacing the timing chain is necessary already by 100 thousand km.

It turns out that the element can be considered the same "consumable" as the timing belt (especially in the case of reinforced belts that have an extended service life). Taking into account a number of features, it becomes obvious that a modern chain drive is structurally more complex and noisy, diagnostics, maintenance and replacement of a chain are much more expensive than a belt (on average, 2 or 3 times).

It should also be borne in mind that on some large-volume V-shaped internal combustion engines, replacing such a drive involves a significant list of works and certain difficulties. It may be necessary to dismantle the engine, then. Given the short life of the chain itself, maintenance is very expensive.

The fact that a hydraulic tensioner is used in the chain drive deserves special attention. The element is very sensitive to. If the oil pressure "jumps", the chain can also jump on the gears when starting the engine, etc.

There is also a situation when the tensioner did not cope with its task in the event that the engine spun in back side... As an example, we can mention the banal rollback of the car back, which was previously in the engaged gear.

Pros of a chain drive

Considering all of the above, then it may seem that modern chain motors completely lose to units with a belt. Note that this is not entirely true either.

First of all, the chain is actually a part of the engine, that is, it is located inside. In other words, the element is reliably protected from dirt, dust and water, does not suffer from temperature extremes and is not afraid of getting into technical fluids... At the same time, the above factors significantly affect the belt life and can quickly damage the belt drive.

Another indisputable advantage of the chain is the ability to precisely set the valve timing. The fact is that the chain is not subject to stretching for a long time, it is not affected by the growing loads on the motor. Therefore, while driving at elevated and maximum speed the exact setting of the camshafts is maintained, the engine does not lose power.

It is also worth mentioning that a serviceable chain is more resistant to different loads. This means that the drive does not jump on the gear teeth (provided normal work tensioner), that is, the valve timing does not go astray. Even the use of a chain in allows the use of a simplified and more reliable design of the phase shifters on the camshafts.

Timing belt advantages

One of the main advantages of the timing belt is its simplicity, as well as the ability to effectively damp vibrations. This ability to reduce vibration loads and vibrations increases the life of the camshaft beds.

The belt also reduces the overall noise level from iCE operation, if necessary, its condition can be relatively easily checked, replaced or tightened, while the timing phases remain in place. For diagnostics, there is no need to disassemble the internal combustion engine, the belt is affordable, so it can be changed at any time.

Modern belts work well in conditions of temperature changes, have an increased resource, which does not depend on quality engine oil and pressure in the lubrication system. Motors with a belt can be made as compact as possible by installing them under the hoods of minicars.

Disadvantages of a belt drive

As for the disadvantages, the main one is the lack of protection of the belt from external factors. Ingress of dirt, engine oil, temperature changes and other nuances will significantly reduce the life of the element. It should also be borne in mind that the belt is a rubber product, and rubber tends to age. For this reason, the belt is changed not only in terms of mileage, but also in time.

Another feature of the belt is that it can slip if the design load is exceeded. The combination of the variable valve timing mechanism with a belt drive increases the risk of oil from the phase shifters getting onto the belt. The phase shifters themselves must be sealed, and many drivers are well aware that a broken timing belt causes the valve to bend on the engine. Although the manufacturers tried at one time to level this drawback, they failed to solve the problem.

In order to avoid the consequences of a break, on some engines, special grooves were made in the piston crowns. Such grooves were necessary so that in the event of a belt break, the piston would not hit the valves. At the same time, such "insurance" was later refused. The fact is that the presence of holes greatly reduced the quality of combustion of the fuel-air mixture in the cylinders, the power of the internal combustion engine was falling. For this reason, the engineers were forced to abandon this idea, thereby reducing the overall reliability of the structure.

What is the result

As you can see, for many leading car manufacturers, choosing and switching from an exceptional drive to one or the other is also not an easy task. It is noteworthy that on different models of the same brand, both motors with a chain and a timing belt can be installed.

For instance, bMW company, which for many years used only a chain in the design of the internal combustion engine, in parallel released a number of belt-driven motors (the well-known M40 power unit).

The engines turned out to be quite reliable, the belts fully worked out their resource, no problems with the drive and the gas distribution mechanism itself were identified during operation. Moreover, the versions bMW engines with a chain, they were both successful (the chain was nursed without replacement until the overhaul of the unit), and not particularly reliable, when the chain required an expensive replacement after 80-90 thousand km. Given this information, it is not possible to answer the question of which is more reliable, a chain or a belt.

The VAG (Volkswagen) concern installs belts on some models of the entry segment, middle class cars are equipped with a chain, but the manufacturer also puts a belt drive on powerful and voluminous units. It turns out that one cannot also say that belts can be found only on budget versions of cars, while the chain goes to more prestigious and expensive models.

A similar situation can be traced with other automakers (domestic auto industry, brands from the USA and Japan). All this tells us that much does not depend on the type of drive itself, but on how it is performed with regard to the technical part. Also, one should not forget about the features of the operation of this or that vehicle.

Finally, we note that an extended analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of a chain and belt drive on modern motors allows us to draw several main conclusions:

The chain has a number of advantages only in relation to the stability of the internal combustion engine. More precisely, with such a drive, it is possible to more accurately adjust the valve timing.
As for the resource, maintenance, as well as the cost of replacing the chain and belt, the cost of the chain drive will ultimately turn out to be much higher (ranging from increased requirements for oil quality and ending with the replacement of the chain itself, tensioner, damper, etc.).
The reliability of modern timing belts at their low cost looks like a much more attractive option both in terms of replacement and ease of maintenance.
In practice, the timely replacement of the belt and rollers with high-quality original products or proven analogues allows us to speak about the sufficient reliability of the element.
Also, one should not believe in the huge resource of the chain, since modern cars often have a lightweight narrow chain with a small resource. In this case, constant monitoring of noise is needed, periodic check of the tensioner and chain dampers is desirable, as well as replacement of the chain drive according to the regulations.

Considering the high cost of replacement, it becomes clear that many change the chain not based on mileage, but only when signs of stretching and other malfunctions appear. In this case, it would be wrong to talk about any advantage in terms of reliability, since a worn chain can jump or break at any time.

In the case of a belt, the costs of purchasing and installing it are relatively low, which allows every motorist, even with a limited budget, to service his car according to the regulations.

Is the chain better?

Many drivers are sure that there is nothing better than a chain; a chain is reliability. When buying a car, it is recommended to give preference to cars with chain motors, as more durable and hassle-free. In reality, things are not so rosy and the chain has more disadvantages than advantages.

The very design of the chain motor makes it much more expensive and harder than engines with a belt. Thus, the chain must be positioned inside the block and ensure sufficient lubrication. For a car owner, the maintenance of a chain motor is more expensive than a belt motor, because the cost of a timing chain set is about three times higher than a belt one. It turns out that even though the owner of the motor on the strap will change the timing kit two times before the nominal 120 thousand mileage, he will spend much less money.

Not all chains are that strong. There are quite a lot of motors, the manufacturers of which decided to save money and put a "bicycle" chain in it. Such a chain stretches and requires replacement as often as a simple and cheap belt. Another significant disadvantage chain motors is noisy. Often, even at low mileage, the clang of a chain or tensioner begins to be heard from the engine compartment.

But the belt is also not sinless. Rubber does not tolerate oil ingress on it, tan in the cold, stretches in the heat. The belt can slip or even break, leaving the car owner with a broken engine.

What's better?

If chain drives there were only drawbacks, motor manufacturers would have stopped installing it long ago. The undoubted advantages include the fact that the chain is reliably protected from the external environment, it is not affected by heat, cold, or dirt. In chain motors, it is possible to set the timing phases much more accurately, which has a positive effect on the operation of the engine, especially at high speeds.

A belt, compared to a chain, costs a penny, as does the work of replacing it. A simple roller is used to tension the belt, without tricky and not always working hydraulic tensioners.

It is impossible to say unequivocally that one is more reliable and preferable than the other, it is impossible, everything has its pros and cons. When buying a new car for the owner, it makes no difference whether it has a chain motor or a belt motor. When buying a used car, you should consider that belt motors are much cheaper to maintain.

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