Well, had my first roadside breakdown today...

[MinionZombie]

http://deadshed.blogspot.com/2009/08/vehicular-drama.html

Cam belt gone ... laaaaaaaame.

First a tyre blow out earlier this year, now a busted cam belt ... not having the best motoring luck this year. :rolleyes:

And below was my view as I stood by the side of the road looking like all the other sad-and-useless-looking motorists you see cluttering lay-bys, hedge-rows and pub car parks up and down the land. :p

[Tricky]

Cam belt? Ouch dude! they cost a bomb to replace as well :( I had mine done on my car last month, it hadnt snapped but due to the mileage it was recommended I had it changed! I do 250 miles a week just to work & back, then whatever miles I do on a weekend on top of that, costs me a fortune in car maintenence! I had a front shocker spring break last week too! (due to Gordon clowns shoddy bumpy potholed road system that I thoroughly resent paying road tax to drive on)

[bassman]

It's unfortunate that you broke down, but if these two experiences are the only car troubles you've had....consider yourself lucky.:p

[MinionZombie]

Well, the car itself hasn't done many miles relatively (coming up on 34,000), but is 14 years old. Had a battery problem last year too. I don't own the car, it's my Mum's (hey - I live in Blair's Britain, and I've decided to get into a hard-as-nails-to-crack-into industry as a career choice) ... needless to say, she wasn't pleased, and had a right old rant.

My Dad's car, also getting on now (not as old though) has had some big problems recently too.

...

The likelihood of my folks getting a new car to replace the one I drive (hey, I do buy fuel for it :)) is increasing. Looking into what it might be.

Depending on the price of the repairs of course, they'll probably get this problem fixed ... unless it's "pfft, fuck off!" money.

It would be a damn shame to get the car scrapped (on that scrappage scheme we've got that's nowhere near as good as Germany's one) when it's done so few miles and has been well maintained ... plus I like it, it's like my mate ... I learned to drive in that car, damnit. :(

We'll see I guess - will find out what the damage will be on Monday.

*sigh*

All this stuff breaking at the moment - the main telly broke, then the washing machine went, now the cam belt on the second car. :rolleyes:

Tyler Durden was really onto something when he said "the things you own, end up owning you" ... ... but I still like having some stuff, you know. :p

[wyvern1096]

What kind of car? Depending on model a cam belt isn't too hard to do yourself. I've done 'em on Nissans anyway.

[MinionZombie]

What kind of car? Depending on model a cam belt isn't too hard to do yourself. I've done 'em on Nissans anyway.
It's a Renault Clio, 14 years old, and neither I nor my Dad knows much about cars ... well, certainly not replacing cam belts - the thing in the end is, how much damage did it do when it broke.

[Tricky]

It's a Renault Clio, 14 years old, and neither I nor my Dad knows much about cars ... well, certainly not replacing cam belts - the thing in the end is, how much damage did it do when it broke.

Not advisable to do the cam belt yourself on a modern car dude, they're usually pretty awkward to get at which means stripping things like air filters,coolant reservoirs & radiator hoses off & even parts of the engine itself!quite often the water pump needs changing at the same time too, but make sure you take it somewhere you know you wont get ripped off, I was given some ridiculous quotes for doing it by dealers & garages in town (over £500!!) but took it to a local firm I deal with through work who did it for about £200 including parts :cool:

[MinionZombie]

Not advisable to do the cam belt yourself on a modern car dude, they're usually pretty awkward to get at which means stripping things like air filters,coolant reservoirs & radiator hoses off & even parts of the engine itself!quite often the water pump needs changing at the same time too, but make sure you take it somewhere you know you wont get ripped off, I was given some ridiculous quotes for doing it by dealers & garages in town (over £500!!) but took it to a local firm I deal with through work who did it for about £200 including parts :cool:
I'll certainly advise my folks to get more than one price for it.

First port of call would be the garage we use for services and MOT on both cars, who seem to be alright.

[Neil]

It's a bit of a lottery with a cambelt failure if it borks the engine... A friend's engine was mashed when his cambelt went... By partner's went and no damage at all...

Here's hoping it's the latter for you!

[Mike70]

but if these two experiences are the only car troubles you've had....consider yourself lucky.:p


amen to that. hope that is the worst that happens to you with car breakdowns. i had a car drop a transmission once in the mountains down near pineville, kentucky. it sucked all manner of goat balls. if i hadn't of had AAA, i'd have been boned completely.

AAA (or whatever equates to it in the UK) is well worth the money. even if you only use it a couple of times, it is still worth it. AAA has gotten me out of a couple of really shitty car breakdown situations.

[MinionZombie]

AAA (or whatever equates to it in the UK) is well worth the money. even if you only use it a couple of times, it is still worth it. AAA has gotten me out of a couple of really shitty car breakdown situations.

Oh yeah we're covered for recovery, but we might change to another one perhaps - the phone call was abysmal - the guy on the phone needed to be told the road we were on multiple times, and still couldn't find us - when he said "is it nere..." what he said was MILES and MILES and MILES away. Fortunately, the rescue truck driver is local, and he knew exactly where we were - in fact, he'd sorted the same car out when the battery died one day.

In the UK we've got a variety, such as AA (just the two "A's", no boasting with a third "A", lol, or RAC and so on.


It's a bit of a lottery with a cambelt failure if it borks the engine... A friend's engine was mashed when his cambelt went... By partner's went and no damage at all...

Here's hoping it's the latter for you!

The noise when the cam belt went wasn't especially loud or abrupt, there was a definite lunge when it went, but I don't really recall any major noise. There was a brief whiff of oil ... I changed down through the gears to slow me down at the time, thinking maybe if I got into a lower gear I could keep the car limping along till the next safe stop (my first thought was perhaps the gears had fucked up, so my rationale at that moment was find a working gear).

I hope that didn't cause any further trouble.

As you say - *fingers crossed* for "not that bad".

[kortick]

yeah its true, the more u drive the more times
you will experience some kind of breakdown.

as long as u dont get injured is the main thing.

And Mike I had something happen like that once
I was on the highway and the universal snapped
and the entire drive shaft fell out onto the road.

I was with a friend and we thought we ran over
a dog or a baby or god knows what.

I think i had a friend fix it for me but i dont remember.
I have totalled at least 7 cars so who counts anymore.

But if u can walk away from a wreck or breakdown is
all that really matters.

Dont sweat the petty stuff and dont pet the sweaty stuff.

[MinionZombie]

Well, the word on quote estimates for repairs is between £500 and £800. :eek:

...

Hmmm ... no doubt there's gonna be some thinkin' going on today, the scrappage scheme feels more likely than it did yesterday - but like I said before, it'd be a damn shame, it may be 14 years old, but it's only 34,000 miles, meanwhile my Dad's car is about 11 or 12 years old and has coming up on 180,000-200,000 miles on the clock.

[Tricky]

Oooft harsh that MZ! sounds like the cylinder head & timing damage must have been done, thats why the belts are recommened to be changed at certain mileage whether worn or not. Cars are absolute money pits, Im looking for a job that will cut down my commuting as my wallet cant sustain the bills I get for maintaining mine & my car isnt even all that old!:mad:

[Neil]

Well, the word on quote estimates for repairs is between £500 and £800. :eek:

So the engine is borked then!

The thing is the cambelt needs changing every 5-6 years (I believe) even if you do limited miles... but people tend to forget to do it...

[MinionZombie]

Well we don't know what actual damage has been done - that was just going down to garages without the car this morning and looking for a quote in theory.

Will go to the usual place we go to and get the mechanics under the bonet to see what's what in actuality.

[SymphonicX]

shit my car is 9 years old soon and I don't think the cam belt has ever been changed...!!!

It's just hit 50k miles on the clock....2001 model pug 307....if it goes, it goes....!

[Neil]

shit my car is 9 years old soon and I don't think the cam belt has ever been changed...!!!

It's just hit 50k miles on the clock....2001 model pug 307....if it goes, it goes....!

Next service get it done...

[SymphonicX]

That'll be next february then.....hmm...my mechanic didn't mention it was time to change it last time....I'm tempted to run it into the ground tho...

[Neil]

That'll be next february then.....hmm...my mechanic didn't mention it was time to change it last time....I'm tempted to run it into the ground tho...

Typically timing belts are every X thousands of miles or 5-6 years...

Your call... It may never go, but if it does, it could be bye-bye engine...

[MinionZombie]

Fortunately it's not "bye bye engine" for our car - but it will be a sizeable bill, naturally.

We won't have to replace the engine or anything, which is nice - I'm a little weary of the idea of getting some reconditioned engine from elsewhere. I know this engine, and we know what's been done to it etc.

It's amazing that the Renault dealer who serviced it until very recently (cos they closed down) never said anything about "you'll need to get the cam belt changed soon". Between 30,000 and 40,000 is apparently the time for it - our car is just shy of 34,000 ... and being 14 years old, there's no doubt some perishment (if that's even a word) with time.

Anyway - it's getting fixed, and there was something else that would have had to have been done at some point - but luckily it's also something they do when fixing a busted cam belt - so even with a kick in the balls, we've been able to claw back a little something.

...

Anyway, should have it fixed for next week, what with it being a Bank Holiday weekend this week.

Symph - if you want to keep it going, change the cam belt at the next opportunity (seemingly no garage in the country pays attention to the cam belt until it explodes :eek:) - if you want to drive it till it breaks - whatever, I guess.

But it could break at a really inopportune time - surely it's best to choose the time of it's end, more than just waiting for the inevitable "phffshiisht" from under the bonet?

[DjfunkmasterG]

Now you have learned the value in charging your cell every night before you go to bed. And, before anyone says it... today these batteries do not need to be drained, they don't have the memory feature of the older batteries.

In regards to a vehicle. Never buy any vehicle that runs the major drive componenents off a thin rubber belt. If it doesn't use some type of chain or steel banding move on until you find something else.

I could never understand why people would be Subaru's knowing that at 60K miles you need to spend $1500 to replace a timing belt, if you let it go until it blows, the repair costs $4,000.00. Hence why it is great and best to do research and only buy vehicles with timing chains, or timing gears, but never a belt.

Glad you were rescued though. Did you ever make your meeting?

[Neil]

In regards to a vehicle. Never buy any vehicle that runs the major drive componenents off a thin rubber belt. If it doesn't use some type of chain or steel banding move on until you find something else.

I could never understand why people would be Subaru's knowing that at 60K miles you need to spend $1500 to replace a timing belt, if you let it go until it blows, the repair costs $4,000.00. Hence why it is great and best to do research and only buy vehicles with timing chains, or timing gears, but never a belt.

Glad you were rescued though. Did you ever make your meeting?

Ummm.... I'm no motor expert, but surely most cars these days use 'timing chains', but these are still refered to as 'cambelts' generally? ie: They're not rubber belts...

Surely Subaru's are just like most other cars and DO have timing chains? So why have you mentioned them specifically?

[SymphonicX]

Symph - if you want to keep it going, change the cam belt at the next opportunity (seemingly no garage in the country pays attention to the cam belt until it explodes :eek:) - if you want to drive it till it breaks - whatever, I guess.

But it could break at a really inopportune time - surely it's best to choose the time of it's end, more than just waiting for the inevitable "phffshiisht" from under the bonet?

I'm driving from London to Blackpool this Friday....keep your fingers crossed for me!!!

[MinionZombie]

Not sure if in our car it's a belt-belt or just named a belt.

...

Dj - I didn't make my meeting, but the guy came to my place instead.

Also, indeed, I got lazy with recharging my phone - I'll be more dilligent in the future, I'm sure. :)

[Tricky]

Ummm.... I'm no motor expert, but surely most cars these days use 'timing chains', but these are still refered to as 'cambelts' generally? ie: They're not rubber belts...

Surely Subaru's are just like most other cars and DO have timing chains? So why have you mentioned them specifically?

I dont think many use chains! My SEAT Ibiza is a fairly new car (5 years) and has a belt similar to this
http://www.superformance.co.uk/parts/5010f_308_cambelt.jpg

A chain wouldnt be much cop as there would be no way of keeping each link lubricated & if it got dust or anything in the links it would wear out sharpish, a belt is far more reliable!

[MinionZombie]

I dont think many use chains! My SEAT Ibiza is a fairly new car (5 years) and has a belt similar to this
http://www.superformance.co.uk/parts/5010f_308_cambelt.jpg

A chain wouldnt be much cop as there would be no way of keeping each link lubricated & if it got dust or anything in the links it would wear out sharpish, a belt is far more reliable!
That's the bastard that fucked our car up?! :eek:

Geeeeeeez...:p

[Neil]

Oh my God! Well, my old (18yrs old) Nissan 200SX S13 uses a chain... I thought most/all modern cars did!

So on many cars all there is between a healthy engine and a borked engine is a glorified rubber band?

[MinionZombie]

Oh my God! Well, my old (18yrs old) Nissan 200SX S13 uses a chain... I thought most/all modern cars did!

So on many cars all there is between a healthy engine and a borked engine is a glorified rubber band?
:lol:

No doubt - and most likely because of costs. :rockbrow:

...

You love your 200SX, don't you? :) Awwww...sweet. :kiss:;)

[Neil]

:lol:

No doubt - and most likely because of costs. :rockbrow:

...

You love your 200SX, don't you? :) Awwww...sweet. :kiss:;)

I'm sure a chain can't add that much more expense? Very odd! It's tens of pounds to buy!?

My S13 has been unbelievably reliable! But she's getting old now... Something major will give soon...

[DjfunkmasterG]

The chance of a chain breaking are smaller than a belt. Timing belts usually wear out like Serpentine belts (AKA Fan, alt, water pump, power steering belt)

They need replacing every 60-80K miles.

Many people overlook their serpentine belts as well, and that is not a good thing. That should be looked at everytime you pop the hood to add Washer fluid, check oil, whatever.

You don't wanna bust a serpentine belt while driving 80... you lose all power to the car, including breaks and steering. Even though brakes are their own seperate item, when a serp belt breaks you lose all alternator power and have to rely on your battery, and a power breaking system can drain a battery quickly.

[MinionZombie]

You don't wanna bust a serpentine belt while driving 80... you lose all power to the car, including breaks and steering. Even though brakes are their own seperate item, when a serp belt breaks you lose all alternator power and have to rely on your battery, and a power breaking system can drain a battery quickly.

Well that sounds scary - what would you do in such a situation to slow yourself down?

Change down the gears?

[MinionZombie]

Well, we've got the car back ... it was pricey alright ... the car needed other things doing as well though, so we lumped it all together. Seems as though the coolant pipe was pretty damn well clogged up, leading to the engine overheating, which further perished the belts which were in need of a change anyway (but the previous garage never ever bothered to tell us about that).

It needs to go back in to get the coolant system re-drained and filled with antifreeze (it's just on water now to flush out any further gunk) - and while there, it'll get a wheel bearing fixed.

For a few months now the wheel bearing (as we now know to be the cause of the problem) has been making more and more noise, but we couldn't place it, and had thought that maybe it was something to do with the exhaust (as we'd previously had such a problem creating a similar-ish sound).

But yeah - wheel bearing needs changing - and I was going to bomb up and down to the cinema this weekend in the car, but knowing that, I don't fancy doing so anymore until it has been replaced.

Wouldn't want the wheel to seize up and come off doing 70 down the motorway, you know? Although it would probably be okay, I mean if the mechanics thought it was about to go badly wrong they wouldn't have let us have the car back ... but still ... unsure about that.

Maybe just pootle around in the car around town a little bit just to help the coolant system flush through, and then get it changed sharpish. We've been having a run of bad luck with various things breaking around the house, and after that whole cam belt fiasco, I don't fancy pushing our luck ... especially if it could mean a wheel coming off at 70 if my luck really had run out. :eek:

Anyway, after spending all that cash on the car, I'm off out to give it some TLC and valet the whole thing. Been meaning to for a while now ... this car's like the family pet, you know. Poor thing. :(