Clio 172 cambelt service - grin and bear it or chance it?
Discussion
The new (to us) 52 reg Clio 172 is approaching time for a cambelt service (109k, 5 yrs since last change).
Having made some tentative enquiries, I have discovered this appears to be a big job. I have been quoted £450 for the belt change with the auxillary belt changed as well. A dephaser pulley change is a further £175 if done at the same time.
Total price £625 or thereabouts inc VAT.
This is on a car worth £1500.
Part of me says get it done and keep it due to condition - ie 2 owners, FSH, very clean condition car, but part of me says chance it, worry about the problem if/when it snaps, then look at breaking the car and replacing or recon engine.
Any thoughts?
Having made some tentative enquiries, I have discovered this appears to be a big job. I have been quoted £450 for the belt change with the auxillary belt changed as well. A dephaser pulley change is a further £175 if done at the same time.
Total price £625 or thereabouts inc VAT.
This is on a car worth £1500.
Part of me says get it done and keep it due to condition - ie 2 owners, FSH, very clean condition car, but part of me says chance it, worry about the problem if/when it snaps, then look at breaking the car and replacing or recon engine.
Any thoughts?
Thats a lot to pay for a car thats only worth double the cost of the change. Have you asked how much cheaper it would be to get the belts and dephaser changed if you supply the parts? I did this on my 306 and the fitting cost was only £100, he would have charged double that if they had got the belts etc as well, as a rough figure i think these cost me about £20. I dont know how much of a job it is to do the belts etc on a Clio but that seems a little high for my liking, is this a garage that you use often?
If you are in doubt whether to chance it or not, try pricing the engine plus fitting, it may be cheaper to do this than just change the belts but you run the risk whether its any good or not! It may also be a shockingly high price to do...
If you are in doubt whether to chance it or not, try pricing the engine plus fitting, it may be cheaper to do this than just change the belts but you run the risk whether its any good or not! It may also be a shockingly high price to do...
The price for the cambelt kit, auxillary belt kit and dephaser pulley to me (retail) at Renault is approx £375. Trade is 15% less.
I know that the 'book' time for the job is 7ish hours, however, it can be done alot cheaper. You also have to have specific locking tools for the cams and various other bits.
I have had several quotes from Clio specialists, Renault specialists and 'high street' garages. Prices are all £450-500 for cambelt and auxillary belt, with an extra £150-175 for the dephaser pulley which is fitted.
Based on this, my gut feeling is to go with one of the Clio specialists and get the lot done, thus having a warranty and the car sorted for 36k miles. My brother can do it all, and can borrow the tools, however, i can see him taking all day (rather than 3-4hrs at a specialist) to do it, and not really wanting the job. Even offering him £100+ cash, I dont think he will do it, purely due to how much of a pain it is. Pay him much more and I am into the garage territory.
I know that the 'book' time for the job is 7ish hours, however, it can be done alot cheaper. You also have to have specific locking tools for the cams and various other bits.
I have had several quotes from Clio specialists, Renault specialists and 'high street' garages. Prices are all £450-500 for cambelt and auxillary belt, with an extra £150-175 for the dephaser pulley which is fitted.
Based on this, my gut feeling is to go with one of the Clio specialists and get the lot done, thus having a warranty and the car sorted for 36k miles. My brother can do it all, and can borrow the tools, however, i can see him taking all day (rather than 3-4hrs at a specialist) to do it, and not really wanting the job. Even offering him £100+ cash, I dont think he will do it, purely due to how much of a pain it is. Pay him much more and I am into the garage territory.
broken biscuit said:
Brother (Vauxhall mechanic) reckons he can get the parts to do it for £200. If he can do it for £100 labour, and is confident of getting it timed right, I may well just get him to do it, as the dephaser isnt causing any problems right now. Decisions decisions...
You really cannot take chances on these engines, they need to be done by people who know them and know them well. The timing tools are 'essential' especially when the dephaser comes off. Tippex and timing marks will just not cut it.If you aren't already, get over to cliosport.net, there is a section dedicated to this stuff. Everyone will tell you the same.
barker22 said:
broken biscuit said:
Brother (Vauxhall mechanic) reckons he can get the parts to do it for £200. If he can do it for £100 labour, and is confident of getting it timed right, I may well just get him to do it, as the dephaser isnt causing any problems right now. Decisions decisions...
You really cannot take chances on these engines, they need to be done by people who know them and know them well. The timing tools are 'essential' especially when the dephaser comes off. Tippex and timing marks will just not cut it.If you aren't already, get over to cliosport.net, there is a section dedicated to this stuff. Everyone will tell you the same.
Crank pulley bolt MUST be replaced. Dephaser i'd do while I was there if it's never been done because if you need to change it in 5, 10, 20k time, it's another new cambelt too if you abide by what Renault say.
If you're anywhere near Coventry i'll do it if you like.
I'm in south Lincs near Peterborough. Travelling is not an issue - the specialists I have phoned are in Birmingham, Bedford and Lincoln. My brother says he has all the bits to lock the cams - he did our Laguna last year no problem. I wont be getting him to do the dephaser though - if i have to do that, its bite the bullet time and stump up £650 all in for a specialist.
I phoned Renault and know that the cambelt kit is £130, the aux belt kit is £60 and the dephaser is £175 retail, and everyone I phone tells me the 'book' time is 5.5hrs.
I thought about buying the tools, but a decent set of dedicated locking tools are £150+, so this makes it an expensive exercise either way. I would like to be able to do this myself, but I cannot afford things to go wrong, due to the risks of total engine failure.
I phoned Renault and know that the cambelt kit is £130, the aux belt kit is £60 and the dephaser is £175 retail, and everyone I phone tells me the 'book' time is 5.5hrs.
I thought about buying the tools, but a decent set of dedicated locking tools are £150+, so this makes it an expensive exercise either way. I would like to be able to do this myself, but I cannot afford things to go wrong, due to the risks of total engine failure.
broken biscuit said:
My brother can't / won't do it as he's worried about the VVT aspect and not having the correct tools, so it looks like its a £600 bill coming my way. Just great. That plus a years tax and i'm nearly a grand into this in a month!
My gearbox is going to cost me that this month & it needs the cambelt doing, just been MOT'd, taxed, insured & serviced too so BIG outlay but worth it on the long run, they are great cars! Mine also has an un-siagnosed misfire from cold that needs sorting at some point!broken biscuit said:
I'm in south Lincs near Peterborough. Travelling is not an issue - the specialists I have phoned are in Birmingham, Bedford and Lincoln. My brother says he has all the bits to lock the cams - he did our Laguna last year no problem. I wont be getting him to do the dephaser though - if i have to do that, its bite the bullet time and stump up £650 all in for a specialist.
I phoned Renault and know that the cambelt kit is £130, the aux belt kit is £60 and the dephaser is £175 retail, and everyone I phone tells me the 'book' time is 5.5hrs.
I thought about buying the tools, but a decent set of dedicated locking tools are £150+, so this makes it an expensive exercise either way. I would like to be able to do this myself, but I cannot afford things to go wrong, due to the risks of total engine failure.
Dephaser is easy. In fact, you just change the pulley. Like I said already the pulleys are floating, so it doesn't actually matter where you fit it on as long as the driven components (Cam, Crank) are locked in place.I phoned Renault and know that the cambelt kit is £130, the aux belt kit is £60 and the dephaser is £175 retail, and everyone I phone tells me the 'book' time is 5.5hrs.
I thought about buying the tools, but a decent set of dedicated locking tools are £150+, so this makes it an expensive exercise either way. I would like to be able to do this myself, but I cannot afford things to go wrong, due to the risks of total engine failure.
I'd reel these out all day long at £400 a pop, just for fun at the weekends
LordHaveMurci said:
My gearbox is going to cost me that this month & it needs the cambelt doing, just been MOT'd, taxed, insured & serviced too so BIG outlay but worth it on the long run, they are great cars! Mine also has an un-siagnosed misfire from cold that needs sorting at some point!
Bring it round 
, I've just finished pratting about with this for a bit of a laugh!
Fred at http://www.btmperformance.com/ does them for about <£500 all in, and is excellent with these cars. He is in Brum, but I have taken my clio sport and my megane sport from Bath to have him do it.
You cannot fark about with these and DIY without the correct tools for the job
You cannot fark about with these and DIY without the correct tools for the job
broken biscuit said:
Part of me says get it done and keep it due to condition - ie 2 owners, FSH, very clean condition car, but part of me says chance it, worry about the problem if/when it snaps, then look at breaking the car and replacing or recon engine.
Any thoughts?
What price do you put on the inconvenience and cost of having your car recovered miles from home when the belt snaps and mangles the engine?Any thoughts?
When you say "new (to us)" do you have a wife or girlfriend that drives the car? If so are you happy to be sending her out in a car that at some stage IS going to break down?
Car's going to be used by me as of july 1st for commuting, and thats about it. She will still drive it around. I have decided to bite the bullet and get the cambelt, aux belt kit and dephaser done. I have had a quote of £560 from a Cliosport.net recommended garage only 50 miles away in Nottingham, which includes an oil service, so will be getting filters changed at same time then its all done for £600. A big bill for me, but will be worth it for the peace of mind.
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