Why should I get a specialist to do my cambelt? Technical explanation please?

[xr2racer]

So why does almot everyone say you should take your car to a specialist for a cambelt? My local garage must have done 1000s of cambelts without problem.

So someone in the know can you please give me a technical explanation of what is different about a 182 cambelt change that makes it so much more difficult and easy to get wrong than your average car?

 

[Sanders]

Because its a t**t to do, theres no space in the bay beause its crammed full of engine

 

[sammyhale22]

There is nothing special about it, its an inline 4 engine with tensioners like any other car. You just need some special tools to lock both ends of the cams and you have to change the cam pulley bolts i believe. If you have changed cam belts before and you have the tools go for it.

 

[W17GLE]

Any garage could do it it's just the specialist tend to be a bit cheaper. A few garages may not want the hassle though as you need to drop the engine to do it.

 

[Sym0n]

as you need to drop the engine to do it.

Do you? :S

 

[cliobritt]

My 172 cambelt fron Renault - £750 Carlton specialist - £350 go figure girlfriend.

 

[stan*]

No you don't need to drop engine.

As said a specialist will have the right 'special' tools and will typically be cheaper.
They are also going to familiar with the engine.

Any competant mechanic with the correct tools could do it though, there's nothing particularly technically involving....even us specialists were first timers once upon a time!

 

[Slammed172]

http://www.cliosport.net/forum/showthread.php?t=494447

 

[Laine_16v]

Becuase the chance of your normal local garage having the official renault tools to time F4R's is about 1%

 

[Mark One]

Most of the cars that come up down on power on this forum are as a result of a bad cambelt change.

 

[W111ALG]

Its not as if RS Clios are a rare car. I had mine done last year for £120 at local gargae, I supplied the belts and pulleys, asked them when booking if they had the correct locking tools, they went and checked came back through with them. 10k and one year later and I am very happy. Bargain ocmpared to Renault or even 'specialist' prices.

 

[Bazzon]

Its not as if RS Clios are a rare car. I had mine done last year for £120 at local gargae, I supplied the belts and pulleys, asked them when booking if they had the correct locking tools, they went and checked came back through with them. 10k and one year later and I am very happy. Bargain ocmpared to Renault or even 'specialist' prices.

Your car is a 172 cup though, so the Job is made alot simpler and cuts the labour cost dramatically.

 

[Fred@BTM]

thats exactly what i charge in labour for a cup

3hours @ £40
£131 in bits

£251+vat

= £295 all in

 

[yellowbelly]

Personally i would always prefer to pay a specialist to do the job for piece of mind, i know they know what they're doing, they're rarely much more money than your local garage but way way cheaper than the dealers.
Regardless of the car i think you should never scrimp on having "big" jobs done - pay the people who can do it in their sleep.

 

[m4rkie23]

COMPELTE no brainer for me. pay and get someone to do it cheap, or pay a bit extra and get it done by a fully insured professional, who has years of experience in the field, who knows exactly what they are doing.

dont pay renault prices, pay specialist prices.

 

[yellowbelly]

COMPELTE no brainer for me. pay and get someone to do it cheap, or pay a bit extra and get it done by a fully insured professional, who has years of experience in the field, who knows exactly what they are doing.

dont pay renault prices, pay specialist prices.

^^^^^^ That!

 

[R-Sport.]

^^^^^^ That!

It also helps to sell a car ir you can advertise it as having the belts done by a well known specialist ( theres around 8/9 on here) as opposed to bodgit & scarper + sons-


IIRC the aux belt is worse to do than the cambelt-

s

 

[xr2racer]

My problem is being up in Aberdeen I think I would have to drive to England before I came across a 182 specialist!

So what special tools are required? Does anyone know their names/part numbers so I can check if the garage has them?

Also do the aux belt and cam belt kits you can buy from NW performance come with absolutely all the bits that need to be changed? I hear the dephaser pully mentioned now and again but have no idea what it is and if its additional to aux/cam belt change and whether I should think of getting it done or not.

My car is only at 34k miles but it has its 5th birthday tomorrow if that helps with any advice on the depasher?

 

[Andyman]

Just use a Renault dealer but shop about. Its a misconception that their all crazy priced. Their prices all vary.

I got quoted 470 iirc for the cam and aux change. That aint bad at all.

I got a quot from a very popular specialist and the difference, with a couple of extra's added onto the above, was something like 50 quid from memory, like for like genunie parts and belts and once the travelling and petrol was taken into consideration it worked out more expensive.

 

[Darren S]

Personally i would always prefer to pay a specialist to do the job for piece of mind, i know they know what they're doing, they're rarely much more money than your local garage but way way cheaper than the dealers.
Regardless of the car i think you should never scrimp on having "big" jobs done - pay the people who can do it in their sleep.

So, so true. Not worth the risk, imo.

My problem is being up in Aberdeen I think I would have to drive to England before I came across a 182 specialist!

So what special tools are required? Does anyone know their names/part numbers so I can check if the garage has them?

Also do the aux belt and cam belt kits you can buy from NW performance come with absolutely all the bits that need to be changed? I hear the dephaser pully mentioned now and again but have no idea what it is and if its additional to aux/cam belt change and whether I should think of getting it done or not.

My car is only at 34k miles but it has its 5th birthday tomorrow if that helps with any advice on the depasher?

I'm getting the dephaser pulley sorted out as part of the 72k service in a few weeks time. I think I've identified the 'taxi-effect' noise at idle.

D.

 

[Hutchie]

thats exactly what i charge in labour for a cup

3hours @ £40
£131 in bits

£251+vat

= £295 all in

its a t**t to do, for that price i might start sub-contracting them to you brother

 

[Fred@BTM]

a cup? with no aircon? a t**t? behave youth!

 

[sideways danny]

As said, anyone can learn it, just those who focus on one brand of car tend to invest a bit more time, effort and knowledge of the specifics into the job. For example, the procedures in Autodata for the F4R are wrong, and most places will go off that (I use renault tech documents) There's a lot of mistakes in autodata about the 2 litre renault engines generally, but non specialists wouldn't know about it

 

[Hutchie]

ohh i was being lazy and didnt realise you wrote cup,

there not too bad to do i suppose, alot quicker when theres two of you on the job i find (pass me that, hold this, take that off, etc etc)

team effort FTW

 

[Martin_172]

the problem is most people as the garage do you have the proper cam locking tools and the garage say yes, but they dont, they have cam locking tools for a renault that will fit the f4r but they dont do the job properly, you need the renault supplyed tools which no garage will have due to the cost vs the amount of 2.0 16v clios.

i tried blind to convince a mate whos a mechanic that he didn't have the correct tools for the job at his backstreet garage he assured me he did, a local lad got his 172 done there and it came back out "slow" - go figure!

its just another belt, any mechanic can do it, give them the GENUINE tools and the renault workshop guide for the reason given above about auto data and it will be fine, when mine is due again on the 172 thats what ill be doing, a trusted local garage and ill supply the locking tools for them.

 

[damo2008]

my normal mchaincs quoted me £60 labour ha ha fool

thought he would have learnt from the last one he changed on my other sport its a pain in the arse to do :lol: