Three questions about a Dodge 6 cylinder Caravan. It says to have the timing belt inspected and replaced if ..

Question

needed at 60,000 miles. What is involved in checking the timing belt and would it be better just to replace it if it is laborious to get to ?
Also, it says to adjust the bands on the transmission every 30,000 miles. How is this done ? The tranny appears to be making a whining noise now at 82,000 miles .....

Also, the car is shimmying at about 50 mph ... what could be causing this ???

Answer 1

The timing belt is easiest to check. There are some plastic covers at the end of the cam covers. Remove one of the covers and look at the smooth side of the belt, check for cracks. Look at the teeth on the inside of the belt where it goes over the cam gear, and compare with the grooves in the cam gear. If the teeth do not fill the groove, the belt is worn and in need of replacement. In that case, everything on that end of the engine has to come off to replace the belt, not an easy task for anyone.
At least one of the bands in the transmission requires the transmission to be drained to adjust. Unless you know what to look for inside and outside, you'll never figure it out.
As far as the front end shimmy is concerned, it may be the simplest to fix. Perhaps a wheel weight came off and a tire is unbalanced, but it could also be worn or bent parts.
Now if this has piqued your curiosity enough, go get a Haynes or Chilton's manual, or both and dig in and fix it.
If this has sufficiently discouraged you, save up or get a loan and hire the work done.

Answer 2

WOW!! The engine would be a mitsu 3.0L V-6 SOHC non- interference engine. Basically the same thing you would find in most Mopar FWD. Broken timing belts will usually create a tow bill and some inconvieniance To properly inspect it you have to remove it, so? Good rule of thumb is timing belt at 60K, at 120K also add a waterpump w/ new transfer tube o-rings (2 req'd.) and bypass hose, often overlooked, The engine in most cases of timing belt failure are not dammaged mechanicaly. It is far better to replace it before it breaks,Towing, weekend, etc. It is a labor intensive procedure so labor rates vary.
Transmission is designed to last the lifetime of the vehicle. If a band need to be adjusted, in most cases this is done at time of initial setup, at recondition this is again reset to proper tightness, and then checked for proper operation (shift timing and overlap, etc.) In most cases this is not a problem with 3-spd transaxles. 2 points to adjust, one external on the top of the transaxle case, near dipstick, tube. One band inside case under valve body, (L/R) Whining nose that intensifies at light load and lessons durring float or decel is side gear whine, and is considered nornal gear type noise. Mopar tried to address this with a new gear package, just moves the whine to a higher speed!!
Shimmy, check the tires first, rotate front to back recheck make sure all tires are the same size. Read the sidewall of the tire and compare, only like sizes on drive axles

Answer 3

You didn't say what year the vehicle is. I'm assuming it has a 3.0. My book says check every 60K BUT also says " The previous use and history of the vehicle must also be taken into consideration." It also says " Caution: This engine has been identified as an INTERFERENCE engine in which the possibility of valve-to-piston damage in the event of a timing belt failure is MOST LIKELY to occur." In other words...it's a good idea to have it replaced. " Shimmying" could be worn front end parts...i.e. tie rod ends, bushings etc. You need to have a good alignment shop check it out. Band adjustment needs to be done again by a competent technician. I hope I gave you some food for thought.

Answer 4

I would have the timing belt replaced. If it breaks, some engine damage could occur. They should be replaced every 60,000 miles.
The shimmy sounds like either an out of balance tire or a bad tire/ suspension part.
I would get a Haynes manual as far as adjusting the trans bands.

Answer 5

Timing Belt... Have it checked dont replace it if its good
Adjust Bands... Have you xmission service, replace filter adjust bands, replace fluid
Snimmying. May be bad tie rod end, tires or someother front end problem.. Jack the car up where both front wheels are off the ground. Then look under there and have someone wiggle the tire back and forth.. Look for something that has play in it..

Answer 6

Please guys... you need to give more information, year, engine size, the 3,3 and
3,8 Liters have timing chain, and there is no specific time for replacement, they last for ever, the 3,0 liters has a timing belt, and in the shop it takes around 3-4 hours to do, replace also the water pump with the timing
belt, do not advise to do it at home, I did that and it took me two days, good luck

Answer 7

Theres a Tool for checking the timing belt. The motor has to be pulled (if im correct it does) you might want to check with your local auto shop. Im not familiar with dodge transmissions, i use sticks more than autos. you mignt need to get your trannys filter replaced. It can really tear up an auto. Maybe that shimmying is your front end isnt alligned, i dunno im goin on assumption here