i know this may be a bit of a dumb question, but what exactly do they do for the engine? the reason i ask is about four days ago i hear this whining sound coming from the engine. i pop the hood i was at work) and dont see anything amiss. well i didnt have time time to look at it for four days because of my work schedule. so i come to my day off and start to really look and i notice that there is something punching through my timing cover. my front balance shaft gear had managed to come completely off of the shaft (the bolt worked itself loose) and tore through the timing cover. so the belt was rubbing against it. neither that shaft or the rear shaft were turning for four days, and i noticed no change in performance or milage whatsoever. so im wondering what exactly do they do? forgive me for sounding stupid.

 

the balance shafts do just that, they keep the motor in balance using the motion of the timing belt, but they have a belt all their own. You dont need it but it will vibrate your motor to death, like chattering teeth.

As for them punching out of your timing cover, the hold oil into the block so if its sticking out then your gonna leak oil at some point. I would get that car to a shop imediatly or not drive it at all. its ok to drive without the belt running them but not if theya re popping out of the timing cover.

 

yeah, i would get that fixed ASAP you dont want the belt to tangle up the timing belt and seize it.

And w/o the belt it will not vibrate the motor to death. It's there to cancel out second order vibrations, which is only for creature comfort not the motor.

 

ive already fixed it. only took me a couple of hours. i just thought it was kind of wierd that it didnt affect performance. thanks guys.

 

My car is having that whining noise now. It started yesterday. Whenever I let off the gas, it whines the loudest. It's pretty scary and stressful to drive, but it doesn't feel any different in performance, except when I idle at a stop, it vibrates a little more. What causes this problem, why does this happen with the balance shaft, and how much does it cost to fix?