Hi Folks.

I've got a 55 plate octy 1.9tdi pd with 55 k showing, and am approaching my next service. I'm being asked to change the cambelt as so far as I'm aware this is the original one and now Skoda have said that it should be a 4 year change regardless??? Is this so??, or can any knowledgeable forumites shed some light onto an actual mileage figure that the belt should be changed. Had a few quotes from dealers in Tyne and Wear , all hovering around the £500 mark for a full cambelt change combined with a long-life 60k service. Is this price any good???

The normal advice is to change cambelts at 4 years. Now it will probably last longer than that but would you want to risk it!!!!!

Had a few quotes from dealers in Tyne and Wear , all hovering around the £500 mark for a full cambelt change combined with a long-life 60k service. Is this price any good???

Your Skoda warranty is well past it so no need to pay dealer prices.

Find a local independent and ask them to use genuine parts, reckon you can shave £100/£150 off that price...

It's funny how the 4 year interval is only recommended in the UK though isn't it? :think:

You'll get so many different opinions on this that it's difficult to make your mind up.

It seems the current advice is to change the cambelt at 4 years or 60k. The owners manuals tend to say different things and the various European countries that sell Skoda's also have conflicting advice. You will also get people who have changed the belt much later with the belt in perfect condition and people who have changed early with the belt fraid and them dodging a bullet!

The decision really is yours as it comes down to the what if! if it snaps then it's mega bucks to fix but changing it is also not cheap. Unfortunately every car is different!

I've made my mind up and I'm going with the 4 years/60k.

The other decision I have come to is to use a good local garage for MOT's & repairs. They are much cheaper than main dealer Skoda and I can still use Skoda for servicing to maintain the full dealer stamps etc. My car is a 2005 so I'm not worried about warranty now. The other thing to check is if there is a Volkswagan independent workshop near you, they are experts and can often do good deals on things like cam belts.

Some people on here have got a cambelt change for as little as £180 and I think for most it's nearer the £300 mark. With a major service around £200-£250 I'd say your price is probably as expected.

It's well worth shopping around and trying to price match etc.

P.S. Other thing to consider is to get the water pump changed when they do the cambelt, another issue with different opinions

Dougall

Just do as recommended by the manufacturer as it could save you money.

A mate of mine has a V6 Alfa and it was due a belt at the mileage interval but not time but as he was skint so thought he leave it a while planning to do it around 6 months later.

3 months after it was due it broke and it cost him over £2500 to get it fixed.

I tend to do them early as ive seen too many broken engines not to.

http://briskoda.net/...0entry2226913

Get it done and water pump see above from today ! :S

Get it done and water pump see above from today !

I took similar advice when getting my cam belt changed at ~120,000 on my PD100 Passat. The independent told me I was wasting my money getting the waterpump changed- it was only ~£20, however I insisted. The apparently perfect old water pump was shown to me on collection. It was my choice though....

Thanks for all the helpful advice and experiences folks, much appreciated. Got a price off Barmoor garage in Ryton for £320 +vat for a service and cambelt change so I'm going to take that option me thinks- unless someone in the TYne Wear/Durham area knows of a good independent garage???

That seems a very good price from a Skoda dealer, my local Skoda garage wanted £450 for the timing belt change on its own. I took it to another garage 160 miles away to get it for £300 inc vat although that was without a service which would have been £250 more.

I spent a long time researching the timing belt change as my car hit the four year mark with just 23K on the clock which seemed very early for a timing belt change compared to my previous Skoda/Seat and there seems plenty of evidence the timing belt can last longer but it wasn't a gamble I was prepared to take due to the consequences of a belt failure being so severe and no-one would cover it.

John