Hello everyone,
This is my first post. I will be the first to admit that I know little to nothing about motors so if I say something stupid, then feel free to correct me.
I have a 2008 GTI and it has been a fantastic car. I bought it new and now my daughter is driving it as her first her car. It has 102K on it. I am being told that I really need to do the timing belt service as it is critically important. I am being told that if the timing belt fails, then the engine is toast. I did some initial research and it appears that the service requires a few things
I was then told by a couple of people not to go to the dealer and to find a shop that focuses on German automobiles. I did that and called one place and had a really long conversation with the owner. Super nice guy but he told me some things that no one else did. I really can't do it justice but he told me that the belt, tensioners, etc. are only one part. He told me there are things to be done on the opposite side of the motor to do with one of the camshafts. I didn't understand it all but in a nutshell he said that only one of the cams were driven by the belt and the other was driven by a chain and that also needed service. The cost for doing it this way was only slightly more than the dealer at $1,650. However, he said that SOMETIMES there is a fixing bolt on a camshaft that binds. If that occurs, then it has to be drilled out and the cam has to be replaced which raises the price.
I have tried researching this but come up empty. The owner seemed pretty genuine and helpful and he has a ton of positive reviews on both Google and Yelp.
I am hoping that people here have a better understanding of what he is referring to and can help guide me to a direction.
Thanks in advance
This is my first post. I will be the first to admit that I know little to nothing about motors so if I say something stupid, then feel free to correct me.
I have a 2008 GTI and it has been a fantastic car. I bought it new and now my daughter is driving it as her first her car. It has 102K on it. I am being told that I really need to do the timing belt service as it is critically important. I am being told that if the timing belt fails, then the engine is toast. I did some initial research and it appears that the service requires a few things
- Replacement of the belt itself
- Replace the tensioners and idlers
- Replace the water pump
- Replace seals and the such.
I was then told by a couple of people not to go to the dealer and to find a shop that focuses on German automobiles. I did that and called one place and had a really long conversation with the owner. Super nice guy but he told me some things that no one else did. I really can't do it justice but he told me that the belt, tensioners, etc. are only one part. He told me there are things to be done on the opposite side of the motor to do with one of the camshafts. I didn't understand it all but in a nutshell he said that only one of the cams were driven by the belt and the other was driven by a chain and that also needed service. The cost for doing it this way was only slightly more than the dealer at $1,650. However, he said that SOMETIMES there is a fixing bolt on a camshaft that binds. If that occurs, then it has to be drilled out and the cam has to be replaced which raises the price.
I have tried researching this but come up empty. The owner seemed pretty genuine and helpful and he has a ton of positive reviews on both Google and Yelp.
I am hoping that people here have a better understanding of what he is referring to and can help guide me to a direction.
Thanks in advance