Cam Belt Replacement - VW Passat

AdrianC

DettaWalker said:

And regarding VW UK - we import passats, we don't manufacture them.

So with that in mind I do believe that VW UK has absolutely nothing to do with the manufacture of VW Passats and therefore their guidelines are a localisation only.

It's the same parent company.

DettaWalker

AdrianC said:

DettaWalker said:

And regarding VW UK - we import passats, we don't manufacture them.

So with that in mind I do believe that VW UK has absolutely nothing to do with the manufacture of VW Passats and therefore their guidelines are a localisation only.

It's the same parent company.

I get that... But I am saying that as VW UK not actually manufacturing the cars but solely a SALES & SERVICES function, why would their guidance carry any weight when differing so substantially from the actual manufacturer?
Their primary goal is to make money in selling cars and servicing them.

 VW in Germany is where the actual engineering side of the business sits where the cars are designed & manufactured (at least until they move the plant to CR). 

Lomast

Ultimately its up to you but personally I would never go over 6 year between cam belts they do degrade over time I have had 1 cam belt fail on me in the past and the cost to repair can be astronomical depending on weather its an interference engine or not.
My 25 year old land rover i do every 3 years but I do it myself so cost is less than £30 for a dayco belt

Mutton_Geoff

Cambelts are like light bulbs and when talk of their replacement comes up, I am reminded of a question Clint Eastwood asked.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Xjr2hnOHiM

fred246

I had a relative who had a brand new car. After 6 years he took it to the main dealer for a cambelt change. It failed the next day and wrecked the engine. He was told that it was his fault because the tensioner had failed. He was told that he should have asked for a cambelt and tensioner change where he had only asked for the cambelt to be changed. He sold it very cheaply to someone who said they would put a new engine in. The internet is full of similar stories. Having a cambelt change isn't without risk.

chrisw

DettaWalker said:

AdrianC said:

DettaWalker said:

Oh no, I said it above in my original post , my car is currently 5.5 years old. It's a 65 plate, 2015 model.

So you did. My bad.

I don't know where to get a cam belt replacement for £300, here in Reading they are £650, which is a lot of money to spend for peace of mind, when in Germany it just isn't done at this interval.

Even at a VW dealer, there's change from £500.
https://www.volkswagen.co.uk/owners-and-drivers/servicing/pricing-for-cars-over-3
At that price, £85 is VAT, straight off.
You don't say which engine, but assuming what's probably the most common, then the parts are £200 or more for a complete kit from a decent brand, even outside the dealer chain.
https://www.mister-auto.co.uk/timing-belt-kit-with-water-pump/volkswagen/passat/passat-3g2-2-0-tdi-150hp-2014/
So that leaves £200 for the actual labour - including paying for the workshop, the ramp, the tools, the other consumables such as the coolant change... and all the employment costs of the bloke actually doing probably three hours of work.

As for £500 being a lot of money... What is a 5.5yo Passat worth? What would it be worth with a dead engine?

 (also, I thought if a cam belt snaps you have to replace the engine which comes at about £2500?). 

You'll be lucky! I had a Peugeot in the late 90s which cost £3500 due to the cam belt snapping and I've recently had a new engine in my Volvo for just under £10,000, fortunately both paid for under warranty. You might be able to trawl around some backstreet garages and get a second hand engine fitted for less but is it really worth it?

mluton

My B6 is on its 3rd at 190k, Always got them done based on whatever comes sooner. An indy will do it for £300, with water pump and tensioners. Same for my dad with his B7, recently done, but that was due to a failed OEM water pump.
My dad had snap on his B5.5 company car years ago which ended up having a new engine.
My advice is to never ignore schedules and always get it done way before pre date and pre mileage. Not worth risking.
Different climates, have different effects on cam belts. 

nick74

mluton said:

My B6 is on its 3rd at 190k, Always got them done based on whatever comes sooner. An indy will do it for £300, with water pump and tensioners. Same for my dad with his B7, recently done, but that was due to a failed OEM water pump.
My dad had snap on his B5.5 company car years ago which ended up having a new engine.
My advice is to never ignore schedules and always get it done way before pre date and pre mileage. Not worth risking.
Different climates, have different effects on cam belts. 

Whilst I wouldn't disagree with that, it does become slightly ridiculous when for example a VW dealer in Northern Ireland (being in the UK) will recommend a cambelt change based on time and distance, whereas a VW dealer a few miles away in the Republic of Ireland will recommend a cambelt change based solely on distance, with no fixed time interval. It has long been a bone of contention on many VW forums as to why the UK gets time based belt change intervals whereas most (if not all) the rest of europe is based on distance alone. I remember years ago someone on the Skoda forum, who was fluent in German, got in touch with one of the senior engineers at VW in Germany and he admitted he was totally baffled by it too!

Grumpy_chap

fred246 said:

I had a relative who had a brand new car. After 6 years he took it to the main dealer for a cambelt change. It failed the next day and wrecked the engine. He was told that it was his fault because the tensioner had failed. He was told that he should have asked for a cambelt and tensioner change where he had only asked for the cambelt to be changed. He sold it very cheaply to someone who said they would put a new engine in. The internet is full of similar stories. Having a cambelt change isn't without risk.

Sadly, this one is too common - I had similar though, fortunately, Ford rebuilt the engine.

lordmountararat

Why don't  more manufacturers fit non-interference engines.? The engine on my Mazda MX5 would survive a cam belt snap.