Timing Belt/Cylinder Head for MK5 Golf

JayC5

Hi,

Just wondering if any of you folks could help me out with some advice please:

So, the timing belt has gone on my 04 MK5 VW Golf 1.4 petrol (car just cut out while driving) and was towed to a nearby VW dealer garage. After inspection the garage has quoted an all-in price of €2,100 stating that the cyclinder head has also been damaged.

Does this seem like a reasonable price to you guys as it's a HUGE figure to me? - what's the typical price of getting a job like this done? Also, the same garage is demanding a fee of €300 for just inspecting the car even if I decide to bring it elsewhere for repairs...?! This also sounds like a ridiculous price for merely looking at an engine?

(the timing belt was changed at 50k miles about 2 years ago, the car currently has 78k on the clock)

Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks in advance!

J

bazz26

It might be cheaper to seek out a reconditioned engine. Traynor's up North might be worth ringing.

At the very least you should get a quote for the repair work from a few other garages to see if you are being over charged or not.

swhyte027

Very expensive to be honest timing belt kit and water pump is about 180.head set is about 200e max that's including all the gaskets and head bolts.and I would say about 500e max to get the head done and valves.so that's 880 max on parts and our labour charge would be 400e now that's 1280e all together but I reckon u would get it cheaper and way that's just a ruff guess I'd say 1100 would do it.

George Dalton

It is very difficult to give an accurate quote for one of these until you see it. For that reason it is also impossible to say how good or bad the dealer price is without seeing the full list of parts and labour.

If it is a straightforward case of belt or tensioner failure then the parts and prices quoted by swhyte above would be pretty fair.

But, one very common reason for premature belt failure on these engines is a lack of oil supply to the top end of the engine. This causes one of the camshafts to seize which then breaks the belt. In this case in addition to the parts and labour outlined above you will also need to replace the cam box/cam carrier and at least one of the camshafts. Cam box plus one camshaft will cost around €700 on their own. Then you have to fix the oil supply problem to avoid a repeat failure. If this scenario is what the quote of €2100 is for then it isn't a bad price at all.

mathepac

George Dalton wrote: »

... But, one very common reason for premature belt failure on these engines is a lack of oil supply to the top end of the engine. ...

Caused by using the wrong oil or lack of adherence to the maintenance schedule perhaps?

mondeo

I would seriously look for a replacement engine and get someone to fit it for you.

George Dalton

mathepac wrote: »

Caused by using the wrong oil or lack of adherence to the maintenance schedule perhaps?

Caused primarily by being a bad engine. They are ok if serviced very regularly with the right oil but this is often not adhered to. Many are on long life service intervals which in my opinion are not suited to this engine. When oil is left for too long without being changed they sludge up badly inside which in extreme cases will block the oil pump pickup which leads to predictable results.

swhyte027

Yes vw are blaming the oil at least that's what they are saying to the customer but I've heard it from the horses mouth that it's a fault with the engine n that's it.but vw just wouldn't admitted straight out if u no what I mean

lomb

Long life service is a joke. When I bought a new 1.4 in 03 it was set to that in the factory. It hit 19000 miles in 18 months and no service indicator came up so I thought I better change the oil. I think they are set for upto 30000 miles or 2 years. They require the longlife oil to be used for topups which few will use invalidating that.
Since then I have changed every 10000miles or 12 months with 5w-40 fully synth and have no noticeable wear or oil consumption increase. Engine is as smooth as warm butter.

Nissan doctor

Its wouldn't take long to diagnose if the cam is seized or not.

Its equally as common for the plastic tensioner/guides to fail. Even if you've had the belt done premature failure can happen if the tensioner was over tightened.

Knowing main dealers, chances are, if its the timing belt pullies that have failed causing damage to the valves, I wouldn't be surprised if they are quoting over 2k but you shouldn't be paying any more the €1400 tops to have the head repaired to as new condition along with all required new parts in a reputable independent garage. €300 for diagnosis is pie in the sky stuff too!

If is oil starvation that has caused it though, its a different story.