Timing belt change- Skoda Fabia 1.4tdi

[Howl]

Hi Guys

I'm new to your forum and very pleased to meet you all . I hope you are all well.

I am hoping to get some practical advice from this forum about servicing my useful but humble 2004 skoda fabia 1.4 tdi - I am specifically concerned about the timing belt change that is due at at 60.000 miles.

Also do I need to get oil changes and filter changes etc at 10,000 mile intervals or is 20,000 intervals ok ? I've been getting this done at 10,000 gaps but is this too often? It all mounts up 'bill wise'.

Should I routinely be getting the water pump replaced as well if the mechanic is already 'in there' doing the timing belt anyway ?

Can you please offer any guidance on reasonable / average charges to expect for the timing belt /water pump relacement work ie what are the usual labour costs and parts costs ?
Best wishes
Howl

[a8 tech]

You are correct to replace the water pump with the cam belt and also replace the cambelt tensioner,i would also stick to 10,000 miles or 12 month interval and just replace the fuel and air filters evey 40,000 miles.Cost of the belt kit is about £90 and water pump £25 plus 3 hours labour ish

[Howl]

Hi A8 Tech

Thanks for your rapid and generous help, I'll certainly follow any of your expert advice.

However, can you please clarify some points :- Do the oil and air fillters just get 'blown out' or 'cleaned out' every 10,000 -12000miles (or so ) and then replaced after 40,000 mile intervals from new ?. Until now I've been routinely getting them both replaced.

In reality, has this quite frequent change of oil and air filters been an unnecessary additional cost / expense?

You will appreciate that I'm trying to budget and avoid any maintainance jobs that are probably not really needed.

Do the the high grade and expensive VW synthetic oils really only last for 10,000 miles?

Kind regards
Howl

[a8 tech]

Hello Howl,you dont have to use the long life oil,you can use pd engine oil from quantum i think its 0/30.The oil filter needs replacing not cleaning but you could blow out the pollen filter and air filter but replace the fuelfilter every 40,000 miles.So the oil filter is about £6 and the oil is about £25 and your labour is about £30 from most indi workshops,so not so dear every 12 months.Howl these are rough prices that i would get the parts at so give or take a few quid

[Howl]

Hi A8 Tech

You're a star! Thanks for your latest helpful advice.

The cheaper pd engine oil sounds like a good budget measure for doing 10,000 mile oil changes. However, out of curiosity only, if I decided to stick to the high grade synthetic VW oils do you think that the dearer synthetic oil could perhaps still be safely used for bigger mileages than the usual 10.000-12,000 changes that I've been getting done up until now say eg going up to 20,000 miles?.

What's the best choice do you think ?

Using the cheaper pd30 oil, being more frequently changed eg at 10,000 gaps, or using the more expensive synthetic oil but making less frequently changes, perhaps say at 20,000 gaps as above?

Best wishes
Howl

[a8 tech]

Well i see what you mean,you wont to stay on extended servicing and clean your filters,thats fine so you only have to pay for a fuel filter every 40,000 miles then.Why not its your car you can do as you wish and the long life oil will look after the extra mileage.

[Howl]

Hi A8 Tech

Thanks for all your patient help, it's truly much appreciated - I'm only trying to take the wisest course over routine serving , so I'll go for the more frequent pd30 option and follow the other measures that you have advised as being sound practice and viable - I was really only just a bit puzzled about the point of using the more expensive ( usually recommended) synthetic oils in the first place.
All the best
Howl

[a8 tech]

No problem Howl,its been a pleasure to advise you and hopefully save you some cash.Very best regards A8