Is it hard to replace a timing belt?

not to bad on that car, on japanese cars its the worst on those it will be fine you may get frustrated but just keep slipping it on it will go its suuupppeerrr easy,

are you sure everything else is alright? when a timing belt snaps it can take other parts of the engine down with it.

Same as the above, you might be SOL on the car if the car is interference. I'm not sure if the diesels are an interference engine or not though.

It's not too difficult but plan on spending a few hours on it.  You're going to have to pull the water pump off at the same time so you might as well replace it while it's off.  They're not too expensive.

not too hardcore, just set aside an afternoon and be prepaired to work on it.


http://www.tdiclub.com/



search around our site. they obviously know whats up.

make sure you figure out the process and write some key points down.

shouldnt be too hard of a job, especially if you have some mechanical knowladge(sp) and some tools.

good luck, hope this helps.

yeah I was planning on it
and it's summer I have plenty of hours to spare

knowledge*
I looked around there and It seems like they don't no shit about IDI

I am a mechanic at a vw/porsche dealership. We dont see old model vw's anymore so i cant say for personal experience on those specific cars but from experience with modern TDI engines, you might need some one there who knows what he is doing. Like said earlier in the thread, replace the waterpump at the same time since you are in the area. On most timing belt jobs in the shop we replace cam seals aswell. Im going to assume this car isnt an interference engine due to its age, but if you wish to check for damage, pull the valve cover off the engine and inspect the valves for visible damage or chunks of metal resting in the head of the engine, but when you remove the valve cover replace the gasket since they are one time use and torque the bolts in sequence from inward to outward to avoid warpage. You may need an engine hook and floor jack to complete the job since you most likely have to remove the engine mount on the left side, so you will need to keep the engine up. You may need some vw specific tools to get the job done aswell, you may need to lock the camshaft into place while doing work unless you can rig something up. And replace all hardware used since most is torque to yield which means it will most likely break if torqued to proper spec after the repairs are done. Make sure you mark the timing marks on the crank/camshaft with a paint pen before hand to make them most visible than the factory "nicks". If you have any other questions, just ask me. Keep in mind this is also a mechanical diesel fuel injection pump which can be a bitch to properly set after the repairs. I might be able to snag all the torque specs for you if you need.

I have to replace the timing belt in my car and all i know is the shop wants around $700 for the whole thing and the only reason my dad doesn't want to do it with me is because you have to remove the entire engine, thus making it difficult.

your dads retarded

if a timing belt just snapped its not just as easy as putting a new one on its not liek a wiper blade going bad
1. car has jumped timing.
2. may have bent a valve due to it breaking
3 could be both an exhaust valve or a intake valve..
if you do decide to do this it will cost more then 700 i feel.

I would have to agree. He will need to remove the steering wheel though.

it is harder to replace the timing of your belt.

for those of you who say its an easy, afternoon project, you are again off your rocker. take it to a vw mechanic. its not something i would even try and tackle.

my dad bought a nissan 300z a month ago and he had to put a new timing belt on it.  even he couldnt do it and he usually does everything on his own with cars.  get someone else to do it