Hi All, My my18 Leon is off to the dealer today for a service and as its now 5 years old, a new cam belt. They're keeping the car for 2 days to do this. I should get it back tomorrow afternoon all going well. Reason I ask is last time I had this done on my previous Leon, the same dealer did the service and belt on the same day and I got it back that night. Job didn't go as planned there as the next morning, I got a couple of minutes from home and the tensioner failed with the outcome being a new engine fitted at Seat's expense. That was a couple of years back, I have a thread regarding that experience on the forum. Has something changed in that time period that requires the dealership to keep the car for 2 days? Has procedure changed for a cam belt change? Also, I know that inflation etc is having an effect on everything nowadays, but the cam belt change is gonna cost me £768 iirc. The last time it was just over £500, that's quite a jump in price. Fingers crossed however that when I get my car back tomorrow, everything goes ok. I don't want a repeat of what happened 2 years ago. Really got to get this job done at the dealers for the peace of mind of the 5 year warranty that goes with the job. Any thoughts anyone?
Dealer cam belt replacement: need car for 2 days?
- Thread starter james.milroy
- Start date
Most garages it’s maybe half a day work at most. I guess Seat are covering themselves in case they FUBAR it again.
Pricing on Seat servicing in general is through the roof now, but it’s good to have that warranty….
Pricing on Seat servicing in general is through the roof now, but it’s good to have that warranty….
I've noticed this "need car for 2 days" mentioned elsewhere, especially for newer engines like the EA211 family of engines - though I can't provide any info on why this has become the norm, or can be the norm for some VW Group engines when worked on in main dealership workshops.
For these newer engines, there is now a new kit of bits to enable, maybe a monkey(sorry monkey lovers) get the timing correct on these engines after removing the timing belt. I think that this extra "work" to get it right every time, could be the reason that the labour costs has rocketed, or maybe VW Group UK have found new ways to help their workshops generate lots more cash to claw back from the lean times during Covid - sorry, am I being cynical?
Edit:- there is also the "who the heck designed a modern engine in a way that requires this level of manual intervention to replace the timing belt"? To add insult to injury, VW Group Germany make it clear that this belt and its associated relays/tensioners etc, is "long life" and should be given a careful check every now and again as outlined in the official workshop manual - and is not the same as belt driven "kit" from the past that needed replacement every 4 or 5 years, but they, agents of VW Group UK, dish up this "must be replaced every 5 years" stuff! These comments only relate to VW Group engines that have newer "long life" cam belt systems, and are being sold with this feature being a +ve for ownership costs as time goes on.
For these newer engines, there is now a new kit of bits to enable, maybe a monkey(sorry monkey lovers) get the timing correct on these engines after removing the timing belt. I think that this extra "work" to get it right every time, could be the reason that the labour costs has rocketed, or maybe VW Group UK have found new ways to help their workshops generate lots more cash to claw back from the lean times during Covid - sorry, am I being cynical?
Edit:- there is also the "who the heck designed a modern engine in a way that requires this level of manual intervention to replace the timing belt"? To add insult to injury, VW Group Germany make it clear that this belt and its associated relays/tensioners etc, is "long life" and should be given a careful check every now and again as outlined in the official workshop manual - and is not the same as belt driven "kit" from the past that needed replacement every 4 or 5 years, but they, agents of VW Group UK, dish up this "must be replaced every 5 years" stuff! These comments only relate to VW Group engines that have newer "long life" cam belt systems, and are being sold with this feature being a +ve for ownership costs as time goes on.
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Got my car back early Friday evening, glad to say everything went to plan and touch wood, there have been no issues. Done about 80 miles over the weekend and the car feels just fine. only gripe would be that its got a tad too much oil, can't get a proper reading on the dipstick. I'll draw some out with the extractor until I can clearly see the hashed area, then top up myself. In all fairness though, I always find getting a proper reading on the dipstick in these is a bit hit and miss. Total price for cam belt change was £784, my service was already covered through my finance. Worth every penny though for peace of mind given what happened to my last Leon.
It might just be a scheduling thing. They might ask for the car for two days because the workshop is busy and they know they might not get the job started until the afternoon. Asking for two days up front and giving you the car back early might be seen as more agreeable than telling you one day then needing another.
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