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Sat 9 Mar 2019 10:07

Any - Timing Belt Change Intervals - Car

Can anyone point me to a site that gives the above info for most makes & models.

Thanks

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Sat 9 Mar 2019 11:59

Any - Timing Belt Change Intervals - John F

I can.....

www.thoughtco.com/timing-belt-tech-data-replacemen...1

...but I wouldn't take any notice of it. They tend to be compiled by garage industry looking for work to do and so they often ignore the manufacturer's advice and substitute their own over-cautious recommendation. If you change a perfectly good OEM cambelt unduly early you run the risk of damage from an inferior replacement, or cack-handed mechanics taking short cuts as illustrated by the post above about the Focus - the belts on these are designed to last 150,000+ miles but have a precautionary 10yr 100,000 mile change. (our Focus belt looks fine at 18yrs and 136,000m).

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Sat 9 Mar 2019 13:26

Any - Timing Belt Change Intervals - SLO76

There used to be a site called mytimingbelt.com but it disappeared a while back. As for Johns comment above well I’d largely disagree. I’ve seen loads of cars ruined by snapped timing belts over the years but I’ll agree that manufacturers do err on the side of caution in most cases and some are possibly profiteering with very early belt change intervals. But ignore it at your peril.

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Sat 9 Mar 2019 16:34

Any - Timing Belt Change Intervals - skidpan

Most timing belt changes are at approx 6 years or a mileage interval. Ford are longer at 10 years. My VAG TSi is 6 years or 120,000 miles.

Whatever the interval most cars will only need two belt changes in their lifetime and at approx £350 for a change its not a huge cost. Over a normal year at 10,000 miles @ 40mpg you will be spending about £1400 on fuel alone. Over 10 years fuel, tax, insurance. servicing, MOT's, tyres etc will be costing an average owner over £20,000 so if one or 2 belt changes during that time is considered too much perhaps they should consider not driving.

On any car over 10 years old that is otherwise OK a snapped belt will probably make the car an uneconomic repair.

Don't take the risk.

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Sat 9 Mar 2019 18:48

Any - Timing Belt Change Intervals - Andrew-T

<< at approx £350 for a change its not a huge cost. Over a normal year at 10,000 miles @ 40mpg you will be spending about £1400 on fuel alone >>

I think it's meaningless to compare the cost of a cambelt change (routine maintenance) with the cost of fuel (running cost), although if you go by the mileage criterion I suppose it makes marginal sense. The main cost of a cambelt is labour dismantling and reassembly, and at typical rates that is worth avoiding, so many people will trust to luck.

OEM cambelts these days have pretty long life expectancy though - in my case (Pug) 10 years or 120K, so unless you cover starship miles it won't be a major expense.

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Sun 10 Mar 2019 10:11

Any - Timing Belt Change Intervals - John F

It's not just the cost, it's the hassle. And the risk of a bad timing set-up or even terminal damage by incompetent mechanics. Many owners find their cars don't run as well after such intervention, especially with engines like the Ford Zetec where the cam sprockets spin freely on the cams if unbolted. My records show nearly 600,000 miles in our 'belted' cars over the past 40yrs or so. The only time a perfectly good cambelt was changed was when a leaky belt driven water pump had to be replaced. Not only have I saved a goodly four figure sum, but also not wasted at least two days of my life!

The VW 6yr advisory is as nonsensical as the 365 day advisory for an oil change. They are trying to frighten us into thinking a modern aramid belt will decompose to cheese rind after this arbitrary use by date. So, many low mileage retirees who, having treated themselves to a new VW, will be unduly persuaded to change it after only 30,000 miles or so, with all the risks that entails. My TR7 fan and alternator belt, presumably made of significantly inferior material, still seems pretty tough after nearly 40years of service....as does the 1982 spare belt which I have needlessly carried since then! One day.....

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Sun 10 Mar 2019 11:03

Any - Timing Belt Change Intervals - gordonbennet

It doesn't have to be as JohnF so accurately describes, how much would it have cost to put some timing marks on the casings behind equivalent marks on the relevant sprockets at build stage, those sprockets Woodruff keyed or otherwise solidly locked in place on the crank/camshafts.

I know this is boring for many, but take the 4 cylinder Landcruiser/Hilux/Hiace engine, 2.5/3.0 litre as an example.

The cambelt drives one thing only, one camshaft, the other camshaft is geared from the driven one, its has timing marks on the engine casings, on the sprockets and on the belt itself, no need to remove any pipes, auxilliary belts or anything other than the cambelt cover, the water pump is driven by the auxilliary belt so lasts near enough forever.

6 bolts remove the camcover, then you turn the engine via the crank pulley to align the marks, 2 bolts undo the tensioner, slide the old belt off, 1 allen bolt sees the idler off, fit new idler, fit new untensioned tensioner, slide on new belt making sure all marks are still lined up, pull grenade pin from the tensioner which pushes against the idler which rides on the back of the belt, turn engine two revolutions to double check markings align, bingo job done, 1 hour first time with the most basic of tools, job could be done in a field miles from anywhere.

The other advantage of such simple belt design is that the belt isn't going through contortions all its life, it barely flexes backwards as it passes over the tensioner/idler.

There is no excuse for other vehicles to have camshaft drives requiring major surgery, even engine removal in some of the most ridiculous designs, there is also no reason whatsoever for a water pump or anything other than the camshafts to be driven by the cambelt, which is much tighter than any auxilliary belt putting more strain on the waterpump.

If engines are designed properly, belts are not only easy to replace, but they are easy to inspect in situ too.

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Sun 10 Mar 2019 12:59

Any - Timing Belt Change Intervals - SLO76

“If engines are designed properly, belts are not only easy to replace, but they are easy to inspect in situ too.”

Absolutely agree. In fact it should be law that service items are easy to get to and change. Some VW’s which had a 4yr interval required the entire front of the car stripping down to get access which adds a huge addition cost. The easiest was the older Vauxhall's, the Mk IV Astra was no bother at all and cheap to do.

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Sun 10 Mar 2019 12:54

Any - Timing Belt Change Intervals - SLO76

“It's not just the cost, it's the hassle. And the risk of a bad timing set-up or even terminal damage by incompetent mechanics. Many owners find their cars don't run as well after such intervention,“

I get the thinking John but it’s flawed logic. In all the years I was selling cars and I’ve never once had a problem with a belt change but I have seen loads of ruined engines because owners scrimped or ignored them. Some cars are more susceptible than others, Renault springs immediately to mind but for all the cost involved it’s a wise investment unless your car is worthless.

It’s not easy to spot a looming failure by physically inspecting the belt either as it might look perfectly ok in place but once you remove it and flex it you’ll see the deterioration. The last belt swap I did was on an Astra and this was the case here, it looked not too bad in situ but it was showing heavy deterioration (cracks) when removed and flexed. For the £250 cost including water pump it wasn’t worth the risk and the current owner is still delighted with it.

You’ve been lucky here but also wise in your choice of cars. Most older 8v VW’s and Ford’s Yamaha designed Zetec SE aren’t hard on belts and particularly the latter is a very sensible design.

Edited by SLO76 on 10/03/2019 at 12:55

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Sun 10 Mar 2019 13:44

Any - Timing Belt Change Intervals - skidpan

Many owners find their cars don't run as well after such intervention, especially with engines like the Ford Zetec where the cam sprockets spin freely on the cams if unbolted

Should be no need to loosen the cam sprocket bolts on a Zetec when changing the cam belt. Done several Zetec belts in the past and whilst the cam locking tool will probably not fit easily when the old belt is fitted that is not because the timing has moved, its because the old belt will have stretched slightly. When the new belt is on and the engine has been rotated a couple of times I have found that the tool slips in easily.

On engines that have not had tools to lock them and rely on you lining up near invisible timing marks I have always highlighted them with a dab of paint before disassembly. Makes checking the timing after fitting the new belt much easier.

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Mon 11 Mar 2019 12:24

Any - Timing Belt Change Intervals - John F

“ You’ve been lucky here but also wise in your choice of cars.

Thanks. Funny how the more time and trouble I took to understand physics and learn about car mechanics the luckier I seemed to get.

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Mon 11 Mar 2019 12:37

Any - Timing Belt Change Intervals - SLO76

“Thanks. Funny how the more time and trouble I took to understand physics and learn about car mechanics the luckier I seemed to get.”

I’ve seen loads of cases where luck has gone the other direction John including plenty of people who refused to believe that rubber belts deteriorate and need changing eventually. It’s still one of the biggest killers of cars today and a quick visit to any scrap yard will reveal plenty of motors that’ve landed prematurely in there thanks to an ignored belt change.

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