Cambelt

[Sunil patel]

My car has 58,000 on the clock but it's a December 2001 so I suppose I should get the cambelt changed, but I do have a few questions.

1 Can I get away with it if I get the mechanic to do a visual inspection to determine any obvious signs on the belt? I know it's risky with no guarantees but I'll be selling it in about 12 months and I will only add another 4000 miles?

2 As well as the cambelt what else needs changing? I've been told there are two tensioners but only the larger one needs changing is this true?

3 How long would it take a competent mechanic to do the job? (so I can judge what he should be charging)

4 Does the mechanic need any special tools besides the obvious?

5 Is it a big job for the mechanic or is ir fairly straight forward? My mate had an Alfa and it was a nightmare!!!

Thanks in advance

[Rikos]

Getting the cam belt is never an easy decision, i would recommend getting it changed sooner rather than later but it's all down to the individual.

You can check the condition of the belt by taking of the cover and having a look, but i dont think you can see the condition of the tensioners this way.

It should take between 2 and 3 hours to chamge a cambelt in a garage and i dont believe they need any tools, you should always get the belt and tensioners changed not just the belt. You can buy these parts yourslef for around £100.

It's not a huge job but i do think they have to strip quite a bit of to get to all the parts. I hope this helps