mkv gttdi cambelt issue

[pete's gttdi]

Hi all, this is my first post on here GREAT SITE. :1zhelp: sorry to be a pain but i have read so many different replys to when to get the cambelt changed!!! most people say its 40k or 4yrs, then i read some other posts that on the mkv you dont need to get it done until 80k told to them by main dealers.
I phoned my main dealer in plymouth today hopeless or what they said said i could get it done if i wanted to aaaagghhhhh is that a its due to be done or what!! They quoted me service and belt £730 :Blush2:
Does anyone on here work for VW service and know the answer.
Please help me.
p.s mine is on a 04 plate. 2litre

[VW_GTTDI]

Seems like u have the exact same model as mine, i bought mine back in jan 08, the guy i bought it off had his own family run garage, he serviced it just a few wks before i bought it off him at 64,000 miles, and he wrote in the service book "timing belt due at 80,000 miles" am going to get mine serviced in december sometime and get the timing belt changed at the same time just to be on the safe side even though my car has now only done 68,000 miles. The price of £730 is way to steep for me so i'll jus get it done at a local garage and pay less than half of that!!

[pete's gttdi]

Thanks, i wonder how many do not get done at 4yrs or 40k, is this just a ploy by vw to get you confussed and scare you into getting it done!! :Blush2:

[-M-]

Hi, just to clarify that each engine with a cambelt in the VW range has its own interval at which it should be changed. The more newer range of engines are about 80,000 miles, but should the car not cover this mileage Volkswagen recommend every 4 years also - this is a VW recommendation and as such dealers are required to suggest this to the customer as the time requires.

In the past there has been numerous customer complaints of their cambelt failing and consequential engine damage due to the car being 8 or so years old but of low mileage - remember it is a rubber belt with fibres inside to strengthen it, and it goes through hot and cold conditions and weather, expanding and contracting, and at times put through a great deal of stress when accelerating, downshifting etc so just bear that in mind.

[pete's gttdi]

Thanks M i think i will get mine done for peace of mind its now 4years old and 40k :beerchug: I wont be going to my local Plymouth VW dealer they want £730.

[-M-]

Thanks M i think i will get mine done for peace of mind its now 4years old and 40k :beerchug: I wont be going to my local Plymouth VW dealer they want £730.


Seems a bit steep that - I'm sure that VW are offering deals on cambelt changes to make them more affordable for customers - I would haggle with them to lower the price as every garage hates to lose custom especially in the current credit crunch.

[pete's gttdi]

Yeah im getting a few prices together so i can ask them if they will price match. Worth a try they can only say no and off i go lol.:approve:
cheers.

[Paul_mkV_golf]

Thanks M i think i will get mine done for peace of mind its now 4years old and 40k :beerchug: I wont be going to my local Plymouth VW dealer they want £730.

4yrs/80k miles- whatever comes first- as previously stated. Just had mine (54plate, 35k miles) done this week for £180 at a local garage I get all my work done at. Just over £100 for the timing belt kit (Gates, which make them for a lot of manufacturers) + £80 labour- the fella knows what he's doing, have complete confidence in him- just because you get it done at VW dealers doesn't necessarily mean they've got years of experience...

It's the shorter journeys that place greater wear on the components- e.g. timing belt, stop-start journeys, rather than motorway miles...

£730 with service still a bit steep...

Paul

[-M-]

Yeah im getting a few prices together so i can ask them if they will price match. Worth a try they can only say no and off i go lol.:approve:
cheers.


Well, I asked at the dealer I work at (Morden VW) and £730 is the standard VW retail price, but my line manager said that the dealer themselves have the right to reduce prices etc and due to there being less money coming in from customers because of the credit crunch obviously we can't afford to turn work away.

He said that as a VW dealer we could supply and fit a timing belt for £580 inclusive of parts inc. water pump, labour and VAT. Surrey is a bit far from you I would imagine, but the offer is there if you like.

Even if you get a independant or VAG specialist to do the work, I would recommend using genuine VW parts just for 100% 1st time fit.

[bw10030]

Hi chaps:

Went into my dealer today, 3rd Service (longlife) due in 4000 miles and wanted a quote - £315. Also asked about cambelt - as above, 4 yrs or 80K miles (GT TDI 140 - 05 plate) is the requirement. So, £665 for this work by their reckoning. They did say that in their experience, brake pads 'could' need changing at the 3rd service, so if your dealer is allowing for this it isn't too bad.

I shall be going to an independent though . . . .

[MBrooks]

Cambelt change this week. £360 at main dealer in Plymouth for 04 54 GT TDi to include followers/tensioners etc.

[peteo]

I am really confused with this cambelt issue. I have checked, and double checked, the handbook for my 2005 1.9TDI. It says the cambelt should be changed at 80,000 miles. There is absolutely no mention of "or x years if earlier"

So where does the view that it should be changed at 4 years come from? Why is it not in the service schedule?

Saying that, with my small mileage, I won't reach 80,000 until 2017!!!

[Paul_mkV_golf]

I am really confused with this cambelt issue. I have checked, and double checked, the handbook for my 2005 1.9TDI. It says the cambelt should be changed at 80,000 miles. There is absolutely no mention of "or x years if earlier"

So where does the view that it should be changed at 4 years come from? Why is it not in the service schedule?

Saying that, with my small mileage, I won't reach 80,000 until 2017!!!


The 4yrs element covers those who don't do high mileages, chances are if you're not going to reach 80k until 2017 you'll be doing lots of shorter journeys rather than blasts up & down motorways. I don't cover that many, about 6k/yr for me...

Stop-start journeys tend to put more wear on some engine systems + degredation of parts after another 9 yrs.... materials may start to perish on belt. Mechanic I spoke to says he's seen a few french cars with low miles (<30k)- just used door-to-door- with cambelts go....

It's probably just VW not updating their literature... they're not the brightest.

Paul

[peteo]

It does kind of make sense that a piece of rubber isn't going to last 12 years! Being cynical I wondered if part of the reason it doesn't appear in handbooks is to help market the cars to a fleet market. I think others have alluded to this.

Mine would be due in May 2009 on the 4 year rule - the car will have about 28,000 on the clock by then.

Very tempted to let it go to 5 years. Any idea of the odds of this blowing up in my face to coin a phrase?

[RickT]

Having done 2 cam belts, one on our Golf and one on my sisters golf... its worth doing and a really wasy job to do...

3 hours max...

If your in doubt.. just get it done..

It cost me £77 for the parts, cambelt kit and water pump...

Cheers

Rick

[Paul_mkV_golf]

Very tempted to let it go to 5 years. Any idea of the odds of this blowing up in my face to coin a phrase?

Down to personal choice really- for me, having spent as much as I did on the car in the 1st place I'd rather stick with the recommendations than having the slightest bit of doubt in my mind that the engine may end up being knackered.... prevention is better than cure...

[Crackshot]

I have just bought a 2006 1.9tdi from a dealer which had 79K on the clock. It is just under 3 years old and he fitted a cambelt and roller when I bought it. The Mk 5 models require a cam belt at either 80K or 4 years whichever comes first. MY preivous Golf MK4 had a cambelt every 60K or 4 years. It's always one or the other - either due to the miles or years.