147 jtd replacing cam belt

at what mileage is it advisable to run the car without replacing the cam belt. i believe alfa say 4 years or 72k? what have other people been getting?

also, i know it depends on the driver but what sort of mileage has peoples clutch been going?

cheers all!

oh and how much to replace for both?? independantly and through alfa??

thanks again

That is the correct millage and time for the engine. The genuine goodyear kits are around 75 notes.

at what mileage is it advisable to run the car without replacing the cam belt. i believe alfa say 4 years or 72k? what have other people been getting?

oh and how much to replace for both?? independantly and through alfa??

Re cambelt. The official Alfa Romeo line is 72,000 miles or 5 years, whichever happens first. However there appears to be an issue with the 1.9 JTD 16v engine of the water pump seizing and bang goes your cambelt! This has happened to folks on here (perhaps do a search on this), it can happen in the 60,000 miles range, even down to 50,000 miles range. The earliest I've heard this happen is 34,000 miles, which is (hopefully) exceptional! I have spoken to four different dealers about this, and they all refute there is a problem with the waterpump - but then they would! However the good specialists are aware of the problem!

View on here is to get belt/tensioners/idlers/water pump changed at 48,000 miles. I was thinking of leaving it to 60,000 miles but I'm having second thoughts! A good specialist will charge in the range £300-£325 for the job. Shop around and see what you can find. AlfaShop in Norwich for instance has just quoted me just under £300 (includes everything including the red Paraflu coolant). The dealers will be considerably more! Take it to a good Alfa specialist instead!

cheers for the replies.

Spider 95 is the problem just on the 16 v models?

any ideas on cost for replacing the clutch and what mileage ppl are getting out of them?

Mine snapped 10,000 miles early, costs about £500 for the full service to change the belt, tensioners and water pump and about £1000 to repair if it snaps. There has been a lot of the 16v JTDs snapping because of the water pump as Spider95 says but in a lot of cases Alfa put something towards it if the car has been kept up to date with its service history. They chipped in half the repair bill so I'm not really out of pocket considering it would have been due for a change at the next service. I'm not going to go the full 72k on this belt, going to get mine done at 60k if I've still got the car then.

Clutch is slipping on mine at 68k, it's a bit small to hold back the torque of the JTD and I have had it remapped, others have theirs slipping at 40k, some have gone over 100k, depends how roughly it was treated over its life. Somewhere between £300-£400 for a new clutch and it's worth fitting a Q2 diff at the same time by all accounts.

Spider 95 is the problem just on the 16 v models?

Apparently the problem is with the 16v JTD engines only. The 8v version of this engine has a different water pump that appears to be ok. Typical Alfa to fit different water pumps! Sorry can't comment on JTD clutches, my 156 Sport is my first diesel so I'll just see how it goes!