Renault Clio - 2001 - Timing belt problem

kingklip

My wife's Renault Clio 1.2 (2001 with 45K) broke down a couple of days ago due to the timing belt breaking [Excellent condition, always serviced professionally, etc.]. Not only did the car shutdown faster than MS Windows, it appears this problem does a lot of damage on the way down. First indication is that repair is going to be costly.

Question I have is.....Has anyone heard of similar problems with the Clio? Is it reasonable to expect it the timing belt to go in a car with relatively low mileage? Web Search has indicated that 60K is the mileage when you should consider replacing the belt.

Anyone any thoughts on this out there?

Lemo

Not sure about the Clio but the timing belt in my old 97 Megane was replaced during one of the routine services - I think at 40K miles. As far as I know, it is fairly standard to replace timing belts at this kind of mileage because of the damage that can be done if they fail.

Check back over your service records to see if it was done.

Sorry to hear about this. I know what it's like :-(

bazz26

kingklip wrote:

My wife's Renault Clio 1.2 (2001 with 45K) broke down a couple of days ago due to the timing belt breaking [Excellent condition, always serviced professionally, etc.]. Not only did the car shutdown faster than MS Windows, it appears this problem does a lot of damage on the way down. First indication is that repair is going to be costly.

Question I have is.....Has anyone heard of similar problems with the Clio? Is it reasonable to expect it the timing belt to go in a car with relatively low mileage? Web Search has indicated that 60K is the mileage when you should consider replacing the belt.

Anyone any thoughts on this out there?

Your probably looking at an engine rebuild here at the least or worse case a new engine.

I have always been told to have the timing belt changed every 40k - 50k miles.

Seems you had very bad luck to be honest.

BrianD3

Timing belts are finnicky things they can break at any mileage really for various reasons. This applies to all makes of cars. Except those that use timing chains or timing gears obviously..

The timing belt change interval recommend by Renault on your car is 72k AFAIK but Renault dealers recommend 50k as I believe there was a spate of belt breakages between 50 and 72k.

There is very little to be said here except hard luck. On a 2001 car with 45k it is unlikely that Renault will give you any compensation as a "goodwill gesture". The breakage will have done a lot of damage to the engine. You'll probably be looking at at least 800-1000 to get it fixed at a non-franchised garage.

mike65

Tough luck, the valve gear will be in bits, so new valve set, head gasket etc lots of labour rather than expensive parts. There can be no guarentee on a length of rubber as many factors can cause premature failure.

Mike.

kingklip

Many thanks for the prompt responses. The replies support what I have been able to ascertain thus far. Bad luck...blah...blah. I still have to check the service records, but hopefully will find some way to mitigate the costs.

Some day we'll look back on this and it will all seem funny.

alanlouthzzr

Refering to tha Autodata book, for the Clio 1.2, the belt shold be replaced at 72,000 miles or 5 years. The belt also drives the waterpump and there is a tensioner operating on the back of the belt. If either of these seized, they would cause terminal damage to the timing belt.:eek:

Guy:Incognito

Seeing as timing chains do'nt need replacing, why dont all manufacturers usethem? Personally I'd have no bother paying an extra couple of hundred € to have a it of peace of mind.

Guy:Incognito

kingklip wrote:

Many thanks for the prompt responses. The replies support what I have been able to ascertain thus far. Bad luck...blah...blah. I still have to check the service records, but hopefully will find some way to mitigate the costs.

Some day we'll look back on this and it will all seem funny.

Doubt there will be any way to save money as bar an obvious crack or tear in the belt, I dont think there is a way to check one as such, it just has to be changed before it breaks, which can be at any time unfortunately.

Hellrazer

If the timing belt broke at 41000 miles and the recommended mileage is 72000(be 100% sure of this mileage though) then Renault should cover the cost of the repair even if the manufacturers warranty is up.

The warranty on that car was either 3 years or 60000 miles (whatever comes first).The belt should still be guaranteed for 72000 miles.At average mileage some people wouldnt hit the first timing belt change for 5-6 years.

You would be well advised to argue this point with Renault ie that the recommended belt changes are 72000 and yours failed prematurely at 45000.

In our place if the above happens the work is carried out under warranty even if the 3 years/60k is up.

Some manufacturers will argue the point that maybe you done a lot of city driving meaning that even though the tachometer hadnt reached 72000 miles there was the equivalent amount of engine time on the belt due to the congestion and stop start nature of city driving.
As a matter of fact some manufacturers are now going to start putting a time limit aswell as a recommended mileage intervals for the likes of a timing belt change.

hefty_langer

Have a 99 Clio meself and the manual does say change the t-belt at 72K... From some research on the web at the time, I found that Renault had sent out some sort of advisory to change belts around the 50K mark.
I got mine done at that stage and the water-pump was replaced at the same time (standard practice for clios as stated previously)
It really is bad luck for it to break at 41K... but hopefully ye'll come to some deal with the garage!!

Hellrazer wrote:

If the timing belt broke at 41000 miles and the recommended mileage is 72000(be 100% sure of this mileage though) then Renault should cover the cost of the repair even if the manufacturers warranty is up.

The warranty on that car was either 3 years or 60000 miles (whatever comes first).The belt should still be guaranteed for 72000 miles.At average mileage some people wouldnt hit the first timing belt change for 5-6 years.

You would be well advised to argue this point with Renault ie that the recommended belt changes are 72000 and yours failed prematurely at 45000.

In our place if the above happens the work is carried out under warranty even if the 3 years/60k is up.

Some manufacturers will argue the point that maybe you done a lot of city driving meaning that even though the tachometer hadnt reached 72000 miles there was the equivalent amount of engine time on the belt due to the congestion and stop start nature of city driving.
As a matter of fact some manufacturers are now going to start putting a time limit aswell as a recommended mileage intervals for the likes of a timing belt change.

Hellrazer

Misread Heftys post.So disregard

colm_mcm

Hellrazer wrote:

Well if the op can find out if it was already done at 27k or there abouts then it should be covered under warranty as the new belt that was fitted at 27k is guaranteed for another 27k.

why would the belt be done at 27k,

and the car's out of warranty now anyway.

Hellrazer

Sorry I misread Hefty Langers post--Thought it said 27k.

As for the warranty--it doesnt matter--if the timing belt is supposed to last 72k then its covered up until that mileage regardless of whether the manufacturers warranty is up or not.

Thats the way we do it--If a cars warranty is 60000 miles or 3 years and a belt change is due at 72000(which is outside manufacturers warranty)and the belt breaks at say 68000 its covered because that is what the manufacturer reckons the belt should last up to and if it breaks before that its a manufacturer fault.

franksm

Sorry to hear your trouble ! Guess it's going to cost 1100 to 1300 euros - a mate with a late 90's Scenic with 69,000 miles on it broke its belt a couple of weeks ago (I think the interval was 70,000 on that ? anyway, it wasn't too far off)

Some new valves, a skim of the head and labour - the car is back on the road again, but it cost around 1200 euros.

ROVER

I have a Nissan Primera which I believe has a Timing Chain, There is 55k on the clock, do you have to adjust a chain after certain mileage?

mike65

The chain will have a tensioner which takes up slack (using oil presssure I think) the tensioner may loose its power over time as the seals fade so that might need replacing. If the chain is a double link design chances are its good for the life of the car, but don't quote me on that.

Mike.

BrianD3

Thats the way we do it--If a cars warranty is 60000 miles or 3 years and a belt change is due at 72000(which is outside manufacturers warranty)and the belt breaks at say 68000 its covered because that is what the manufacturer reckons the belt should last up to and if it breaks before that its a manufacturer fault.

Not necessarily a manufacturing fault with the belt though. Lets say oil has leaked onto the belt, degraded the rubber and caused it to break before the change interval but outside of warranty. What happens then.

AFAIK these change intervals are just recommendations, not set in stone. There is probably some disclaimer somewhere along the lines of "in certain conditions belts should be changed more frequently". The policy on belt breakages may be different where you work Hellrazer (Hyundai isn't it?) but I can't see Renault or most other manufacturers operating a policy like the one you describe.

kingklip

thanks for all the feedback. Have been following up with garage and with Renault. I think I will get some 'goodwill gesture' although will have to fight like hell to avoid being screwed (any more than we are at the moment).

Not being hugely 'car savvy' I wasn't aware the calamity that this would have caused. Otherwise I would get it changed after about 3 years. The gas part is that the garage admit that they would have been changing it at the next service - due in about 3 months.

The real calamity of this lies not in the failure, but the consequential damage and cost to repair. This is particularly so, given that the driver has absolutely no indication of pending failure and has no responsibility for it (assuming you are getting it serviced regularly!!). As such I would have thought that a problem such as this should be covered by a motoring insurance policy. Just as with screen breakage, I wouldn't have a problem paying a bit extra on the policy (if forced to be able to cover the cost of repair of this. Does any insurance policy cover this, does anyone know. If not, why shouldn't they?

shannonpowerlab

Clio, Megan, Punto Bravo they all have manual t-belt tensioner which needs very carefull tightening sequence otherwise it gets over tightened very easily. that will kill your belt very quickly. If it breaks too soon, I think your mechanick over tightened it!!!

I had to loosen mine when I got it back from a garage!!!!!

Andrew Campbell

if its 72,000 or five years then the five years is well and truly up. unfortunatly the belts deteriorate due to the rubber perishing. IMO any "good will gesture" still will not amount to the extra cost involved in getting it done at the main dealers rather than at a good indy.
Also be prepared for collateral damage that could cause the costs to escalate like valve seats, valve stems, cylinder head, pistons, bent conrods and cylinder walls.
a good second hand engine or a rebuild from IVI might be the best option in this case to keep cost and off road time to a minimum.

Guy:Incognito

Old thread is old.

Anan1

shannonpowerlab wrote: »

Clio, Megan, Punto Bravo they all have manual t-belt tensioner which needs very carefull tightening sequence otherwise it gets over tightened very easily. that will kill your belt very quickly. If it breaks too soon, I think your mechanick over tightened it!!!

I had to loosen mine when I got it back from a garage!!!!!

Please read the charter and don't resurrect old threads.