Cambelts....can we all agree?! (LONG)

In the interests of the greater good i decided to do a bit of research into the constant confusion about when cambelts should be changed on 1.8T engines...and the costs involved. My car is a MY01 1.8TQ engine code ARY...but i've tried to cover all angles including S3's. So acting as a mystery shopper i gathered info/quotes from several audi stealers around the north/midlands and also asked the following questions. I emailed 8 dealers and got 5 responses...mostly the dealers gave a consistent story..with the odd exception. Those that responded were

Listers Stratford
Listers Worcester
Smith Knight Fay - Stockport
Wakefield Audi
Shrewsbury Audi

The Questions
1 - Can you confirm the exact maximum mileage for the replacement - my understanding is 180,000 kms for my engine ARY (111k miles)...although audi recommend 80k miles generally.

Answer - 111k miles is correct for all 1.8 and 1.8Ts from 97 onwards (this is rounded to 115 k miles). Listers stratford however were the only ones to recommend replacement irrespective at 80 k miles


2 - Is it true S3's with AMK/BAM engines need a replacement at less than 180,000 kms?

Answer -
Technical Data held on A3 as of 1997 onwards
Engine derivative
1.8 & 1.8T 5 valve (except S3) = 180 km - 115 K miles
1.8 S3 5 valve > MY2000 = 180 km - 115 K miles
1.8 S3 5 Valve MY2001 > = 120 km - 80 K miles

So if you have an S3 on a X plate (facelift) or more recent, IT IS 80k MAX


3 - Is it true that water pumps are not replaced as standard during a cambelt swap..only if suspect?

Answer - There is no recommended audi policy on when they should be replaced!..however see below

4 - Exactly which parts are replaced as part of swap? - i presume cambelt, cambelt tensioner, tensioner pulley as a min

Answer
All dealers only replace the actual cambelt itself and the tensioner pulley (usually just referred to as tensioner). 4 out of 5 recommended replacement of the alternator ribbed belt at the same time. 3 out 5 recommended replacement of the water pump at the same time. The hydraulic damper/tensioner is also not replaced as standard...shrewsbury audi claimed that they can count on one finger the number of replacements required for this unit.

Prices for parts across dealers were virtually identical...but the interesting bit was the difference in labour...i asked for quotes for replacement with and without water pump. The breakdown goes like this

Smith Knight Fay - 4.5 hours @ £70
Listers Stratford - 3.0 hours @ £79.5
Shrewsbury Audi - 2.9 hours @ £75
Wakefield Audi - 2.2 hours @ £79.95
Listers Worcester - 2.2 hours @ £79.5

However only SKF and Listers worcester included the labour free of charge if the water pump was replaced...others charged usually 0.5 hours of labour!

Parts

Cambelt - £20 + VAT
Tensioner Pulley - £35 + VAT

Optional
Water Pump - £25.8 + VAT
Ribbed Belt - £21 + VAT
Hydraulic damper/tensioner - £60.57 + VAT

Summary

So the winners for a cambelt change including belt, pulley and water pump including VAT would be (we need a drum roll here /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif)

1 - Listers Worcester = £300.45
2 - Wakefield Audi = £359.51
3 - Shrewsbury Audi = £382.40
4 - Listers Stratford = £447.29
5 - Smith Knight Fay = £465.07

So the most expensive is 54% more than the cheapest...stealers...don't you just love them!
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif
All comments appreciated guys

Martin /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/dancing.gif

Rich,

You mean you're not going to do it yourself!...after your masterful IHI work i would have thought that a HTC guided cambelt change would be a walk in the park for yourself....or perhaps you can do without losing more knuckles /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Just thought i'ld point out that that wakefield audi would almost be the same , but they charged extra labour for the water pump....which is a total cheek since apart from a bit of coolant i would have thought it only adds 5 mins to the job! Perhaps foolish3 could comment if it really is any extra JUSTIFYIABLE hassle to replace the water pump.

Also AndyMac if you're out there....ever got a quote from you're southampton specialists for this job?....would be interested to know what hours a specialist reckoned for this

Martin /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/beerchug.gif

JimboA3,

To the bests of my research i've never come across an age definition for cambelt replacement...it's only ever quoted on miles covered...which lets face it for the average 12-15k miles a year person 7-8 years to hit 115k miles on an A3.

I don't know if everyone noticed, but back in july there was a thread where audi were sending out leaflets drumming up business and saying generically that 60k miles was recommended!

Funky,

Do you have a parts breakdown (to part number) of what awesome did in relation to the cambelt...or did they just lump it all together?

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/beerchug.gif

After more work (and special thanks to AndyMac)...to give everyone another price to deal with, autotechnik in southampton are quoting £285 for cambelt swap on all 1.8 and 1.8T's. This includes the following

Cambelt
Cambelt Tensioner Pulley
Idler Pulley
Water Pump
Coolant top up

The only thing they don't do as standard is the hydraulic damper/tensioner unit since this is not in direct contact with the belt. However if you have a pre 98 car then the hydraulic tensioner is an older revision so needs replacing with the more up to date component.

The price is inclusive of VAT /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gifand they reckon on 3 hours at £40 per hour labour.

Martin