VW Passat (06 Reg). Garage rang and said "Your car is due a cambelt change". True??

lancslass2008

Hi all

This is not for me. My neighbour is a lovely, helpful guy but he's Polish doesn't speak much English. A VW Delearship has just rang him and told him his car is due a Cam Belt Change now at a cost of £375. He doesn't know how to verify this. How can he/we find out if this is true? What is the recommended interval for a cam belt change and are these intervals realistic or just a way of making extra cash for dealerships?

His car is VW Passat 2.0 TDI (06 Reg)

I can honestly say that in 25 years of motoring, NONE of my cars has EVER had a new cam belt.

Any help please?

Kilty_2

It's coming up for 5 years old - most cars need a cambelt at 5 years / 70k miles whichever comes first.

lancslass2008

Thanks Kitty. If that's the case then I'll tell our Friend. Thank You

lancslass2008

Does anybody know a reasonable cost for this? We're in Manchester!

Kilty_2

£375 doesn't sound terrible, I don't know though.

There's one or two on here that work for VW dealers who should be able to advise both the exact interval and a typical cost

mikey72

Usual question though.
Is that just for the belt, or the full kit, and the water pump?

pendulum

lancslass2008 wrote: »

I can honestly say that in 25 years of motoring, NONE of my cars has EVER had a new cam belt.

You either buy cars with timing chains or you've been very lucky then. If they snap its usually very expensive engine work time or new engine.

It depends on manufacturer and model as to when the belt should be changed but most need doing between every 40 and 60k, or every 4, 5 or 6 years, whichever comes first. Some Fords are 100k or 10 years but that's unusually high. Some people like to get it changed earlier than the manufacturer recommends.

£375 is on the high side for a cambelt change but for a Main Dealer its about right. You can tell him to try taking it to an independent garage who specialise in VWs who will be more competitive. Price depends on what you're having done, e.g. full cambelt kit fitted with new tensioners/idlers etc or just a new belt, waterpump replaced at the same time or not etc.

jase1

mikey's right.

Always get the tensioner and water pump done at the same time. Main dealers often don't seem to bother getting this done.

£375 seems cheap for a main dealer VW cambelt change, so make sure you know what's being done. An indie should charge no more than £300 for the whole job including the pump.

satyc

VW' s do need cam belt changes at regular intervals, independant will cost you approx £250 max, do not get it done from a franchised dealer unless you have money to waste, lol. Always get the whole kit changed and for a few extra quid the waterpump is worth doing at the same time.

TiTheRev

4years or 60,000 miles, so your friend is actually over the recommended service interval.

VW will price match though, so if you can find a local independant who will use a genuine cambelt kit & get them to give you a quote, VW will price match. The deal will not include the water pump, and (as a VW employee) we have never done water pumps with cambelts and never had an issue with a pump failing.

Flying-High_2

TiTheRev wrote: »

4years or 60,000 miles, so your friend is actually over the recommended service interval.

VW will price match though, so if you can find a local independant who will use a genuine cambelt kit & get them to give you a quote, VW will price match. The deal will not include the water pump, and (as a VW employee) we have never done water pumps with cambelts and never had an issue with a pump failing.

Do you work for a VW direct or a Dealer?...

I always thought a 2.0TDi was 80k/4 year:)

Are the OE water pump impellers metal now or plastic?

Have none of the plastic impeller ones failed in the past?