Cambelt snaps after 35k miles...

[freenote]

Hi,

Friend of mine has a Peugeot 207 and the cam-belt has snapped after just 35k miles. Does she have any case for good will payments or the like?

Any help appreciated.

[hornetrider]

Unlikely. How old is the car?

[NiceCupOfTea]

What's the interval - remember, it's miles AND years.

If well within both then he might be due a goodwill payment. Not without a fight though, and no way will they cover it all.

[Deva Link]

Has she had the car from new, serviced on time etc?

[Cupramax]

Depends how old it is really and if its got a main dealer service history. If it has I'd be asking the dealer principle to contact Pug HQ.

[Crusoe]

Some peugeot cambelts have a 60k mile or 4 year replacement time so the distance might not make nuch difference. Need to know the age and type of engine to be more specific.

[freenote]

Hmmm...all good questions. I would guess that it's been serviced on time at a main dealer and it's probably 4 years old.
Where does that leave her?

[V88Dicky]

If she bought the car from a main dealer AND it was well within the change intervals then.......possibly.

[freenote]

Crusoe said:

Some peugeot cambelts have a 60k mile or 4 year replacement time so the distance might not make nuch difference. Need to know the age and type of engine to be more specific.

4 year old 207 1.4 at a guess

[humpbackmaniac]

NiceCupOfTea said:

What's the interval - remember, it's miles AND years.

If well within both then he might be due a goodwill payment. Not without a fight though, and no way will they cover it all.

So many people forget this, my Brother in law has just bought an Audi Convertible, The Vidal Sassoon version I think. I told him to ask when it was changed the owner, original buyer from new said its only done 44k so it doesnt need it yet. BUT ITS NINE YEARS OLD!

There is just no telling some people!

[Crusoe]

Quite common on the 1.4 16 valve, the belt becomes frayed on the outer edge according to a quick google. There is a
modified timing belt kit that fixes the issue with a different belt. Sounds like something that should be a recall so worth trying to get some help from them but they will probably just give you the French shrug.

[Deva Link]

freenote said:

4 year old 207 1.4 at a guess

If the change interval is 4yrs and she didn't get it done, but she did have a service at 4yrs then her only hope is to moan at the dealer. Mention "duty of care".

VAG change intervals seem totally random, and it also depends which country you're in. Some engines just need the belt inspecting.

VAG UK (and the dealers) try to scam people into getting them changed too early.

[NiceCupOfTea]

humpbackmaniac said:

NiceCupOfTea said:

What's the interval - remember, it's miles AND years.

If well within both then he might be due a goodwill payment. Not without a fight though, and no way will they cover it all.

So many people forget this, my Brother in law has just bought an Audi Convertible, The Vidal Sassoon version I think. I told him to ask when it was changed the owner, original buyer from new said its only done 44k so it doesnt need it yet. BUT ITS NINE YEARS OLD!

There is just no telling some people!

When we were looking at Pumas a couple of years back, every single one was serviced on miles, not years. You get these idiots pottering around in their cars doing 5k a year with 15k service intervals, so they only change the oil once every 3 years!

Ironically, the one we bought had had the cambelt done (well under 60k miles, but had been done on the 5 year interval) by a cowboy, so despite the correct kit/tensioners being fitted it failed a year later needing a top end rebuild

[freenote]

Looks to me from manual that cambelt needs changing at the earliest after 70k miles or 10 years!

[Deva Link]

The thing is, we can discuss this for ever, but a girl will just tend to take the car to the dealer, shrug, and hand over her debit card. They're not generally up for a fight.