Seat Leon Timing Belt

zeon_5* · 30 Sep 2009 at 09:03

Hello out there,

Just wondering if someone could help clear something up for me. I have phoned a garage, to ask for a service on my 55 plate Leon tdi sport, and they have told me because it is 4 years old that i should get my timing belt changed as well. Now i have only done 23k so is it worth getting this done as on another forum i have read a few posts that say the timing belt lasts about 70k.

They have quoted me £300 for the timing belt alone, as you can probably imagine it is a high cost to pay as well as the service on top of that. Obviosuly not as high cost as a new engine but would a timing belt really go after 23k??

Any help/info is much appreciated

Matt82 · 30 Sep 2009 at 09:05

read the service schedule

it will tell you if the timing belt needs to be changed after xxx miles or xxx years

if it doesnt meet that then, provided its in good condition, you wont have to change it

iaind · 30 Sep 2009 at 10:18

As Matt said, RTFM

Belts dont just deteriorate with usage, they will deteriorate with time, which is why most service items have a "x years or y miles, whichever comes soonest" approach.

You hit the nail on the head by saying its cheaper than a new engine and will presumably last another 3~4 years. It will also affect the resale value of your car if the belt hasnt been changed when it should

tbz_ck · 30 Sep 2009 at 10:29

It used to be 60,000 or 6 years (that's what is says in my manual) and now apparently is 40,000 or 4 years.

I split the difference and did 50,000 and 5 years

Dogbreath · 30 Sep 2009 at 11:47

tbz_ck said:
It used to be 60,000 or 6 years (that's what is says in my manual) and now apparently is 40,000 or 4 years.

I split the difference and did 50,000 and 5 years

Manufacturers generally lower intervals if they had a large number of cases of belts failing prematurely...

mjt · 30 Sep 2009 at 11:53

have a look over on seatcupra.net and see what the norm is..

MarkDavis · 30 Sep 2009 at 13:02

http://www.seatcupra.net/forums/showthread.php?t=123713

Depends on your appetite for risk, but personally I think its silly not to change a cambelt within the service interval period when the alternative is rebuilding a destroyed engine at considerable cost and even then, it still probably never running in quite the same way again.

Matt82 · 30 Sep 2009 at 13:31

forget about the internet rubbish, just read your service book or call your dealer

dalin80 · 30 Sep 2009 at 13:39

Matt82 said:
forget about the internet rubbish, just read your service book or call your dealer

forget about reading your service book, the intervals have been changed a half dozen times since it was printed.

[SKR]Phoenix · 30 Sep 2009 at 14:01

40,000 or 4 years, which ever is sooner.

I had mine done (Cupra) at the main dealer for £320.

HamZilla · 30 Sep 2009 at 14:57

Get your water pump changed to a brass one at the same time, its in the same area and the plastic one will fail eventually.

Skii · 30 Sep 2009 at 16:11

[SKR]Phoenix;14994831 said:
40,000 or 4 years, which ever is sooner.

I had mine done (Cupra) at the main dealer for £320.

My local Seat Dealer wanted nearly double that. (SMC Windsor)

[SKR]Phoenix · 30 Sep 2009 at 16:22

Mine was done at Coventry SEAT.

monkey_boy · 30 Sep 2009 at 17:37

For a low-mileage, desirable (to non-"petrolheads" I suppose) car it'd be worth your while to keep the service history bang up to date. The sort of people that will pay over the odds for a low mileage car will also pay extra or require the good service history.

magicoi · 2 Oct 2009 at 00:06

As previously said 60K or 4 years, whichever comes first - not worth the risk of a breakage

Dave L · 3 Oct 2009 at 14:20

Sounds an awful lot of money for a straightfoward belt job.

Suggest shop around the independant workshops.

MagicBoy · 3 Oct 2009 at 14:29

VAG appear to have revised the timing belt interval on all TDI engines. I got a nasty shock when I phoned up for a 4 year service on the vRS, and they told me I needed it changing. It's only done 21k.

I had a bit of a spat with Skoda Customer Care but they stuck to their guns. It's got me rather annoyed as in the current financial climate most people can't find £550 down the back of the sofa for a service. I've got to admit I've been a bad lad and not had either done yet, heading for 18 months since the last service. Then again it's only done 3.5k in the last 12 months...