Independent VW TDI Mechanic In Greater Green Bay Area??

[RHestand]

I have a good friend who lives and works near in Green Bay, WI who just bought a 2006 Jetta TDI with 95000 miles on it. She sent me the Carfax on it and it shows reg. required maintenance on the car, but no new cam/timing belt yet. From what I've found on the TDI forums, the belt, belt tensioner and water pump, all need to be replaced between 80 and 100,000 miles. Her local VW Dealer quoted her $12-$1300 for parts and labor.

After buying the car (A one owner TX car that was on E-Bay, that I recommended. ) she is struggling a little bit financially, so I said I would try to find an independent shop/mechanic in her area to do the belt kit and her reg. maintenance work, ongoing. Hopefully a little cheaper than the dealer.

I know several of you guys on this forum also have VW TDIs, so I'm hoping maybe some of you would be able to recommend a shop in her area.

She and I both would really appreciate any responses or suggestions you might have on this.

TIA, Ray

 

[Ken55]

I know there's a guru in fhe Madison area that I would have used had I purchased a VW. I do remember reading that most VW dealerships know nothing about servicing these cars. Here's a link from the site to help both of you. (http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=130044&highlight=guru+list)

 

[HBarlow]

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Lucw8ALCkLtt79MMw9JOG1E_dX57-raBhbhIFdtHnEQ/edit?hl=en_US&pli=1

If you do some searching and reading on the forum you should be able to read member reports of their experiences with those "gurus" as they are known in the forum.

I've read prices of around $800 - $900 for parts and labor for the timing belt job quoted on the website of a Texas guru. Normally the job should include timing belt, tensioner, water pump, and other small parts.

From what I have read on the VW forums it would be a good idea to have the mechanic inspect the cam at the same time. The '06 "pump duse" engine is hard on cams and use of the specified engine oil is critical to survival.

 

[Jim W]

Here is a map from another or maybe the same site that shows VW mechanics with addressed and phone numbers.
I would also do a search on a site called Angie's list or something like it to see if there is any comments on a mechanic of you're choosing.

Hope this helps?

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=U...697695806278756.00046bc7db18f415cf004&t=h&z=3

Jim W.

 

[RHestand]

Thank you all for the replies. We were able schedule with a shop in Madison, WI. The guy sounds like he does a very thorough job for $755.
By the way, she loves her Jetta, esp. the fuel mileage. She said she's been getting mid 40 to 50 mpg range, which is huge for the amount of miles she has to drive.
Ray

 

[BGlidewell]

why oh why do these cars use timing belts? I wont buy a car again that uses one.

 

[HBarlow]

You may have a hard time finding a car. I think most OHC Japanese engines use a cambelt also. I know that inline four cylinder Nissans and Toyotas did years ago when I owned them.

I don't know about smaller inline four cylinder US cars but I think they do also.

Big gas hog gasoline-powered V8 engines use a cam chain. I'd rather replace a cam belt assembly on schedule and enjoy the performance, handling, fuel mileage, and fun-to-drive factor of a VW TDI.

 

[rscurtis]

Gear drive is the best, but a belt is OK if it's maintained properly. Deutz has used timing belts on their 10XX series engines for years. It's a very substantial belt that just drives the cam and lube oil pump. Even if it breaks, it's usually a matter of replacing a couple of broken rocker arms. The only difficulty is that special tools are required to align the cam and crank, as the engine has no keyways or timing marks.

 

[BGlidewell]

You may have a hard time finding a car. I think most OHC Japanese engines use a cambelt also. I know that inline four cylinder Nissans and Toyotas did years ago when I owned them.

I don't know about smaller inline four cylinder US cars but I think they do also.

Big gas hog gasoline-powered V8 engines use a cam chain. I'd rather replace a cam belt assembly on schedule and enjoy the performance, handling, fuel mileage, and fun-to-drive factor of a VW TDI.

Maybe so but thats a show stopper. Saving a few shekels that pass on thousands of dollars in expense to the consumer is WRONG!!!!!
our Audi A4 3. 2V6 is one of the only engines they make with a timing chain.

 

[HBarlow]

I'm certainly not a mechanical engineer but from things I've read in the past and don't remember now there are many reasons for use of a rubber drive belt for the camshaft or camshafts, injection pump, and more beyond just money savings. Quiet operation is one good reason.

Timing belts don't fail if they are changed on schedule. The problem only occurs when they are ignored until they wear out and fail.

 

[JR]

The infamous 22r and 22re engines made by Toyota were virtually bullet proof. The one and only downfall to them was the timing chains they used. They were generally fairly quiet the first 20 to 30 thousand miles, but after that they were very noisy. Esp at start up. the chain tensioner would be bled down (operated off of oil pressure) and if you didnt know what you were hearing you would swear you had a rocker arm floating around in there until the oil pressure came up. Not to mention the cheap flimsy plastic guides they used, once the chain became even a little stretched it would beat at the guides until eventually they would break and wind up in the bottom of your oil pan. Ive even seen extreme cases the chain wore grooves right through the aluminum timing cover $$$$$ There was even one place internally if the chain rubbed through into a coolant passage and now your mixing coolant and oil. Even more $$$$. Some of these issues Ive seen were no doubt from neglect but not all like for example a 4runner I had I replaced the timing set (chain, sprockets, tensioner and guides) less than 60k miles into it I noticed the chain started making alot more noise than usual. I popped the valve cover off and looked down into the front of the engine and both guides had broken off. Chain had that much slack after only 60k miles. One of the guides I recovered the other went south for a permanent oil bath. As far as I know, the 22re was the last engine Toyota built with the timing chain, they were/are all belt driven now days. Another plus with a belt is if it does break (hopefully its a non interference engine) it wont damage the timing cover like a chain will. Ive seen chains come apart and wad up around the bottom of the crank and do some major damage.

 

[BGlidewell]

A chain will generally last the life of an engine unless like you state in the case of the toyota it is poorly implemented.

 

[BGlidewell]

I'm certainly not a mechanical engineer but from things I've read in the past and don't remember now there are many reasons for use of a rubber drive belt for the camshaft or camshafts, injection pump, and more beyond just money savings. Quiet operation is one good reason.

Timing belts don't fail if they are changed on schedule. The problem only occurs when they are ignored until they wear out and fail.

noise from a chain is going to be insignificant.
(especially compared to: )
The issue is not ignoring the belt change, its the cost of ownership created by them.