Cam belt has gone on my car - not sure what to do

dagrowler

Cool one! Thanks guys. That's good to know. It's at the garage at the moment and I'm waiting to decide what to do before I let them know (they won't be doing the work anyway as they're a small garage who mostly just do exhausts).

Tilt wrote: »

What is it?

It's a Peugeot 206

dagrowler

shaun_from_Africa wrote: »

But if this slippage had happened when the OP first went to move the car, that'w when the damage would have been done so a 55 mile drive without noticing serious engine problems wouldn't have been possible.

Yeah that's what I was thinking... I'd have noticed a noise wouldn't I? It was deafening when it first happened but drove happily at 70 (and around that mark) the whole way home.

jd82

I would demand to see the engine and if they refuse then threaten the police and trading standards. My mate went through this and the garage refused to even give him back the car.

He called the police and they got involved, when the police arrived they had discovered the not only was the cylinder head still in tact but so was the rocker cover and all the other bits like air filter cover. They hadn't touched the engine.

Police told the garage to hand back the car and take the owner to court if they were owed money but the police warned that they wouldn't bother .

Hopefully there will be no need to get the police involved in this case.

jd82

dagrowler wrote: »

Yeah that's what I was thinking... I'd have noticed a noise wouldn't I? It was deafening when it first happened but drove happily at 70 (and around that mark) the whole way home.

If the cambelt had snapped the engine simply would not work. The belt is the only thing which controls the timing of all the moving parts, if that snaps the pistons will often just crash into the valves causing lots of damage.

If the belt has slipped I would imagine the engine would sound like a tractor, it certainly would not run properly.

There is no way you could also misdiagnose a faulty startor motor with a snapped cambelt. I am not a mechanic at all but even I know how to tell the difference and a break down person would know far more about cars than I do!

shaun_from_Africa

But as I mentioned earlier, don't warn the garage that you are going to be calling. Simply turn up and ask to see your car.

dagrowler

Thank you guys! It's very confusing. The garage are usually excellent, I've used them loads of times. Very odd.

skiddlydiddly

Had a starter go on me recently and made similar noises to those you described.It turned out the ring gear had lunched itself too.

attila_

dagrowler wrote: »

He started it and I drove it home (it wasn't making the scary noise at that point, once it started)

garage is taking u for a ride. Sound like cowboys to me. They've probably found the starter motor has caused something serious...i.e stripped the flywheel and want to buy the car off u for a couple of hundred

name and shame these jokers please.

Strider590

Even if they are taking the p1ss, it still needed a cambelt change..... You'd have been looking at £200-£300 for that anyway + whatever repairs it needed.


It does sound however like the garage f*cked up with the starter, know they're in trouble and are trying to fob you off.

cyclonebri1

I think you have had 2 totally unrelated problems. That of the starter and then the cambelt.

The garage will be able to prove to you if it is the cambelt as all they would have had to do was to ease back the belt cover;);)

Doesn't help you in the least tho', sounds fubared:(