Auxiliary belt change cost?
 

V60 D6 hybrid quote for belt and tensioner incl VAT and labour is coming in at £435 from dealer. What actually does this belt do and what determines need to change it at 54k miles?

Although I have a different car to you, I presume the function of the auxiliary belt is similar. This belt drives the alternator, crankshaft & power steering pump on my car.

The reason the auxiliary belt needs to be changed is because it can cause serious engine damage if it snaps, due to the chance of it getting tangled in the timing belt & knocking everything out of sync. The same with the tensioner, if it fails, the auxiliary belt will no longer be under tension & you have the same scenario with regards to the auxiliary belt potentially wrapping itself around the timing belt. If either occur & the aux belt gets tangled, then potentially, you could be looking at very expensive repairs (cylinder head replacement for example).

Don't take chances, as these parts are prone to failure. The price you've been quoted is certainly much cheaper than what it would cost to rebuild your engine. By all means, look around for cheaper quotes, but make sure you get them replaced sooner rather than later. Use genuine parts too ideally, or quality aftermarket ones as a minimum.

Thanks however that doesnt answer what determines the need to replace. The belt is identified as an item to inspect and replace if required. So my question is if the issue is so critical then why isnt it replaced without need to inspect? What are the indications it needs replacing and if the garage advise it isnt required and it breaks the week after will they pick up the ensuing bill? I doubt it. It isnt a very satisfactory approach other than it gives the impression service costs are lower than actually required. It also smacks of poor engineering design and location of ancillaries such as aircon and power steering pumps if the drive belt can cause such mayhem if it fails.

The need for it to be replaced is because volvo stipulate that it must be changed every 54000 miles on that service ..and at the other services it's tension must be checked and adjusted if required .

You are not looking at the volvo service specification literature it seems ...

The Aux belt and Tensioner on yours is unique to the D6 , it runs the Starter/generator and is considerably stronger than on the other models ..with an equally stronger tensioner .
Tension is set via a frequency reading tool , ie, it measures the frequency the belt vibrates at when plucked ... it is crucial it is within tolerance , a dealer job if you cherish your engine ..

My answer does determine the need for replacement. If the aux belt snaps & gets tangled into the timing, that can cause serious engine damage. Does that not determine the need for it to be replaced? :shocked:

At 54k, Volvo will advise you to change the aux belt... period. This is the recommended replacement interval (No inspection, replacement only at this mileage). If your car has 54k or more on it, I highly doubt that Volvo would inspect the belt & tell you everything was fine & dandy. They know that these belts do fail, hence why the replacement mileage interval is relatively low & they would advise you to change it. Obviously, its up to you whether you tell them to go ahead with it or not... That's a chance you take though.

Snapped belts can cause "mayhem" on all sorts of engines. I know you're a fan of VAG products from another thread you posted a while back. I've read plenty of posts where a snapped aux belt has got tangled in the timing belt area on Passat's causing the timing to "jump" or skip teeth. Volvo aren't alone here, as a snapped aux belt can cause costly damage to plenty of other cars too (ones with interference engines anyway).

I understand that its an additional cost. The thing to bear in mind is that it doesn't matter what car you have, belts etc do need to be changed at some point in time & there's a cost to do so. Some manufacturers specify earlier intervals than others... its just how it is. Some cars don't have timing belts, they have timing chains. Although, timing chains do generally last longer than belts, they don't last indefinitely either. VW, for example, recommend replacing the timing belt every four years for cars registered before September 2009 and every five years for cars registered after. Volvo have different timing belt intervals, depending on the engine variant. I know you're not referring to a timing belt in your case, but I'm just using this as an example that different manufacturers have different intervals/parts that need to be changed at some point in time.

Anyway, its up to you whether you change the aux belt or not (I'd advise you do though if your car has 54k plus on it & so would Volvo). You moaned about the cost of a service on another thread & have said here that "it gives the impression service costs are lower than actually required" (referring to costs again because the aux belt needs doing). I'd love to have a car that cost nothing to run/maintain :rolleyes:. Be realistic & understand that any car will cost you money at some stage down the line. No rudeness intended, I'm just stating the obvious.

I had mine changed after it snapped... (my car has more on the clock..). Edited and removed advice. Plenty of horror stories around of the damage caused if they snap.

Didn't read all the posts in the thread, having just seen this one. Listen to Clan, he knows what he's talking about 👍