My 2004 2.0 JTs has now done 66000 miles and did not have a cam belt change at 36000!. The dealer at Canterbury wants £548 . Can anyone recommend a decent garage in Kent that is cheaper but reliable.:thumbs:
Regardless of price - Pay the money. Don't start the engine. Don't drive it anywhere. Hide the keys. You've tempted fate now and that belt is just hanging by a single little thread........
Divide the 500 odd quid x 2 since you saved half of it by skipping the 36k change!
Regardless of price - Pay the money. Don't start the engine. Don't drive it anywhere. Hide the keys. You've tempted fate now and that belt is just hanging by a single little thread........
i'm from ashford and my local garage want just over £300 but without a variatour!! depends if you want a specialest to do it! but i was thinkin about taking it to a place near luton auto lusso i think
Pricewise, my local specialist does it for £300 inc, except for the optional variator (extra £90). Good reputation on the forum (do a search on Alfaworkshop), but some distance from you in Herts:
I looked at the garages that have been recommended on this forum and have spoken to a private garage in Canterbury who really knows his stuff. Is now booked in!! Thanks for all your comments .
if you have not already done so contact mobitech in north dane road canterbury, they did mine and were really thorough and usually do a deal with a service. Highly recommended and I think the fella's name was ian
My quote was for a 2001 2.0TS. Cam and balance shaft belts, tensioners, variator, cam cover gasket and new auxilliary drive belt = £610. Poss new waterpump if needed, takes the cost up to about £700.
Parts ( all genuine Alfa) cost would be £380 excluding water pump.
I am sure they are very good, I spoke to one of them on the phone for well over 20 minutes and he certainly knew his stuff. But, Alfa Workshop can do all the above ( exc water pump) for a special offer price of £390.
Of course, its a longer journey to Herts.........
Allan
Parts ( all genuine Alfa) cost would be £380 excluding water pump.
I am sure they are very good, I spoke to one of them on the phone for well over 20 minutes and he certainly knew his stuff. But, Alfa Workshop can do all the above ( exc water pump) for a special offer price of £390.
Mine in booked into Mobitech and the price is 610 which is roughly the same as the maindealer. Spent 20 mins on the phone with the guy and he explained exactly what they would do which seems more than the maindealer would but it is still expensive.
Looking at Alternative Autos prices list, FULL cam belt kit (three belts and all tensioners) is around £140, variator about £60 and water pump £25 plus delivery and VAT. No way should that come to £380!
I am going to have a chat to Ian to see whats going on here. Mobitech have ALWAYS been very competitive in price. I know they only use genuine parts (which I like) but if they are quoting the same price as a main dealer, there has to be a good reason.
ranger66, you are saying it is about the same price as a main dealer and yet you are not using the (very good) main dealer. How much cheaper was Ian and how much extra work is he doing?
Looks like the dealer may be cheaper, but we dont know if that includes a Variator. I was quoted the same price (610) as ranger66, although Ian did say they check the belts for vibration when they put it all back together and change the belt again if it isnt perfect, which could add another couple of hours to the job.
Comforting to know they are so efficient, but at a high price!
Allan
Yes i dont think the dealer included the variator and i am not sure that the price included the VAT. So if you add that in it is slightly dearer than mobitech. But the guy also told me about the belts which did seem more than the main dealer.
Also the only other thing is that they do not accept debit or credit cards at Mobitech and will only accept cheques that are covered by the value on the cheque guarantee card(this is nearly allways £100) so the balance will have to be cash!!
I just got a quote from Ruspers -
"The cost of replacing your belts, tensioners and variator is ?575.00 + VAT."
If my maths is right, that works out at £661.25
Your not too far away, I may well take you up on that as soon as the necessary beer tokens have been assembled. My belt change isnt urgent, but in the next few weeks I will be thinking about it
Allan
Seems dear, McLennans did my 147 belts, A for Alfa the 156, Both were la good bit ess than £500 including the variator and a service - McLennans done a 4 wheel alignment too.
Guess what the water pump was leaking and so was an oil seal!! Anyway the new belts are all on the tensioner is done and so is the water pump and the oil seal. Mobitech is a small garage but the guys really do what they are doing. Everything was explained and the new parts shown to me on arrival. they had the car all day but rang if there were any issues(ie water pump and oil seal). They rang me when the car was done and explanined (again) what they had done and showed me the parts that had been removed. Also they gave me some advice on other Alfa issues. The cam belt was not too bad considering that it had done 64k and had no cracks or missing teeth. Would probably have got through to the 72k service but it was too much of a risk to wait. In the end i got a bill for £705 all in but as i did not get it changed at 36k maybe its a result the belt did not snap. Any way i would recommend Mobitech as it is a personal service and they said i could pop in at any time or ring for advice.
Mobitech are more than worth it, when I got mine back from them it ran better then the day I bought it as they set the timing up to perfection and will be booking with them in a couple of months time to do the second cam belt change on my 147 which they quoted me at £450.
If you fancy having a go yourself.............. I'll lend you the Tentioner tools and the cam locking blocks.
Cheers to All
Peter
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