Cambelt Change in East Norfolk

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by robsterpaterson

I liked my KV6 lump but it was a ridiculous arrangement for the timing - I actually bought the proper tools!

Even with the proper tools it's not exactly simple!

[robsterpaterson]

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

Even with the proper tools it's not exactly simple!

Originally Posted by robsterpaterson

Let's face it, even with the proper tools it's all too easy to turn a 180 into a 170 or 190 by getting the timing wrong, after all, it's only what Rover did to get the different engine specs.
Get one of the 4 cams slightly wrong and it'll run like a bag of spanners and that's easily enough done considering there are no key ways on the camshafts for the pulleys.

Also RAVE isn't exactly definitive on the subject but then Rover technical publications tend to hide clues elsewhere in the chapters for doing a particular job correctly first time around. Bleeding the brakes successfully on an 800 is one such task where it appears straightforward but there are clues in the rest of the Brakes section in the WSM that tell you what else you need to do to not only get it right first time but also achieve a short, firm pedal with excellent brakes. That's in the pre-RAVE version known i believe as "Super-CD". The RAVE version on Brakes is even less informative!

[robsterpaterson]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

Let's face it, even with the proper tools it's all too easy to turn a 180 into a 170 or 190 by getting the timing wrong, after all, it's only what Rover did to get the different engine specs.
Get one of the 4 cams slightly wrong and it'll run like a bag of spanners and that's easily enough done considering there are no key ways on the camshafts for the pulleys.

Also RAVE isn't exactly definitive on the subject but then Rover technical publications tend to hide clues elsewhere in the chapters for doing a particular job correctly first time around. Bleeding the brakes successfully on an 800 is one such task where it appears straightforward but there are clues in the rest of the Brakes section in the WSM that tell you what else you need to do to not only get it right first time but also achieve a short, firm pedal with excellent brakes. That's in the pre-RAVE version known i believe as "Super-CD". The RAVE version on Brakes is even less informative!

Crikey, how many of transitioned to Volvo from Rover??? I came via Saab

[Harley Dave]

I also came to Volvo via SAAB, after 2x 9000's, a 9-3 cabrio, and then a 9-5 Aero HOT estate.

Cheers

Dave

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by robsterpaterson

Crikey, how many of transitioned to Volvo from Rover??? I came via Saab

Quite a lot that i know of - most reverted to Rover though. Out of those many had also owned Saabs. Those that stayed loyal to Volvo generally went for the older, more traditional Volvo stuff, rather than the Ford-influenced modern stuff.

[ChrisE]

Originally Posted by Kev0607

...................You should also replace the aux belt tensioner. Your car is 10 years old, so this part should be replaced.

Best checking with them what’s included in the kit. Don’t forget the tensioner!

If I can get this back to the original question please.

I have asked the garage about this and they say that Volvo only changes the auxilliary belt tensioner on mileage and not age. At 3000mls I am way off any mileage change.

As they want £80 for the tensioner and an extra half hours labour I would appreciate comment.

Do they fail with age or mileage?

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by ChrisE

If I can get this back to the original question please.

I have asked the garage about this and they say that Volvo only changes the auxilliary belt tensioner on mileage and not age. At 3000mls I am way off any mileage change.

As they want £80 for the tensioner and an extra half hours labour I would appreciate comment.

Do they fail with age or mileage?

For the sake of the £80, i would say change the tensioner. I would however query the extra half hours labour to fit it as it will need moving/adjustung as part of the belt fitting procedure and it doesn't take an additional half hour to completely remove then fit a new one while it is already loose for the adjustment.

It's much cheaper for a tensioner than an engine rebuild. Many moons ago a friend had his timing belt replaced on an Astra by a local mechanic. He was advised the water pump should be renewed but being a tight-wad, refused to spend the extra £10-15 for a new pump. He hadn't told me that at the time he brought it to me to sort out. I discovered later he'd been specific on having the job done on a shoestring in the first place.

The water pump failing caused all valves to be bent, the relatively new timing belt to be shredded and a lot of other problems i don't recall now. He also insisted first time around to the other mechanic that because Vauxhall didn't specify the water pump it didn't need changing.

This is why i advise you to insist on the tensioner being changed (the water pump functioned as the tensioner in the example above) as the other side of the coin is that should it fail a year or so down the road, the garage will just shrug and tell you it's not covered becasue the tensioner failed, despite their protests that it doesn't need changing now.

[Kev0607]

Originally Posted by ChrisE

If I can get this back to the original question please.

I have asked the garage about this and they say that Volvo only changes the auxilliary belt tensioner on mileage and not age. At 3000mls I am way off any mileage change.

As they want £80 for the tensioner and an extra half hours labour I would appreciate comment.

Do they fail with age or mileage?

They’re advising you wrong.

The auxiliary belt tensioner is changed on the big 10 year service, as well as the auxiliary belt & timing belt (it doesn’t matter about miles, it’s whichever comes first being the miles or age). There’s not much point in changing the auxiliary belt & leaving the tensioner, which is an item that is also prone to failure.

You may be thinking well why not change the water pump? Generally, genuine pumps last hundreds of thousands of miles. The auxiliary belt tensioners are more common to fail.

Genuine water pumps can & do last for mammoth miles, but change it if you want. However, the water pump is the only part I’d leave alone providing it wasn’t leaking or making noises & it’s an original Volvo one. I wouldn’t leave a 10 year old tensioner though.

If you want real peace of mind, change the water pump (use original only) & you should change the auxiliary belt tensioner, as well as all the belts & other associated parts like the idlers. I suggest using genuine parts too. Belts etc are critical parts… you don’t want to put cheap junk in.

Once you’ve changed all these parts, you don’t need to do them again for 10 years (apart from the auxiliary belt). The auxiliary belt should be changed every 54k or 5 years (whichever comes first). So basically, the only belt that needs changing in the next five years after you get all this work done is the auxiliary one. The timing belt, idlers & auxiliary belt tensioner can be left for 10 years (after you replace them obviously).

[Harley Dave]

Originally Posted by Kev0607

...The auxiliary belt should be changed every 54k or 5 years (whichever comes first)...

I agree with everything else you said Kev, but is that right?

My car was being serviced at the main dealer earlier in my ownership and went through 54k during that period.

I don't recollect any belt being changed back then.

I am scheduled for my next service, at my Indie, on Thursday (80,000 ish) so I'll check with them, as we are approaching 10 years now (61 Reg, D5 Exec 200 hp engine, first registered 29 Nov 2011)

Cheers

Dave