A100 Cam belt replacement

[tmw]

I have a 1992 A100 Quattro. What is the cam belt replacement interval?

[Sledge]

Hiya,

If your engine is the five potter then I believe it is 80K Miles. The best thing to do if you have recently bought this car and are not sure if it has been changed is to bite the bullet and have it replaced.
Hope this helps
Nige

[tmw]

Thanks Sledge, The engine is a V6 2.8 1992 Quattro. Has now done 134,000 miles. I think the cam belt was changed at 80,000.
Tim

[Survivor]

I found out that the replacement interval in my '93 90 Quatro 2.0 was wait-until-the-waterpump-freezes-up-and-melts-the-belt,-then-back-off-about-10-miles. (:7) The lesson learned was to replace the waterpump, idler, tensioner, and thermostat all together. A new belt melts just as quickly as an older one if the pump locks. No getting around it, these things are NOT cheap to maintain. Cost me an engine!

Terry

[Duffelcoat]

The interval for your car is every 80k, that doesn't mean it won't break before that time though.

If you get it done as above change the waterpump and thermostat and all belts in sight at the same time, if you replace the waterpump make sure they fit an uprated one with metal propellers rather than the chocolate ones Audi put it.

It will cost you about £500 from a good independant.

I wouldnt necessarily wait for the water pump to fail as the belt could snap any time anyway,

[Survivor]

Certainly the worst engineering practice I have ever seen, putting the water pump on the same belt as the valve timing. Pump freezes, belt breaks, valves stop in place, pistons keep moving, bend most valves, berak head, puncture pistons, gouge cilinder wall. The w-pump needs to be on the srepentine belt with the other accessories.

But I love the Audi none-the-less.

[zollaf]

thats why we put antifreeze in our engines. if you dont and it freezes it will at best pop some core plugs and at worst crack your block. i think if you look hard enough you will find some really bad engineering practices. try closely examining the average french car for instance.

[Survivor]

When I said "freeze up" I meant not so literally, as in the bearings or bushings fail, locks up, "freezes to the shaft and quits moving. The belt, on the otherhand, keeps going, as does the engine, and slides over the locked water pump, heating it up, and melting it. At that point the engine is "history"

I'm from the US, so maybe it is some "yank talk". Sorry for the confusion.

Yes, every car needs to have antifreeze, even in the hot weather, as it also helps lubricate the pump, among other things.

[zollaf]

haha, i get where your coming from now. its funny how the same word can have different meanings depending on where you live. indeed water pumps do seize( or freeze), thus leading to cambelt failure and a wrecked engine. its not a new thing though, as all the old vauxhall ohv engines had the same. i suppose it must be cheaper to produce for the manufacturers. or is it inbuilt unreliability?

[chariot2]

Once cooked a quattro avant engine with a tired water pump. Needle never entered the red but driving hard-ish on a warm summer day did for it