2010 Aveo: Timing Belt Installed Incorrectly at Factory?

So I did some preventative maintenance this week and had a new timing belt installed.

Our mechanic, who is also an Aveo owner, told me that according to specs the original timing belt was "one notch out" in its placement so the timing would be been off from the get go. Might explain some of the overall performance issues.

He said the belt was in good condition and there was no evidence that it could have slipped position.

Anyone else run across this? Just some more of that Korean/GM Quality Control? LOL

that seems unlikely. but if it's trues that would mean one or 2 of the camshafts could have been one notch out. making the whole thing not line up correctly. cause if everything lines up and you mark the belt, remove the belt, and put it back one notch apart, it should technically still be timed correctly.

but anyways the car runs better right?

Thanks. Yes the hesitation that it had is gone, smoother Idle.

Would it have thrown a code for a misfire at all or would it not have been severe enough for a misfire?

that i wouldn't know, but its good your car runs smoother. But if its still giving you a code for misfire i would say change the spark plugs.

Thanks! As a matter of fact the mechanic suggested that as well. Car is a 2010 with low mileage, only about 34,000 miles but given its age he said it was due.

Thanks again!!

When I asked if my 2006 Aveo could have had a timing belt that was not put on right from the factory, i was told, in here, that is was impossible!!! I asked if it could be the reason i had always gotten such terrible city gas mileage. And was told it wouldnt have run right since day 1, and since i had a 3 year warranty on it, I bought it new, and had the dealer look it over at least 10 times for the mileage, i was told that the dealer would have found the timing problem,and the car would never had run right. Since it 'ran right', except for crappy mileage, it couldnt be the timing belt. I had the entire kit replaced a month ago,I think it runs better, thought the mileage was higher, but it didn;t change. So...at least mine was not 'on the wrong teeth', as I thought.

I'm the 2nd owner of this one. Although it was low mileage when I got it I had no idea if the previous owner changed the belt after 5yrs, so I did it just to be on the safe side.

If it indeed wasn't the original factory belt then quite possibly whoever replaced it misaligned it when they put it on. My mechanic said there was no way it could've slipped as the tension was good and all the teeth were intact. It did have quite a glaze on it that led him to believe it was probably the original belt.

I guess it might be one of those mysteries I never will get an answer for. At least now she seems to be running better than it did. Gas mileage comparison should be noticeable. (Hopefully)