VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt

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Mon 8 Aug 2022 11:17
VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt - IDW

Hi, had to call roadside recovery as my VW Touran engine has fallen away from the mount. I had the Cambelt (and pump) change 6 weeks ago and I wanted advice as to whether the mechanic could have contributed to the engine nearly falling out of the bottom of the car this morning? When the car was dropped at the garage they suggested that they would not have had to remove much to install the cambelt - so indicating it was probably not them. The only good news is the engine still runs, but very concerned about the damage that may have been cause with the engine dropping down on one side. Thanks

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Mon 8 Aug 2022 11:36
VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt - Adampr

I think they're unlikely to be linked. A cambelt change that necessitated removing the engine would have led to a lot of tooth sucking and a four figure bill. More likely, as it's obviously quite a high-miler, the mount just wore out. Have you got the mount itself? Is it broken, bent or missing?

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Mon 8 Aug 2022 12:16
VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt - RichardW

You often need to remove the timing belt end engine mount to replace the belt - if this is the one that has failed, then there is a pretty strong case that it is as a result of the recent work. Would need to confirm that a) it was removed and b) the method of failure is consistent with it not being put back properly before you had a good case that the garage doing the work were responsible.

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Mon 8 Aug 2022 13:36
VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt - elekie&a/c doctor
Definitely related to the cambelt job . The engine mount has to be removed to access the belt system. The bolts have been left lose or overtightened .
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Mon 8 Aug 2022 16:21
VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt - Andrew-T
Definitely related to the cambelt job . The engine mount has to be removed to access the belt system. The bolts have been left loose or overtightened .

I would think so - assuming that is the mount that has failed, not one of the others ?

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Mon 8 Aug 2022 14:07
VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt - Adampr

Trying to delete my comment as others who know better have their own view and I don't want to contradict them and cause confusion. It's not going well, so I'll just add this comment and say my other post is nonsense.

Edited by Adampr on 08/08/2022 at 14:08

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Mon 8 Aug 2022 14:41
VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt - edlithgow

I'd think that, even if mount removal was not involved (which apparently it is) you might have a reasonable (though probably not actionable) expectation that they would eyeball the mounts and alert you if they were splitting.

Mine were fairly obviously failing when I bought the car about ten years ago, and they still are, though now they have a lot of cable ties wrapped around them.

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Mon 8 Aug 2022 16:22
VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt - Andrew-T

Mine were fairly obviously failing when I bought the car about ten years ago, and they still are, though now they have a lot of cable ties wrapped around them.

I can't imagine any cable ties tough enough to make enough difference to rescue a failing mount ....

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Mon 8 Aug 2022 17:19
VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt - Ian D
Check if it is the mount by the cambelt/pulleys. If so check if the mount has failed/separated (can’t really blame garage) or if it was not refitted correctly i.e bolts fell out or are missing or the whole mount is missing - can blame garage if the mount was required to be removed as part of the belt change
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Mon 8 Aug 2022 17:33
VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt - IDW

Thank you all for the replies to my query; I appreciate each of you taking the time to share your views and technical expertise. I feel much better informed now to have a conversation with the garage and find a constructive resolution. I will let you know the outcome when I hear from them probably later this week.

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Tue 9 Aug 2022 03:16
VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt - edlithgow

Mine were fairly obviously failing when I bought the car about ten years ago, and they still are, though now they have a lot of cable ties wrapped around them.

I can't imagine any cable ties tough enough to make enough difference to rescue a failing mount ....

Yes, I thought it was a bit of a forlorn hope while I was doing it, maybe only rationalisable early warning" stylee, as in when the ties break, I'll REALLY have to try and do something about it, either source replacements (might be impossible) or source polyurethane stuff with which to make replacements.

Ten years or so later, there they be, still intact.

It would probably be possible to find out the breaking strain of cable ties, but I don't know how much torque reaction they have to resist.

The mounts were evidently failing in tension, and the multiple ties around them are intended to keep them in compression.

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Sat 20 Aug 2022 00:46
VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt - IDW

Update: so the garage replaced the engine mount and thankfully no damage was caused. They stopped short of admitting they caused the problem in the first place, but unprompted paid the labour costs for putting the engine back where it should be and replacing the engine mount (I paid for the part). They explained that the engine mount had perished (they showed me the part), and potentially they had disturbed it by changing the cambelt. A good and fair outcome I think. Thanks again for the advice.

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Sat 20 Aug 2022 06:05
VW Touran 1.6 TDI - Engine mount and cam belt - Xileno

Thanks for coming back to update us. It's always good to get a conclusion and as you say, this seems a fair outcome.

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