Ford Focus Zetec - Has my Ford Garage been negligent?

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Wed 4 Dec 2013 23:50
Ford Focus Zetec - Has my Ford Garage been negligent? - LE74
I have a 10yr Ford Focus Zetec which has been annually serviced at the same Ford garage for the last 9 years. It has 76,000 miles on the clock. It's just broken down and the AA came out and said the cam belt was broken and may have caused other damage. The AA towed it to the Ford garage who have quoted far more than the car is worth to repair it and are awaiting my decision on what to do. I need a car and therefore have no real option but to purchase a new one. However, it has been suggested to me today that the garage should have advised me to replace the cam belt at 6 years old/60,000 miles. I have looked all through my service history and a cam belt replacement has never been offered or advised. Has the garage been negligent in any way? Had the cam belt been replaced I would still have a functioning car.
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Thu 5 Dec 2013 00:22
Ford Focus Zetec - Has my Ford Garage been negligent? - FP

I doubt very much whether the garage has a legal responsibility here. In the same way that you would read your handbook and take the car to be serviced at the appropriate intervals, you would expect an owner to be aware of things like cambelt changes.

If you're going to have the work done find a good independent place - it'll be cheaper.

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Thu 5 Dec 2013 08:49
Ford Focus Zetec - Has my Ford Garage been negligent? - elekie&a/c doctor
Focus cam belt changes are 10 years or 100k miles.I guess that the garage should have suggested a belt change as there was no previous record of the job.if the car is in good condition!it is possibly worth getting it repaired by a good independent garage.hth
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Thu 5 Dec 2013 09:16
Ford Focus Zetec - Has my Ford Garage been negligent? - skidpan
Focus cam belt changes are 10 years or 100k miles

Correct.

If the car is in good condition get an engine from a write off that is known to be in good condition and get it fitted.

And learn to read your service book, all the info about belt changes is in there. No need to blame the garage then.

Edited by skidpan on 05/12/2013 at 09:16

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Thu 5 Dec 2013 09:37
Ford Focus Zetec - Has my Ford Garage been negligent? - Andrew-T

I think it is only in fairly recent years that makers have put cambelt change recommendations in handbooks. Can't speak for Ford, but when Peugeot switched from chain to belt in the 205 about 1987, it was many years before dealers were given advice to change them at 48K, and I don't think it ever appeared in any handbook. To begin with I don't think they really knew how long they might last. My daughter suffered a failed belt not long after her car was dealer-serviced at 50K. Nothing had been said.

And Renault Clio servicing schedules didn't even include coolant changes for a long time, almost as important in the long term.

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Thu 5 Dec 2013 09:45
Ford Focus Zetec - Has my Ford Garage been negligent? - RT

Vauxhall fluctuated it's cambelt change interval, originally 80,000 miles and published but cut to 40,000 with no publication - when my Cavalier belt snapped at 55,000 out of warranty, Vauxhall made an ex-gratia payment to cover most of the engine rebuild cost.

Edited by RT on 05/12/2013 at 09:45

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Thu 5 Dec 2013 10:45
Ford Focus Zetec - Has my Ford Garage been negligent? - skidpan

I think it is only in fairly recent years that makers have put cambelt change recommendations in handbooks.

It was clearly written in our Puma, Mondeo and Focus service books which covered all models, our Mondeo and Focus had chains thus did not affect us. That means Ford have been including the info since the late 90's.

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Thu 5 Dec 2013 20:45
Ford Focus Zetec - Has my Ford Garage been negligent? - Simon

I think that you have just been somewhat unlucky. Fords aren't known for snapping cambelts and with your car well under the 100,000 mile mark and only just 10 years old, I think that it is misfortunate. I don't think that it is fair to blame the garage, they haven't really done anything wrong.

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Tue 10 Dec 2013 15:41
Ford Focus Zetec - Has my Ford Garage been negligent? - NorthernBoy

in the past it has been raised with me by the garage - the cam belt is the ultimate catch 22 situation - i changed mine around 70k simply i was worried of it snapping.

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