Timing Belt interval on 2007 Mk5 Golf 2.0L 140Bhp Diesel BKD/PD Engine.

[TonyDB]

Hi all - I need your help!

I keep being told different things about how often I should change the Timing Belt (and Water Pump) on my 2007 Mk5 Golf 2.0L 140Bhp Diesel BKD/PD Engine.

Different garages (Main Dealer and Independents) tell me different things, such as it is every 5 years/60k miles, or every 4 years/80k miles and even every 5 years/140k miles!

What is the right answer?! Pleeeeeease !

Thank you everyone and all the best,

Tony.

[WxmDaggers]

Morning Tony,

Most garages used to recommend every 60k/70k.
There isn't really a right or wrong answer but if you're worried it might fail get it changed just for piece of mind.

Paul

Sent from my H8216 using Tapatalk

[Crasher]

The VAG UK advice for a diesel it is 4 years up until 2009 and then 5 years but this is not in the VW schedule, it was suggested by VAG UK many years ago due to excessive in schedule failures, as far as I have seen they did not list a distance. The official VAG workshop system Elsawin listing for the BKD (all PD TDI in fact) increased in 2007 from 120000 km to 150000 Km (93206 miles) for the belt and from 240000 km to 300000 km (186412 miles) for the tensioner with no mention of the water pump and no time interval so that is the official VAG Germany listing, anyone prepared to follow that advice must have big balls or not care about money... Our view is the 4 and 5 years advice and 70k miles, whichever comes first and do the belt, tensioner and water pump and following this none of our customers has every experienced a failure in decades.

[VAG-Abound]

How long ago (in time and miles) was it last done? That'll help people tell you if it's overdue or not.

To me it partly depends on how long you expect to keep driving the car, and its ongoing value / costs (due to age, other things coming up like CV joins, gearbox noises, etc). If it's about due a change and you expect to be driving it 12k/year for another couple of years you'd be wise to get it done in that period, so do it now and get more worry free miles from the change .

On our somewhat car park damaged 2003 car that only does ~4k/year I let it slip longer than I would normally because I was thinking of getting rid of it and took the chance each time I went out even thought it was ~20% past limits on time and distance for change. But then decided to keep it running so had the belt & pump done ASAP.

[TonyDB]

Hi Paul.

Thank you for getting back to me so quickly.

I've just checked and my timing belt was last done 3.5 years ago and 65k miles ago...

I'm not mechanically minded, so I don't know whether to worry or not, but based on your figures of 60k/70k, it looks like it is time to get it done.

My car is now on 160k and the turbo has started to overboost and it needs a service, so I need to find a recon turbo from somewhere and get it done at the same time as the service. I was just hoping not to do the timing belt too as it's going to be an expensive month with the turbo, especially so soon after Christmas

Tony.

[TonyDB]

Hi Crasher.

Thank you for such an informative reply!

You're right, you'd need big balls to trust those figures. I wouldn't want to risk those mileages and I'm not mechanically minded!

As in my reply to Paul, my timing belt was last done 3.5 years ago and 65k... so I *might* be ok to leave it another few miles/months to give me a chance to save up!

Tony.

[WxmDaggers]

I know exactly how you feel mate, I bought my 1.4 twin charged petrol tsi with 65k on the clock, boost was lagging but I got it at a good price. Looking through the history it appeared that the timing chain had never been replaced so took it too an independent who absolutely bodged the job.
Ended up having to take it to local VW garage who rectified the problem but boost still wasn't behaving correctly. Ended up with them having to fit a re-con turbo too which absolutely broke me, needless to say I'll be keeping the car longer than I expected to know.

All the best

Paul

Sent from my H8216 using Tapatalk

[TonyDB]

Hi Vag-Abound.

Thank you for your reply and, you're right, I should've added when it was last done.

I've just checked and my Timing Belt and Water Pump were done:


May 2012 @ 35k miles;
March 2016 @ 95k miles.


My car is now on 160k miles and the belt was last done 3.5 years/65k miles ago. I do between 12k/15k miles a year.


The turbo is over-boosting, the DMF has been shaking for a few years and there is rust just starting to come up on the N/S front wing and possibly the sill. Adding in the cost of the Timing Belt, I did think about selling the car, buuuut, it has been in my Family since new, I've owned it since it was 3 years old/20k miles and it has been so reliable.


I don't need anything flash and my 9 year old Daughter loves it (!) and I figured that I could buy another car for £Xk and still need to do timing belts etc., not to mention the risk of buying a lemon... so I figured it was better to get a recon turbo, wait until the DMF is really bad, patch up the wing when it gets really bad and just keep driving it until it dies.

Based on that, I had better get it done in the next few months.

Tony.

[TonyDB]

I know exactly how you feel mate, I bought my 1.4 twin charged petrol tsi with 65k on the clock, boost was lagging but I got it at a good price. Looking through the history it appeared that the timing chain had never been replaced so took it too an independent who absolutely bodged the job.
Ended up having to take it to local VW garage who rectified the problem but boost still wasn't behaving correctly. Ended up with them having to fit a re-con turbo too which absolutely broke me, needless to say I'll be keeping the car longer than I expected to know.

All the best

Paul

Sent from my H8216 using Tapatalk

Ouch mate!


Although, saying that, at least you know your car is good for loads of miles now!

Thank you for all your help

[VAG-Abound]

Sounds similar to our 2003 Touran, which I thoroughly enjoy driving once I'm off of our cul de sac with the noisy DMF . I think I'll just about be able to replace that if I decide it's needed, but it'll be a bit of a hassle with getting gear box out with no post lift...

Limping turbo is a pain - less fun driving and can seem a real danger if it happens on long uphil motorway sections. I did the one on our BKD in a spacious workshop on ramps. No specialist tools, just somewhere wind, rain and sunlight / dazzle free and able to lock everything up while I spent a steady weekend doing it. Not a particulalry difficult job as long as you're reasonably dexterous, can wriggle around under car quite easily, and have a decent selection of long / short ratchet wrenches, spline / torx / hex bits, etc.

I got a new Melett from Darkside. Seemed like good value compared with someone like Midland sending a refurb OEM, and needing the original back. If I was doing it again I'd get the original off and see if a good clean up looks likely to get it running again. Get a replacement on standby - fit if needed or send it back if you decide to clean up the original. If you can manage without car while replacement arrives once damage is discovered (ours looked like something had gone through the exhaust vanes - but I don't think that was causing the overboost!) so much the better to avoid double shipping plus any restock fee.

Rust is a pain. I recall friend's first cars 70s / 80s cars having it, but never had to worry about it much myself. When I do I try to get panels and crevices opened up to get to the root of it, which has worked well. Good luck .