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[terry paget]

Having run 6 Omegas for 10 years for my family, I can happily report they have proved very reliable. The only times I have been stranded are when the auxiliary belt pulleys have seized, shredding the belt and depriving me of the services of the alternator and water pump, without which I can only proceed another 10 miles or so.

When a crank sensor fail engine usually fails, but after cooling often restarts and gets me home.

I have read on this site that I should grease the aux belt pulley occasionally. I have just removed one to do exactly that. As I feared, it is a sealed unit. The car has covered 170,000 miles and is 16 years old, and I imagine the pulley is original. How should I grease it? When shaken it rattles satisfactorily. It is labelled 'TURKEY', I imagine country of origin.

Nick W's link offers me a new item for £10 including postage, I have ordered a new one.

At that price it sounds worth replacing  with the cam belt change.

[Nick W]

You gently pry out the rubber seals with a small screwdriver or pick. If the bearing feels a bit gritty, I treat it to a small squirt of brake cleaner. When that has evaporated, work some grease into the bearing and push the seals back into place. That takes less time than writing this post. It's such a quick job I do it whenever I have to remove the bearing.

Crank sensors are a common fault on modern cars, but their failure life is impossible to gauge. Replacing them when they do fail is the only sensible approach.

[zirk]

Aux Belt, Pulley and Crank Sensor should really be spare parts of the breakdown kit in the Boot.

Aux Belt and Pulley 10 min job, plus 15mm spanner (from memory), Crank Sensor well do able, assuming you can safely get under the Car, if not, still gets you out of trouble to give to the Breakdown Man when he arrives.

[terry paget]

You gently pry out the rubber seals with a small screwdriver or pick. If the bearing feels a bit gritty, I treat it to a small squirt of brake cleaner. When that has evaporated, work some grease into the bearing and push the seals back into place. That takes less time than writing this post. It's such a quick job I do it whenever I have to remove the bearing.

Crank sensors are a common fault on modern cars, but their failure life is impossible to gauge. Replacing them when they do fail is the only sensible approach.

Thanks Nick. Job done. Of course the mounting and front washer hold the seal firmly in place so no risk of it falling out.

[terry paget]

Aux Belt, Pulley and Crank Sensor should really be spare parts of the breakdown kit in the Boot.

Aux Belt and Pulley 10 min job, plus 15mm spanner (from memory), Crank Sensor well do able, assuming you can safely get under the Car, if not, still gets you out of trouble to give to the Breakdown Man when he arrives.

[terry paget]

Aux Belt, Pulley and Crank Sensor should really be spare parts of the breakdown kit in the Boot.

Aux Belt and Pulley 10 min job, plus 15mm spanner (from memory), Crank Sensor well do able, assuming you can safely get under the Car, if not, still gets you out of trouble to give to the Breakdown Man when he arrives.

Good thinking Zirk. Aux belt and pulley easily changed at the roadside.
Crank pulley tricky on V6, impossible on a 4 cylinder Omega. On a V6 it is feasible, especially if it has been changed before and the connector is accessible, not hidden under the scuttle. As you say, the breakdown man would carry the necessary kit to get under the car, then if I was carrying a spare sensor he would soon have me on my way. I could carry a hydraulic jack and 2 axle stands, but am not sure whether it's worth it.

[Nick W]

Aux Belt, Pulley and Crank Sensor should really be spare parts of the breakdown kit in the Boot.

I still can't see the point of buying a new part and carrying it as a spare. Fit the bloody thing, and if you're paranoid about it keep the old one as a spare.

But when we say that these are 'common failures' we mean that they happen often enough to comment on. Not that they happen every 783 engine starts or 67 months whichever comes first.

[Bojan]

IME, all petrol manual omegas are quite reliable.

[zirk]

Aux Belt, Pulley and Crank Sensor should really be spare parts of the breakdown kit in the Boot.

Aux Belt and Pulley 10 min job, plus 15mm spanner (from memory), Crank Sensor well do able, assuming you can safely get under the Car, if not, still gets you out of trouble to give to the Breakdown Man when he arrives.

Good thinking Zirk. Aux belt and pulley easily changed at the roadside.
Crank pulley tricky on V6, impossible on a 4 cylinder Omega. On a V6 it is feasible, especially if it has been changed before and the connector is accessible, not hidden under the scuttle. As you say, the breakdown man would carry the necessary kit to get under the car, then if I was carrying a spare sensor he would soon have me on my way. I could carry a hydraulic jack and 2 axle stands, but am not sure whether it's worth it.

Agreed, I sometimes carry a small'ish Trolley Jack if Im away with the car, but yea no way Im getting under a car just using the Spare Wheel Jack, accident waiting to happen. Absolute worst case I'd lift a corner with Jack and plonk one of the wheels on top of the Spare Wheel if I was desperate.   

[terry paget]

I have spare crank sensors, belts and pulleys, all off cars I have scrapped. I reckon I could raise the car on the wheel jack, then prop it on a stand, place brick under the jack and raise the car higher until I could get under the car on the stand. I do not plan to do this in my usual travel, but if touring Europe I might do so. I understand TB has changed a crank sensor at the roadside, I wonder how.

[zirk]

I have spare crank sensors, belts and pulleys, all off cars I have scrapped. I reckon I could raise the car on the wheel jack, then prop it on a stand, place brick under the jack and raise the car higher until I could get under the car on the stand. I do not plan to do this in my usual travel, but if touring Europe I might do so. I understand TB has changed a crank sensor at the roadside, I wonder how.

Oh Dear, are you suggesting that TB is a bit on the Tubby side,  Mr Paget, currently with 2295 post counts 

[terry paget]

I have spare crank sensors, belts and pulleys, all off cars I have scrapped. I reckon I could raise the car on the wheel jack, then prop it on a stand, place brick under the jack and raise the car higher until I could get under the car on the stand. I do not plan to do this in my usual travel, but if touring Europe I might do so. I understand TB has changed a crank sensor at the roadside, I wonder how.

Oh Dear, are you suggesting that TB is a bit on the Tubby side,  Mr Paget, currently with 2295 post counts 

Not at all. I merely wonder what tools he was carrying to enable him to change the crank sensor at the roadside.

[Doctor Gollum]

At a guess a 1/4" ratchet and either a 6mm or E8 socket...

[Nick W]

Oh Dear, are you suggesting that TB is a bit on the Tubby side,  Mr Paget, currently with 2295 post counts 

Not at all. I merely wonder what tools he was carrying to enable him to change the crank sensor at the roadside.

It only take a small socket.
If you've laid off the donuts for a couple of days, parking the N/S on a high kerb should give enough room to change the sensor.  But again, it isn't a bad enough problem to spend any time worrying about it.

[BazaJT]

I don't know whether TB has changed crank sensor at roadside or not-but I have,however it does help that I'm built like a biro refill