Lost CVT Belt

[wcurtin1962]

I was in Mechanicsburg Ohio 29 miles from the house at 01:00 this morning. I had stopped and fueled at an IGA (grocery store). When I got going again about a ¼ mile down the road the engine acted like it didn’t want to take gas then stalled. I was still rolling, I cranked over again it started but I had no drive just the engine revving.

I pushed the scooter back to the IGA’s fuel isle and started taking off the belt cover. When I got it off there was nothing left of the belt except belt dust and stands wrapped around both pulleys. I checked both ends and the front pulley turns the engine and the rear turn the wheel smoothly so the gears are ok. Is this the way they usually fail?

My phone was out of service range so I started walking in the store to look for a pay phone. I saw a U-Haul truck and carhualer setting in the parking lot. I went inside and asked the casher if she could rent me the U-Haul truck. She said sure and led me to the manager, who started the paper work. I went and looked in their hardware isle and they had rope which I bought. I will take the scooter over to the shop I got it at; I think the trans is still under warranty. I weigh 290 lbs would that cause the belt to wear out at 2040 miles?

[phaze5]

when they go on my mod sleds , it's always at 100 mph and they blow to smithereens, they bend aluminum, shatter plastic, and scare the hell out of you.

yea just put a gates extreme on it and scoot on.

[harrywr2]

Some of the OEM Belts don't last very long. There is also a foam filter at the front of the CVT, if it gets clogged the belt will over heat. You either need to clean it almost daily or get rid of it altogether.

At 290 lbs I would consider spending the extra money for a Gates Powerlink Premium. IIRC they are about $20 more then a standard gates belt. Other then a needing a thorough cleaning the rest of your transmission should be fine.

[Rebel]

Another thing you might consider is opening up the cover so heat dissipates better. There is a thread here that goes over that, I think in the 50cc forum here. Keeping it cool will make it last longer and help keep the motor cooler too.

[wcurtin1962]

Thanks to all for the info! I “found” the inlet vent when I was pulling off the case cover, it looks pretty restrictive, I will cut it open and mount a screen on the front of it to keep the rocks out! I ride in the rain a lot if water blows thru the case will it cause problems?

[Rebel]

water should not be much of a problem, it gets hot enough with the friction in there to evaporate it pretty quickly from the belt surfaces

[wcurtin1962]

I dropped the scooter off at the shop were I bought it. I’m trying to get them to replace the belt using the warranty for the labor while I buy a Kevlar belt from them. When I was talking to them I asked if they had various parts to increase the speed to 60 MPH. The owner suggested that I have them put heavier rollers in to increase the speed. I then asked him if they put lighter rollers wouldn’t it decease the pressure on the belt? He replied that there would be no difference in the case of a Kevlar belt and it would kill the speed I have now. They use the same Lance Venice scooters to tow advertising signs on small trailers around Columbus. I’m thinking of building a trailer big enough to haul mail carts from my home business down to the post office. Is he right about the rollers?

Also I was thinking of ducting the air to the engine air cleaner thru the belt cover to draw in cool air, I figure that when the belt is starting the scoot from a stand still is probably when it heats up the most. The engine being revved up and gulping air would help in keeping the belt cool. It would also quieten down the engine intake noise some more while preheating the air. Of course it would kill acceleration but I’m more interested in fuel economy anyway. I figure if I fabricated a cylinder with the air entering at the middle then flowing up then out at the top would remove most of the belt dust and any water that made it in. A small hole at the bottom would allow the water to escape.

[harrywr2]

As far as cooling for your belt...the most common mod is to take a 4" hole saw to the area of the CVT cover that covers the clutch.

Heavier or Lighter rollers can increase speed...all depends on where your RPM's are. Max torque occurs around 6500 RPM and max HP around 7500 RPM. If your rollers are too heavy you end up undershooting your power band...if your rollers are too light you end up overshooting your power band. The right weight ends up being very rider/bike specific.

[kuzikood]

with me the right weight on my 10 inch scoot turned out to be 10 gram