A friend of mine just bought a '99 A4 1.8Lt Quattro Turbo. The dealer told her that at 90,000 miles the timing

Question

A friend of mine just bought a '99 A4 1.8lt Quattro Turbo. The dealer told her that at 90,000 miles the timing belt and the water pump would need to be replaced just for precautionary maintenance. Has anyone else heard of this? That's a pretty big repair just for general maintenance.

Answer 1

She should be happy that she doesn't own an older one, because the service interval used to be every 60,000! That engine definitely is an "interference" design (described above) and will end up costing her multiple thousands if the belt does fail.

Why take that risk?

If she wants to save money, take it to an independant repair shop, not the dealer. But tell her that the service is a must.

The previous poster is also right about the water pump. Most likely, it doesn't need to be replaced, but once you "break the seal" on the old gasket to tighten the timing belt, you're far more likely to have a leak. It usually doesn't add any labor, only the cost of the pump itself (with new gasket). Again, why take the chance?

Answer 2

Yes I have heard of it. The timing belt does wear out, and depending upon the design of the engine (interference or non-interference) the consequence of it breaking can range from catastrophic damage to the engine (interference design) or simply being stranded (non-interference design). On that particular car the water pump is located in such a place that once one has spent the money on labor to get to the timing belt, replacement of the water pump adds little to the labor bill and only the cost of the part otherwise. Accordingly, it is a common practice when changing the one to change the other.

Answer 3

My thought is timing belt teeth strip off engine get out of valve timing piston gos up strikes the open intake valve it slams into lash adjuster then camshaft which breaks in two, destroy a cyl head and possably a $5,000 motor . Rule of thumb every 6 years replace the belt or look into the owners manual for change info. Broken motor and tow bill to audi dealer. Yes have the dealer do this service unless your mechanic drives an audi

Answer 4

yes i have herd of it i have been fixing cars for 20 years most cars with rubber timming belts need to be replaced at least once a year depending on your driving conditions and on the car your talking about the water pump dose need to be changed because the tenioner that tightens the belt is on the water pump

Answer 5

Turbocharged cars tend to be harder on their parts. I've owned 3 and all required heavy maintance than their typical same model non-turbo cars.

Check www.epinions.com for information from other owners of that specific car for more information.

Answer 6

...belt needs to be changed?