When I get paid, I am leaning towards doing a cam job to upgrade my car. I'm thinking about getting a cam 10 or 12, cam gear and valve springs. Since I am going to have to take the timing belt off to change my cam, I figured it wont hurt to change it while I'm there. I also saw a Mopar Timing Belt Tensioner 2.0 and I was wondering if it's worth getting for about 130 dollars. Of course I would rather get performance parts but I also want to help my car to last longer.

What do u all think of the tensioner? Is it worth buying? My car has about 68,000 miles on it.

 

I would think that the tensioner is fine and you don't need a new one. I would get the crane #12 or #14, the 10 is just about a stock cam.

 

I thought the cam 10 was slightly better than the cam on the Neon RT's. Wouldn't the cam alone give me like 10-15 hp?

 

Yeah there is an increase your hp a little, but the #12 is the same price and gives you a better cam for future mods and gives you about the same increase with mild mods.

 

W/ the cam 10, how many miles can u go until u have to replace the timing belt?
The cam 12 is 60,000 miles.

 

Future mods like what? Turbo? If that's the case, I doubt I will spend the money and put a turbo in my car. I know the cam 12 spools the turbo faster.
If u consider what I have as mild mods and the last thing I would do to upgrade my engine is to change the computer (as of now), would a cam 10 be fine? Will it give about the same hp increase at the same rpm levels in comparison? I know the higher the rpm the more hp (that's probably why the cam 12 is favored and will win in the hp gain).

 

in my experence you would be better off getting a new tensioner. i did a head job on a gen 1 and didnt change it, the car came back with a broken tensioner thus back to square 1. new head etc. the dealer recomends a new tensioner with the belt repalcment. it is around 160.00cdn, concerding the cost of an engine job its worth it.

 

I would still say go with the #12, you don't have to go turbo to take advantage of it. If I remember correctly the 12 pushs the power curve a little higher in the rpm range than the 10, but if you are gonna spend like $500 on a cam why put one that is just a slight bit more aggresive on, when you can put on the 12 and get more. I am not sure of what mods you have now, but with intake, full exhaust, PCM, TB, and maybe some port and polish the 12 will be a lot better.

 

I'm not a mechanic by any means so, changing the timing belt can be costly w/ anyone (other than me) doing the job. That's why I'm thinking about the cam 10 because it lasts longer. If I was good at working on cars I wouldn't think at all and just get the cam 12. I'm still debating which one though.
FYI, the mods I have on my car have been on my signature.

 

Yeah I swear I saw them in your sig. Stupid me, lol. The timing belt is not that bad of a job.