Count the rings on the side of the belt will tell you the age in years.

 

I replaced mine at 105,000K just last month on the same car 2009 n/a. It was alittle worn but still not in bad shape considering 11 years old.

 

@Hidalgo88 that link you posted doesn't work for me?

It's usually one of the "other" associated parts that causes the timing belt to fail. I've read many posts that said the timing belt looked like new when it was replaced. At that many miles & that many years, you might consider having the timing belt maintenance performed... for insurance against a seriously damaged engine.

With the above said, I tend to go with miles (wear) over months (time), but that's a risk & one I'm willing to take. Neither of our Forester has had this maintenance done yet, as the mileage (wear) is very low.

Bobby...

['07 FSXT Member Journal] ['03 X Member Journal]

 

weird. I used lightshot to post it. goes straight to my browser. I'll count the rings, but what do you mean rings? Horizontal lines in the rubber?

Screenshot

Captured with Lightshot

prnt.sc

 

If you are going to have the timing belt replaced have the mechanic check all the pulleys for wear. It's when these fail that the timing belt gets messed up.

 

I will probably have it all done at that time, just trying to figure out if I should do it now, or closer to 100k. not the time to be spending money.!

 

Wait. It mainly the time (in miles) of running where heat deteriorates the lubricant and belt material. You can take a sealed bearing and if you rotate by hand every couple of days it will lt will outlive you.

 

Assume the worst and replace belt, all moving components (incl waterpump) and the thermostat.
Looks can be deceiving...

(there are no "rings" on your timing belt. It was a reference to "ageing a tree". There's no way of telling definitively how old a timing belt is. Better safe than sorry)

 

+1 with GusV -
You really can't tell wear on the belt from looking at it, unless it is quite literally falling apart.
The way it looks has more to do with its operating conditions (dusty/dirty) than the mileage it has, or has left in it.
A belt is similar in construction to a tire, with a rubber exterior for flexibility and molded in components for strength.
The reason that belts (and tires) fail is because the rubber oxidizes and becomes brittle.
A 10 year old tire may look good, with lots of tread, but it has lost most of it's adhesion qualities and should be replaced.
The belt also has a limited life, but the recommended mileage/age recommendation has some safety factor included.
If the pulleys to which it is connected fail, obviously the belt won't like that at all.
The rest of the rotating items may also look fine, but considering the royal PITA of replacement, it's worth doing if you plan on keeping the car.
Belt replacement isn't cheap, due to the labor cost, but it beats buying a replacement engine if it fails.

 

Well, if this is the original belt, then it's good to 100K ...you got 15k to go.
When you do get the belt changed?
Replace the water pump and all the idler and tension pulleys ...this is common practice to circumvent Murphy's Law which says 6 months after you replace the timing belt and don't change out those things ...one or more of them will fail. And you will pay darn near the same labor charge you did when you replaced just the belt. The parts are relatively inexpensive for the timing belt swap; it's all labor. Many timing belts come as a "kit" that includes the idlers, tensioner, water pump and belt. Dealer probably will do it piecemeal but an indie shop may opt for a kit.

 

I just called my Subaru guy and he said $550 to do the timing belt and water pump. Probably have that done later this year.

 

As others have said, you want to make sure they use good quality parts, replace everything and not just the worn bits - water pump, thermostat (while they’re there) hydraulic tensioner, 3 other tensioners, two camshaft seals and front crankshaft seal. You don’t want oil leaks. New coolant. The Subaru coolant is long life but should be replaced plus the ‘additive’ to help the head gaskets last longer. Reason being you’ve no idea of the history. I did this job on my 2008 SH forester x (no history either) and replaced everything - the belt was probably ok, the hydraulic tensioner, water pump and seals were very good, but the other tensioners were on the way out. I don’t want to revisit it for a long time so I changed everything...