Peugeot 206SW 1.4 HDi - When to change cambelt?

6 years old next month, 24K miles, only gets light use mostly on 5 t
10 mile trips to shops, does about 1,200 miles a year
When should cam belt be changed & what should it cost about
Main Dealer service reception said with my use every 20 years, cos
£370
Their mechanic recharging my air con looked at alternator belt an
said if that is original belt (it is) it's as new so cambelt shoul
be OK for a bit
Nationwide Autoservices computer says change at 144K miles or 1
years
Others have said it should be done now and they have ha
idler/tensioner go at 23K miles
Am I living on borrowed time or has it not reached recommende
period/miles
Other than fuel gauge started sticking last month, recharged air co
this year, radio/CD changed warranty at 29 months, BSI & EC
firmware updated due to couple of minor things under warant
(transponder misread, trip meter blobbed)
I am happy with the car as my mobility scooter loads in it easily wit
ramps & don't have to remove any bits just fold seat & tiller

 

On Mon, 24 Aug 2009 23:15:28 -0500,
-spam.invalid (Contax) wrote as underneath my
scribble :

The belt you can see under the bonnet is the Auxiliary Belt not the cam
belt. I think you need to check your actual engine with a Peugeot service
department computer using the VIN number.
My Hdi 1.4 206SE says in the user manual that came with it that the cambelt
needs changing at about 36000 miles as I recall - but the actual spec for
the installed engine (8HXF) is 144,000 miles or 10 years. It is a major
overhaul as the engine is so tightly fitted. The main agent I asked
estimated about £650 including a service. I think it will be a question at
that stage of "is it worth doing" probably cost over £1000 by then, and
maybe a strategy will be to wait till the engine destroys itself then bin
the car - might take 20 years or so with an unpushed engine!
Charlie+

 

:6 years old next month, 24K miles, only gets light use mostly on 5 to
:10 mile trips to shops, does about 1,200 miles a year.
:When should cam belt be changed & what should it cost about?
:Main Dealer service reception said with my use every 20 years, cost
:£370.

This page gives a good idea of timing belt change periods for Peugeot engines.
You will need to know which engine you have though.
http://www.peugeotlogic.com/workshop/base/workshop.htm

Peugeot always cover their backside (as do all vehicle manufacturers) by adding
a rider following the change period statement, ie. "or whichever comes first".
This means that even if you didn't take your 206SW out of the garage in the
stated time period, you should still change the belt when that time period had
expired.

 

Cam belt on my 307 HDi 1.6 2004 went at 80,000 and caused £2000 worth of
damage. The computer says that model cam belt doesn't need changing until
120,000. Nobody mentions that the water pump might need changing or at least
checking! I think that is what went wrong and caused the CAM belt to break.

 

Expensive! and interesting, do you know the failure mode for the coolant
pump? Presumably a bearing failure and was there any prior indication at
all of the impending doom?! Was the coolant as original?
I doubt if there are any meaningful checks that can be done on an in situ
water pump or indeed on the other small but critical items on the timing
belt like the idler and tensioner wheels - failure of any one of which could
lead to an engine wreck similar to yours.

 

My 405 1.8i water pump failed recently. Symptom was water loss and on
removal, the bearing was badly worn/loose and the timing belt was quite
slack but had not let go thankfully. 90,000 miles since Jan 1995

Not really what I had planned for a Saturday but the job was fairly easy
but very little room to work in.

Bob

 

snip

Bob - well spotted - and the leak saved you a pile of grief! No rattling
or screeching then?
Im not looking forward to my 206 1.4 hdi going the same journey - I wont get
away without a couple of days graft I think, so tight and needs one to make
a couple of special pullers etc I believe. Meantime I will renew the
coolant to ontime and onspec - hoping to ward off the evil spirit!
Charlie+

 

No, there was no screech just significant water loss - 1 litre over 20
odd miles but only when under pressure.
I did not need a puller but mine was a petrol engine. You will need
locking pins for the cam and crank. Easy if you have a lathe (I do!)
otherwise its a case of finding something to fit. Mine was 10mm diam
crank and 8mm diam for the cam without any shoulders (Haynes manual was
wrong here - all too often find errors these days!)

If your engine will be so difficult to do it might be worth looking for
an independent Pug specialist with a decent hourly rate. I tend to trust
these guys more than official agents.

Good Luck

Bob