Fellers,

 

I think my timing belt just went on my '97 OBW with 286k miles. What would a dealer cost to replace just the timing belt not including water pump, etc?

 

thanks

I think my timing belt just went on my '97 OBW with 286k miles. What would a dealer cost to replace just the timing belt not including water pump, etc?

you probably can't do that in this case. this is an interference engine so you likely incurred some valve damage from the broken belt.

 

Dealer in Maryland quoted my cousin $699 for timing belt only installation. figure $500+ from a dealer for just the belt. there's also a good chance you'll need a new pulley or tensioner. those usually fail and take the belt out with them...they run $70+ each.

 

You'll be taking a gamble though...you might pay $700 only to find out you have valve damage. Valve damage requires pulling the heads and replacing the bent valves - that's around the $1,500 mark...with lots of room to go higher depending on what happened.

 

the handful that i've seen are repairable and didn't incur significant damage (like to the pistons), but it doesn't sound like you're wanting to address either.

 

what would be nice is to do a leak down test to see if indeed the valves are bent. find a good independent shop to do that for you - dealers suck at diagnosing stuff like that. they can...but typically don't, they'll give you a canned answer like "you need new heads or valve work"...even if you don't. they base it on their own experience and market not your individual needs. a good independent won't do that.

 

if you got lucky none of the valves bent and you can get away with a new timing belt alone.

this car is my second car and I was driving it since it had been awhile. I was pulling out into traffic from a store and felt a small noise under the engine on the driver side. The tow truck driver said he definetly thought it was the timing belt. I had the belt done at 192k miles and now it is at 286k miles

needs further inspection for sure, never make a vehicle decision based on one tow-truck drivers assessment on the side of the road.

 

but..if it is the timing belt - then reread my first reply. when it was replaced at 192,000 it's likely none of the pulleys were replaced. one seized or failed and took the timing belt with it.

Take the drivers side outer cover off and look. 3 bolts, 10MM, easy with a 10MM gear wrench.

OEM parts for a complete change (belt, idlers, tensioner, and water pump) are over $500 even with a good discount. Also figure about 4 hours labor for the job; close to $1000 from a dealer; not much less from an independent shop. Ask around.