Customer scammed? Timing belt was never replaced . What's the damage on this 1.6TDI Leon?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.พ. 2025
- Welcome to another video !
This time a bit of a sad story because somebody didn't do the job that was paid for. According to an unnamed company they replaced the timing belt for this customer and one year later it came off. This Seat Leon with 1.6TDI engine was delivered to us on recovery as a non runner with no timing belt on the engine already. I tried to do the job as most reasonably to save the owner some money but it was still not cheap. While I was taking the timing parts off the engine everything had a stamp on it from VW manufacture from 2016 so the timing was never done. At first I didn't know it meant to be done a year before and on collection day I was shocked when he showed me the stamp in the service book that it was '' done'' .
Anyways enjoy the video and be careful where you take your car for service
Thank for watching
Given the state and history of what was delivered to you, i think you did a great job sorting this debacle out. In comparison with Cowboy Central (the previous garage that worked on this car) you are showing viewers that you are a professional repairer and that the likes of Cowboy Central help your reputation. I think the owner has got a good result as this repair could have been a lot more costly. Well done and thank you for the content and education.
Excellent clean diagnosis and repair job, unfortunately so many below average mechanics out there just don’t understand the fundamentals…
I've had a number of jobs come to me like this.
It's _usually_ people who say "when I bought it, it'd just had a full service and timing belt kit done".
Dodgy garages and rip off cowboy mechanics give us all a bad name. I used to try and help people out, but people assume that _all_ of us are just there to clean their bank accounts out. Quite depressing really. I always like to explain to people where their money went and why certain things needed to be replaced.
Great honest guy it’s a pleasure to have this experienced chap working on your vehicle, there is so many crooked people in the car Mechanic scene today, I’d definitely use this man for my car repair!..
A tip for your editor... drop the music track levels by 6dB (-6db) so that it doesn't overpower your voice. Love the videos.. great job guys.
I did my own on my VW 1.6 TDi Polo. It was supposed to be the second belt, and VW had 'replaced' the first one. Everything seemed factory tight, and the right engine mounting looked like it had never been removed. I was suspicious that it had not been done. It took me two days to do it, and I quite enjoyed it. It must be much easier to do on the 3 cylinder 1.2TDi. This was a really interesting video from a super skilled man. Thanks !
Probably not, there are a few who will take the job, but look at the belt, and simply pencil whip it, figuring that when it does let go it will be out of warranty, and hard to prove they did not change it. Me I ask for the old one and parts back, and the mechanics I use I have known them for a while, so trust is important.
i am a young VW/AUDI technician in the U.S. your videos are bad ass. it is cool to watch all of the different repairs in your workshop. I didnt realize that the SEAT Leon was so similar to a Volkswagen Jetta SportWagen. Here in the U.S everyone loves the 2.5l 5 cylinder engine because of their durability!
I think you do exellent work and your repair methods are exactly what I would expect from an expert and not the dealer network
For sure many "people" working in the motor trade are the reason the motor trade has such a bad image. Thank you for your time and effort making this video, working on this car/putting it right. Saddens me when any machine is ruined because "someone" didn't bother their arse.
Wow you have balls of steel for taking on this job. Excellent repair
Finally, a good mechanic that cares about not causing damage.
You have given the owner great service, more than he really deserves. And much better than the previous garage. The pain he is now feeling in his wallet will hopefully teach him to stick to the recommended service schedules in future. A great and as you say a bastard of a job!
He will probably trade off the car as soon as he gets it back 🤣
Hi there fellow VAG Tech! Sole operator myself mate been with VAG since 1988. Big ups my friend
If only all engineer's were as conscientious as you, great job.
Great job. You’ve got a great philosophy to repairing cars, and in the circumstances patient with owner. I can understand when the price goes north of £2k it’s temping for the owner to cut corners, but now it’s repaired it’s good for at least another 60k miles or 5 years.
Great content once again. You had me fooled, I almost believed you were really leaving the car as is with a shaky engine, but as always you put in the hours and made it work. Great work Mr. Funnyguy, love your vids!
Many years ago a colleague took his Ford Capri for a replacement gearbox under warranty. He painted the bolts around the gearbox. It came back with the paint all intact. On investigation Ford found a series of jobs supposedly done where the parts had never been provided. They lost their dealership.
Very thorough diagnosis and a proper repair.
A timing belt change is more than changing just the timing belt!
Indeed. I don’t understand why some folk opt not to replace the water pump at timing belt changes, you’re asking for trouble, as inevitably that fails and it totals the engine.
@@mobilrz or the better scenario water pump makes a noise and you need to put another new belt kit
@@mobilrz Agreed, always change the water pump
Great result guys.
I have just had my timing belt and water pump replaced and it's concerning to hear that the job (In this case) wasn't a complete effort.
I bought my 2013 Mondeo TDCi 140 Titanium X business class in NOV 2017 at 56K miles... At 102K and ten years old, it was recomended to change the belt and water pump.
It was done for £433 which included a drop link too.
I want to keep this car because it is so nice with loads of toys....
I have been spoilt so buying something to match this speck would be expensive.
I am running it a little harder than I usually would do, for instance this weekend I went to Coventry from Blackpool (England) and will continue for while to cover many miles, to stress the repair....(Before the repair warranty ends in 12 months)
Nice to see you got the customer back on the road....costly maybe but cambelt snapping probably would never be cheep.
👌 Subbed and liked....
Another great repair..given that the cam belt was already removed I think you went through a methodical process to diagnose the main fault...i still think that the repair is value for money and the owner has got his car back running sweet....
That’s why I have turned to DIY.
My Hummer H3t filter was never changed during oil change. My Merc. 420E was ruined from overheating because the belt driving the slave fan was not reseated properly by another garage.
It’s a pleasure to watch skilled mechanics at work
Well done mister, very patient & thorough job , nice to see.
Great video! You really got me at the end with cutting the video, loved it
Thank you for all these good advises. I totally agree when you say don't stick to manufacturer intervalls but do your service sooner. Great video!
Yes seen plenty of vehicles with 15000km service, I never got there before changing the oil on my vehicles, most would be 10 000km, or 12 months, whichever came first.
Very professional work. It is always difficult when somebody started but not completed the repair.
Excellent diagnosis and rectification and not a parts cannon in sight!! 👌
Great job, good camera work, you fixed it very well. And gave the owner honest advice.
I've 2ltr Golf with the same base engine, had the 1st timing belt changed at the correct interval, all VW parts used including the water pump. 7 months later engine suddenly sounded like a tractor, no loss of power or smoke just a bit slow to get going and would pull 70 mph no problem. Wife said she stalled the car at some traffic lights in the week. Took it back to the independant who fitted the new belt for an opinion. He was very concerned re the noise and advised not to drive it. Next day he took a look and found the timing was 3 teeth out (didn't say back or forwards). He retimed the engine and ran it up, sounded loads better but now had a fault code, engine to cam timing out of correlation. He spoke with some mates who work at VAG, they advised changing the cam carrier. Needless to say I proceeded, carrier was £1200, new timing belt and labour racked up £1800 inc vat, he cut off that twatty (his own words) bracket that holds the DPF to get the carrier off and welded it back on re assembly. New carrier cleared the fault code and has run faultlessly since. Both he and I were both flummoxed as to why the cam timing had moved. We concluded the sudden stalling of the engine may have done something, but now seeing you explain about the cam lobes being able to move if the valves hit the piston could explain what happened. Great job as usual, well done.
Cam an crank correlation goes off the pulleys. Sounds like hes just fkd it up honestly
Again music is way louder than your voice. But great video again :)
Music noise unacceptable !
awesome video buddy and this is the reason i learnt to repair my own engines and even my family's cars and engines also just because of this reason you don't no who to trust and who not to know days and ive always loved fixing cars and building cars so its a win win for me but awesome work as always vag buddy keep up the awesome work :)
Great video, same kind of issue with the 'Ford' TDCI cam shaft, if it takes a whack the cam lobes move thus you have to renew the cam shaft.
They are pressed on now rather than a machined camshaft, don't know if it's to save the engine or save money., it's better that bending valves,
I'm a mechanic of 16 years, I'm actually at a VAG shop atm but only have done about a year.
My knowledge of working on all models is that when you start it up and it runs not as expected, then compression test, if good then move onto looking at fuel trims and rail pressure ect, next move is to check the injector leak back rates.
Once these tests are complete it should become clear as to why it's having a hissy fit.
Modern cars remind me that we think we are going forwards, but we aren't.
"Let's save all the polar bear" 😂
Brilliant video as always!
What ever happened to basic I had one of these engines it blow up at 66k putting a leg out of the bed which scrapped the car for me the engine is crap ,the recovery driver had done 3 recoveries that week with same or similar problems boom the end 🙈great vid 👍
It’s a pleasure seeing professional at work 👏🏻
As from July this year, VW has now changed the requirements for a timing belt change on its petrol and diesel engines. Cannot remember the exact mileage or time requirements but I think it is 150,000 miles for diesel and 155,000 miles for petrol. I believe there is no time stipulation but contact your VW dealer for the exact figures.
They are constantly revising intervals - my MKV GTI has timing belt, interval was changed for that engine a couple of times, just had it done the second time at 14.5 years old, but mileage only 93,000km. Probably the belt material is constantly improving.
@@einfelder8262 More like different suppliers, and also looking at the number of belt failures, and aiming to change them at the last interval before they start getting past 1% failure rate. The differences come from service interval changes, as manufacturers go and extend service intervals from 15000km to 18000km, 20000km and even to 25000km, all done so as to have the minimum amount of services (and thus lost profit from that lucrative dealer sold service plan) in the warranty period. If it grenades past that then profit selling a new car, or a new engine, or one less in the used market.
Great video Well explained You didn't say how many miles on the car but I'm guessing it was way overdue for the belt to be replaced Update you finally stated the millage at the end of the video Now i feel bad for the customer
I'm sure this happens a lot! I always marked the timing belt on my sons car when he took it in for replacement. I have been lucky.
u speak Slovakian. spot on. good lads. pozdravujem z irska
Start Stop is working! Polar bears will be happy! for me that was the highlight of this Video 🙂
Brillant job your a proper craftsman that knows his job
Good video again and the best problem solving for this kind of engine!
The engine ran sweetly for a few seconds after the first start, until the overfuelling injector started it's mischief. 100% can't leave it like that, it would cause major issues, possibly hole in piston, destroyed cat, destroyed DPF. Much more than 300 quid.
Owner got lucky here, could have had a bent valve but didnt, and he found someone who knew what they were doing. I had a 2007 PD TDI passat that had never had a belt change when I bought it with 13600Kms. It belonged to VW Australia before me. Strangely, while a 2007 model, the car was never registered until 2009 and I bought it in 2011. It also had a DSG problem but fortunately, the manufacturer warranty starts at first registration here in Australia so the DSG was fixed under the 3 year warranty. The dealer also said that VW told them that the calendar time for the timing belt was 7 years (not 5). Wonder why the difference?
Great video. Great learning. Question with matching the crank and cam. Did you reset everything to TDC with the locking pins?
Well done. Great result considering what you started with. You might have a regular customer from this guy.
Many years ago, whilst living in the UK, I needed a 2nd hand car. Inspected a Peugeot 306 turbo diesel and decided I was going to buy, subject to haggling, but it needed a service. I crawled underneath and scratched the oil filter. I purchased the car for an agreed price, including a service. At the garage, and before collecting the car, I asked the salesman to inspect the oil filter and see it it had any scratches. It appeared that the mechanic was under suspicion of stealing parts for cheap 'private', out of hours servicing. He was sacked and I got a proper service and 4 new tyres.
Great vid again as usual... wish I were in the UK for some tlc on my a6 bitdi ❤
Good thing about my local garages is they are honest but really hard to get a booking . Only thing I will get done by a garage is timing belt that way its kind of warrantied if it goes wrong . I asked to see my old belt . Not because I didn't trust them but just wanted to see it as vw recommend every 5 years . And the belt was absolutely fine . (Vw golf ea288)
I was thinking about having the timing chain in my KIA Picanto 2015 replaced. I hear chain rattle when cold and comes back the odd time when warm. Stretched chain perhaps. odometer reading 44864 miles. Service history of my car unknown. I enjoyed watching the video :)
Time to change it, those are well known to wear, especially with less than perfect oil change intervals. Guides wear, along with the chain itself, and the VVT sprockets do the same as well.
I was disappointed when a local garage tried telling me my brake pads needed replacing when they were fitting new tyres, no pads wear out and need changing from time to time but what they forgot was they had fitted new pads about a year earlier, and I'd done very few miles and certainly not enough to go through a set of brakes. Needless to say I never went back.
Love your attention to little details. Great work guys 👌
#happyendingpolarbearshappy
you guys are brilliant and know what you are doing love watching the videos and very interesting 👍👍
I bought a 17 plate mk7 golf 110 bhp cxxb with a Snapped timing belt at 81k. Had to do the same job. I put a second hand camshaft unit with the 04L103292F code but the serial number on it is different. Is throwing a camshaft fault. Wondering if the rotor gear for the sensor is slightly different. Engine Sound great Done 1000 miles so far and no probs a part of the fault and of course a start and stop no working most of the time. I also replaced the oil pump wet belt (it was Due) and the crank seal housing. Great Job mate 👍
I have 2016 caddy 1.6 TDI, I had mine done with water pump in 2021 it had done 57000mi, I thought I was pushing it at that, I all ways ask people if they have had cambelt done and most people say what's that unbelievable 😂😂
I had a 2017 Leon 1.6tdi. Got the belt changed at 5 years by Seat. Mine had done 100000 miles. 😅
I am so glad that I gave up on motor vehicles! These New Vehicles are just beyond my tolerances!
that engine was proper shaking....should never be like that ( either petrol or diesel ) - and he needs to bring the car to you for a service ( does he need the oil changed sooner than normal )? always an excellent diagnosis and resolution
Great work once again, superb.👍👍
for this ea288 engines the changing interval is actually 130k miles (210k Km) or 10 years , they usually last at least 2\4 years more than that if they are OEM
I suspect that the timing belt was replaced without replacing the water pump and tensioners, as they were believed to be still in good shape due to the low mileage. However, this might have led to higher pressure or slightly different pressure conditions compared to the original belt, which cause the tensioner to fail and destroy the belt.
read the description; 'everything had a stamp on it from VW manufacture from 2016'..
What’s your opinion on VW’s new cambelt interval schedules… what mileage / years you recommend for 2.0 TDi?
Good repair and diagnosis. Also good advice 👍
Vw group 3/4 cylinder engines are super reliable as long as you change the timing belt and the water pump as per manufacture manual which I assume is 5 years or 60000 miles whichever comes earlier. The scary part is when you pay for something and you don't get it done. That's why once you find a private trusted garage you must stick with them no matter what the cost is as it will save you money long term. That definitely excludes main dealer as those are just incompetent rip offs.
Yes indeed if done properly when should. Is 130k miles on that engine the interval. But are so many cam carier superseeds, waterpumps etc that makes you think ...
VW do not recommend this belt change at 60,000 on this engine
Some of these 1.6 TDIs have notoriously bad injectors, it's almost always really loud "hammering" noise from one or more of the injectors, or the engine is shaking like crazy.
Yes, that belt was pencil changed, and the injector would sooner or later have, with the poor pattern or leakage, have either melted a nice hole through the piston, or burnt the exhaust valve away.
Timing belts yes they need to be done before time, especially if the car does short trips, as that is the worst for the belt, all those heat cycles and start stop cycles kill them. Timing chains are not much better, some are known for wear, and the guides also wear a lot, plus the worst is a wet timing belt, worst of both worlds.
My car has only got 2 years and 15000km on the timing belt, because the last one got snapped by an exhaust place that remapped the ECU, trying to fix the problems they caused. Took me a while to find the fault they had caused, a broken wire in the engine harness, which caused the oxygen sensor to not run correctly, but unfortunately they also had damaged it as well, using silicone sealer to excess to put it in. So aftermarket one, and a bit of work to make the ECU happy as the old one is a 12R heater, and the new one is 6R, so not good to have high heater current, so fixed that with some external work to interface the 2. But now no engine light, a happy engine that runs well, and I change oil regular, just did the usual valve cover gasket, because they go hard with time and weep. Previous owner issues, but good friend, and we work on cars together as a hobby. Will note a good scan tool is worth it's weight in gold, with modern cars you have to start to understand that it is all computers doing the work that before was mechanical, and software that does the work.
Interesting video you obviously know your stuff worth paying the extra to get the job done properly
Thanks for the explanation, great video on why they have pressed cams. I always just thought it was for cost saving and it probably is too.
They are a great way to convert an interference engine into a non-interference :) Certainly saved this long motor from destruction.
I suspect it is far more to do with manufacturing cost and saving weight than surviving timing belt failure.........🤔
Those press fit lobes are very difficult to diagnose if they have only moved 1 degree but will result in a engine running badly. What ever happened to the fixed cast iron camshafts. I’ve worked in this trade for 45 years every thing is over engineered now . What I know now I would not encourage someone to start learning this trade now.
Kinda better than bending the valves.... I’ve never saw a two piece head myself.
Great job, difficult to diagnose a non runner, and as for the other garage..... maybe repaired to a low cost. Costs mount up the more is broken. You do everything properly, and helped them out with the second hand parts👍 and the polar bears are all going to die😂
We have had numerous 2.0 TDI's come in with 140 thousand miles on the original timing belt.
Absolutely ridiculous right..
Most belts from the last 20 years should usually last like twice their recommended interval but as mentioned on the video - it is the other components that fail and then cause belt to also fail.
In the book pack it states 140,000.
Autodata shows 60 thou.
@@Theorangeman. I had skoda 1.9 pd 100 and it was showing 60000miles/5 years whichever comes sooner. That may differ based on the engine but the set up is pretty much the same - camp belt and water pump get changed together as well because in a case of a water pump leak you need to change the camp belt again. In my opinion 1.9 tdi is the best 4 cylinder engine vw ever made. Everything is very simply made and as long as you follow the intervals the engine will last longer than the rest of the car.
@@thepharcyde8285 Which 1.9 TDI though or are you talking about the bottom end? There are like a dozen varieties. Pre-chamber, direct injection, Turbos without VNTs or with, distributor pump mechanically or electronically controlled, "pump duse" or injectors with high pressure pumps in the head.
You should always change oil pump belt also... This 10.- and and max extra hour will be cheaper in long run.
No money left
4 years or 60,000 miles for a timing belt change? What is it, the 1980's? Not sure about time, but most all modern cars have at least 100,000 mile intervals. A Fiat 500 and Jetta Hybrid I did last year specified 150,000 miles. Heck, I replaced the belt in my 1991 Lotus Elan back in 2016 and it had the original 25 year old belt.
Dealer says 30k on one oil . Please don’t tell me you do that 😀
what is the first interval for changing the timing belt set on 2016 leon 1.6 tdi?
EPIC tune playing in the backround
Must be one of the most dispicable cons in the motor trade. Charge someone to replace a timing belt...and just don't do it. I know s chap who got caught exactly like this. Engine completely ruined. There must be a special garage in Hell for these cowboys.
Excellent workmanship here, anyone would be happy to trust you with their car. 24:50
Timming belts are a scam from manufacturers, they can easily have kept timing chains which won't really wear out ,engine should go few hundred thousand miles timming chain still be ok .
Its not Just about chain
Timing chain in my '89 sbc has 360km and it's just broken in
well done your a top mechanic
I was scammed by a car dealer, purchased a Seat Leon supposedly with full service history, some months later I discovered there was no record of the timing belt being replaced. After a long 'discussion' with the company and only after I mentioned Trading Standards did they agree to replace the belt, buyer beware.
Hi there . I have a 2016 amarok 2.0 tdi. 99k km just change the timing belt and it start right away but I notice a little idle shake only the fist start in the morning just before engine warms up . I barely feel the shake and sound . The needle stays right at 800 ish rpm it hops a hair only when the shake higher but come back right away . Is any way to confirm the timing is on the spot or not whit vcds ? Mi timing tool have 2 or 3 degrees of error . Great job , I learned something new today
Great job 👍🏻
Great job guys.... Buh it's ain't fair coming to conclusion that the garage scammed the customer.. Maybe the spares weren't that much genuine......
Pulley clearly said 2016 🤌🤷♂️
At what mileage should a seat leon cambelt be changed
Same thing could happen with clutch replacement..perhaps an old used one is fitted..you can’t see it..same as gearbox oil. I don’t trust garages.
Looks like a business opportunity in resetting lobe positions
😀 let me know when can I send some
This happened to me.
I paid for a timing belt and water pump kit and it was never fitted, even though I was charged for the work. I opened up the bonnet after I got my car back and noticed that the water pump body was corroded, even though a new water pump had apparently been fitted 🤔 I then took off the timing belt inspection cover and discovered that the belt was cracked and it hadn't been changed. I rang the garage and said what had happened, told them that they would be doing my timing belt and water pump for free otherwise trading standards would be involved as I had proof that I had paid for the job and had evidence that it hadn't been done. In the end, it was all sorted and I got my timing belt and water pump replaced for free.
I just did the timing belt on my 2006 MK1 Fabia, 1.4TDi 3-pot.
It has 282.240km (175K+ miles) on the clock.
The belt i removed was original. And it didn't snap.
Either i was extremely lucky, or i just had a very good original belt 😂
Next time please change the cracnkshaft seal that comes with the plastic housing and oil pump belt. :)
Awesome work lads
What a shame it’s such a nice simple job of those engines
Great job, regarding cambelt replacement surely 4 years is too early if the mileage is low? Most manufacturers recommend 10 years
10? Not many have a 10 year interval. In Europe the Ford Fiestas' 8 years is the longest time interval I have seen for belts. Most VAG engines of the early 2000s had 4 or 5 year time intervals as do a majority of other manufacturers. Unless belt and bearing technology has improved significantly I would not listen to those who say "nowadays it's so much longer" for those older engines. Maybe for the new engines, not for the old imo.
@@MiracleMitch MK4 Mondeo 2.0tdci 125,000 miles or 10 years
@@superseven220 Forgot the Mustangs at 150,000 or 15 years. Now that's a long time!
hello great Job Guys !!! thats what happening then you taking Your car to garage who does job cheaper or dont do it at all like this case ! i never take my car to place who does cheaper but in Uk people better spend money on booze and Coke rather fixing their car Properly whats taking them to work to school and thats boils my Piss my brother also Got a garage in Wakefield west yourkshire and people are mental ..can you do cheaper can you do this or that ....its a car and car requires service in time regulary requires best oils and liquids NOT WATER IN COOLING SYSTEM ...its not acceptable ...water is ment only for drinking and washing not in cars cooling system every day cars coming in with water pumps full of rust because of using watter ... so people listen what these Lads saying and explaining to you to AVOID huge bills ... very informative Video thank you !!!
no pre-lubing the lifters?
Great video.
Polar beers will be happy 😂😂 Nice video!
great content guys!!!! really nice to see specialists at work, also its pretty clear how you hate diesel engines, compared to petrol ones, esp.on the example of the SQ5 TDI))
Previous garage sounds like a bunch of cowboys!
Very well done
4:33 looking at the customers tires, it seems there tread is quite low