Jon White Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 Does anyone know if Zeus Engineering are still trading? Been trying to contact them all week now about some power steering box seals, and their phone rings and rings and eventually goes into a voice mailbox for "Mark Cartright" and thats it! Website etc is still there but there doesnt seem to be any other way to contact them other than by phone. Anyone dealt with them lately? Thanks Jon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soren Frimodt Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 You tried mailing them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milliejasper1111 Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 Im 99% sure that they have shut up shop (might be wrong) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mickeyw Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 I seem to recall that the 4x4 and the engineering sides parted company a few years back. I remember them as one company at Marsh Barton in Exeter. Not sure what happened after that. I shall make some enquiries with a mate who used to know them well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lrfarmer Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 there web site says thay've moved http://www.zeus.uk.com/index.php have you got the right number the web site has got copyright 2010 in the corner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon White Posted February 10, 2010 Author Share Posted February 10, 2010 well I've been dialing the 01297 number thats shown on that website! Havnt bothered emailing them cos I find that 90% of companies that publish an email address never bother replying anyway! Jon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p76rangie Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 I am surprised that they are still around. They were sued by everyone about their timing gears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam300Tdi90 Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 I am surprised that they are still around. They were sued by everyone about their timing gears. Why were they sued? Was it an unoriginal idea? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p76rangie Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 Why were they sued? Was it an unoriginal idea? You might read these: http://forums.lr4x4.com/index.php?showtopic=14746 http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f8/timing-gears-tdi-engine-51320.html http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hubb/4wd-overland-tech/zeus-timing-gears-25501 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happyoldgit Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 Why were they sued? Was it an unoriginal idea? Back in the days of the old LRE forum there was a HUGE thread about their timing gears which all got terribly involved and somewhat protracted - so much so that we mods had to step in every now and again. That thread probably still exists - it, along with others, will provide all the answers. TBH we don't really want the hassle of dealing with the intricacies and possibly legal implications again so I do not think we need to backtrack along some very worn paths on here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troddenmasses Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 Interesting thread Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardAllen Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 (edited) Following an earlier thread, I read most of a long debate in 2002 about replacing a TDi timing belt with Zeus gears to improve reliability. Many years on, is Zeus or anyone else offering a timing gear kit for a TDi engine ? If so, who ? If not, do the intervening 8 years of experience settle the old arguments once and for all ? Regards Richard PS If Miserableoldgit, the original moderator, feels that this might just stir up trouble, I would not at all mind if the thread were deleted Edited February 12, 2010 by Miserableolgit This thread merged with another active one on the same subject. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ex Member Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 AFAIK, Zeus still sells them. I have not heard anything since those days about them. Certainly I would not purchase them without seeing a report on the quality by a knowledgeable. 3rd party..... Beyond that, I think that most agree timing belts do not randomly fail. Replace them properly at the proper intervals and you will be fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p76rangie Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 Following an earlier thread, I read most of a long debate in 2002 about replacing a TDi timing belt with Zeus gears to improve reliability. Many years on, is Zeus or anyone else offering a timing gear kit for a TDi engine ? If so, who ? If not, do the intervening 8 years of experience settle the old arguments once and for all ? Regards Richard PS If Miserableoldgit, the original moderator, feels that this might just stir up trouble, I would not at all mind if the thread were deleted They were marketed at a time when there was a known fault with the timing belt on the TDi motors. This fault caused the belts to shred well before their change over date. This caused considerable damage to the motor. Zeus gears were the only alternative at the time. Land Rover have since fixed the timing belt fault and put out a kit to fix any ones already out there. Once this was done there was simply little or no justification to go to the Zeus gears. You really need to look at why you want to fit them. Even forgetting about any faults with them, they are noisy and still wear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happyoldgit Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 Following an earlier thread, I read most of a long debate in 2002 about replacing a TDi timing belt with Zeus gears to improve reliability. Many years on, is Zeus or anyone else offering a timing gear kit for a TDi engine ? If so, who ? If not, do the intervening 8 years of experience settle the old arguments once and for all ? Regards Richard PS If Miserableoldgit, the original moderator, feels that this might just stir up trouble, I would not at all mind if the thread were deleted Since there are now two active threads concerning virtually the same subject I have decided to merge them together. Obviously there has been a lot of coverage of this issue in the past but if there is still more to say then, as long as we adhere to the facts, so be it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajh Posted February 14, 2010 Share Posted February 14, 2010 So, just to throw something else in the mix... why gears instead of a chain drive conversion? Of course gear one gear is better short term like in a Britten V1000 but like everyone knows, they wear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted February 14, 2010 Share Posted February 14, 2010 it was a alternative for those who didn't want a rubber timing belt in their engine, but at around 600 quid it wasn't a cheap alternative & the original first sets were for the 2.5n/a diesel that was also use in London Black Cabs Austin FX4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norfolk-90 Posted March 11, 2010 Share Posted March 11, 2010 Since I see that there is renewed interest in the Zeus timing gears, I thought it might be useful to post my long-term experience. I had the Zeus kit fitted to a 1998 Discovery 300 TDI when I bought it in 2001. The mileage since fitting the kit is around 110,000 and it has not caused any problems. However, the engine was much noisier with the kit fitted - the story was that it would get better as the gears bedded down, but this did not really happen and the Disco sounded as though it had got an old Perkins under the bonnet. I have to say that I am not persuaded that the Zeus kit made any big improvement to the Disco engine's torque or flexibility - it still had the typical Disco hesitancy in pulling away from roundabouts etc. and you still needed to change down to get the turbo spinning. The engine has now blown its head gasket, not an uncommon problem, but together with the poor condition of the chassis, rotting rear wheel arches etc. it is beyond economic repair and has gone to scrap. On balance, fitting the Zeus kit was an expensive mistake for me. It delivered little apparent improvement but made the engine a lot noisier. My vehicle did not last long enough for the cost saved in not having to replace the timing belt to repay the cost of the kit and fitting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FridgeFreezer Posted March 11, 2010 Share Posted March 11, 2010 Good post, worthy of the tech archive I'd say. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterW Posted April 11, 2010 Share Posted April 11, 2010 Anyone aware if this was just the 300TDi sets that were made from chocolate poor quality, or is it all of them..? Just interested seeing as I've just bought an engine that I've found has them !! And its a relatively new set by the look of it ! Cheers Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted April 11, 2010 Share Posted April 11, 2010 the kits were availablr for all the 4 cylinder LR diesels, not just the 300tdi. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p76rangie Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 Anyone aware if this was just the 300TDi sets that were made from chocolate poor quality, or is it all of them..? Just interested seeing as I've just bought an engine that I've found has them !! And its a relatively new set by the look of it ! Cheers Pete I would be removing them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will_warne Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 I would be removing them I would agree with that. I had a set that lasted less than 12 months and not a lot of miles.... They really were a pile of poo! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.