T4 TDI Woes

[tdi]

Hi All,
this is my first post and have to confess I have limited mechanical knowledge.

I have owned my 2003 TDI LWB since new and have generally been very happy with it other than a problem with the torque converter on the auto transmission about 4 years ago.

The van has been very reliable and is always loaded up with tools,has done 170,000kms and averages about 10litres per 100kms around town.

I had the cam belt replaced by a reputable VW repairer in 09 in accordance with the service schedule.
The other day it broke.

I'm now up for a $6000+ repair.
I haven't been given the final quote but will find out on Monday.They said it could be over 10K

I don't really feel like spending this amount of money on a car thats nearly 10 years old.
Need some advice .
Should I just cut my losses and buy a S/H 2008 T5 or stick with my T4.
Was told you can get recoed 2.5 litre motors from VW germany for $9000.00
S/H T5 auto I've seen is $22,000 with 103km's

Will I be better off in a T5 and if I do opt for a T5 should I go for a manual or are the autos OK?

cheers

[jets]

I read another post some time ago where someone was quoted $9000 to do the same work, so I spoke to my supplier [Imparts] & asked the question, "are parts very expensive for these engines?" His reply was no they aren't & he was appaled as much as I was at the price quoted.
I would move away from whoever was quoting those silly prices. You need to enter your location so that other members can help steer you to someone who is trustworthy.
The first thing to do is have the engine partly dismantled to assess the extent of any damage. On the T4 Forum in the UK there has been lots of reports on the parts that are damaged if the cam belt breaks. Generally the valves are bent on a couple of cylinders, camshaft breaks into a few pieces, cam followers & lifters crushed. There can also be other damage depending on how fast you were travelling at the time. Prices over there maybe 800 pounds or more. One member said he repaired his for not much more than VW wanted for a belt change. Here's a link to a Co. in the UK that reconditions engines.
VW ENGINES AUDI ENGINE REBUILD ENGINES VOLKSWAGEN ENGINES GOLF POLO AUDI SEAT SKODA BORA CORRADO SHARAN CADDY JETTA ENGINES
Your engine should be an AUF, scroll down & you will see a price of 1195 pounds. There is a company in Sydney called Just Campers that originally advertised rebuilt engines bought in from the UK.
If it was my choice I would stay with what you have, you could be going from the frying pan into the fire.While the 5 cyl T5 doesn't have a cam belt it has other issues.!70,000km is nothing for the T4 TDI engine if you have serviced it regularly, & it sounds like you have.
If you decide to buy another van, both the T4 & T5 have issues with their autos so go for the manual.
Keep us posted & Good Luck.

[gecko2k]

yeah. it would be good to know where you are located!

[tdi]

yeah. it would be good to know where you are located!

I'm in Melbourne.
Car is at Volkspower

[Sunny43.5]

Interesting question you say the belt was changed in 09 how many kays since then has the van travelled ? t4,s I believe should have a belt interval of 100.000 kays I might be wrong someone correct me if this is incorrect .

[ian]

I'm in Melbourne.
Car is at Volkspower

There's one in Melbourne on Ebay for $5.000


Volkswagon LT35 2004 Engine | eBay

[tdi]

Interesting question you say the belt was changed in 09 how many kays since then has the van travelled ? t4,s I believe should have a belt interval of 100.000 kays I might be wrong someone correct me if this is incorrect .

The belt needs to be replaced every 120,000kms.
Mine was done at 124,000.
Car had 174,000kms when belt failed

[tdi]

There's one in Melbourne on Ebay for $5.000


Volkswagon LT35 2004 Engine | eBay

Gee I had my hopes up when I read this reply.
Unfortunatelty it's for a LT or Crafter van not a T4

[jets]

t4,s I believe should have a belt interval of 100.000 kays

My book also says 120,000ks but I think VW have reduced this over the years since the book was printed. I thought it was down to 60,000km. I know they have introduced a time limit of every 4 years. I don't do many ks so the time period applies to our van.

[gecko2k]

That would interest me as well. I thought also it was every 120.000kms or every 4 years.

[Bug_racer]

That would interest me as well. I thought also it was every 120.000kms or every 4 years.

Its every 2 years or 60k km . The interval was changed around 2001 after a string of snapped timing belts .

[Sunny43.5]

So by my calculations the second belt has failed at only 50.000 kays after it was replaced , I would be seriously asking the reputable "VW" mechanics why it has happened when I changed my sons T4 engine 2.5 petrol I fitted a new belt whilst the engine was out . The most important part as I recall is setting the tensioner correctly because if its fitted too loose it could jump a tooth or two if its fitted too tight it would obviously wear prematurely and possibly break ? . Did the mechanics fit a genuine belt or a substitute , this is a bit suspect to me as by rights you should have got at least another 50.000 out of this belt . As a final I did find out that the T5,s with 2.0 petrol were suposed to be done around 60.000 mine was done at around 100.000 so I must have been lucky it did not fail .

[tdi]

So by my calculations the second belt has failed at only 50.000 kays after it was replaced , I would be seriously asking the reputable "VW" mechanics why it has happened when I changed my sons T4 engine 2.5 petrol I fitted a new belt whilst the engine was out . The most important part as I recall is setting the tensioner correctly because if its fitted too loose it could jump a tooth or two if its fitted too tight it would obviously wear prematurely and possibly break ? . Did the mechanics fit a genuine belt or a substitute , this is a bit suspect to me as by rights you should have got at least another 50.000 out of this belt . As a final I did find out that the T5,s with 2.0 petrol were suposed to be done around 60.000 mine was done at around 100.000 so I must have been lucky it did not fail .

Belt was done by Volkspower hence the reason I took it back there.
I was told by them that belts rarely fail and that it could have been due to a bearing seizing up.
With this sort of thing, I imagine after its failed it would be hard to diagnose the actual cause of failure.

In answer to a previous post, I had slowed right down to about 10kms and was turning into a driveway when the belt failed so I was hoping this would have minimised engine damage.
Not sure whether an original or after market belt was fitted but the cost was $66 in 12/09

[Sunny43.5]

Sounds to me like you should be getting this "bearing" story checked out I may be wrong but I cannot remember the belt actually going around any part that has a bearing that could cause it to break , some one correct me if I am wrong .

[jfoldbar]

i know on a mazda van i used to have, mazda specs were "belt every 100k and tensioner only if needed". i found out the hard way that the tensioner must be changed at 100k regardless if its ok or not. luckily no damage for me though, just broken down. i wonder if a similar thing could have happened here. perhaps this "bearing'' should be changed at 120 or 60 (whatever specs say) regardless of its condition?
if a failed bearing caused it to snap, regardless of valve or cam condition this culprit bearing could still be found. but whether they want to find it may be a different story as it may show liability.