Peugeot 206 cambelt

rim12, Sep 11, 7:36am
Peugeot 206 1400cc engine,year of car is 2001,mileage is genuine 29,000kms. should I replace cambelt or leave it to replacement mileage?

poppy62, Sep 11, 7:43am
Differing thoughts on this by the Gurus on here. It's specified as 100,000kms but some on here say 5 years. I err towards the 100k as the average yearly is taken as 10000kms. But having said all that the cambelt kit is about $65.00 from Repco (Gates brand, is good). Personally I'd carry on motoring and do it at 50,000kms.

jmma, Sep 11, 7:52am
But the belt is nearly 15 years old, SNAP (o:
Yes do it now.
Cambelt kit $65? poppy what year did you buy one (o:

martin11, Sep 11, 7:40pm
Change one in a european car with 45,000 KM but 8 years old and it was perished on the inside with some cracks . Change it now before it breaks !

poppy62, Sep 11, 8:48pm
Hi mate, how are you hope all is well in camp jmma! Actually did a cam belt on a 1360cc (1.4i same engine) Citroen 2 weeks ago. The price to me from Repco was either $24.00 for the belt or $45.00 for the kit. I bought the kit and the $65.00 is what I'm allowing for no discount. I also did the clutch at the same time. $56.00 for the plate and $65.00 for the pressure plate. Front brake pads $29.00. and rear shoes $45.00. I Think I got ripped off. Oh forgot had to replace the front rotors for a WOF. $ 30.00 each and everything available over the counter.

poppy62, Sep 11, 8:52pm
How is it a belt that is made by the same company (say for example Gates) going to be more vulnerable in a Euro car than any other make. Are you inferring that if the OP asked about a Nissan/mazda etc., you would make a different call.

robotnik, Sep 11, 9:19pm
The cost of doing the cambelt, tensioners, water pump, etc. will be more than the car is worth on one of those, so leave it.

mm12345, Sep 11, 9:54pm
I'd possibly make a different call if it was some Mazda - most are non-interference, so while it's a bit sad being stuck on the side of the road with a busted cambelt, it's much sadder being stuck on the side of the road with a broken belt and a munted engine.

I think one of the reasons for different service intervals on belts for different models of car probably includes the cam and crank pulley design, smaller pulleys mean the belt is getting more stress as it's being pulled around a tighter diameter, the force needed to rotate the cams is greater with the smaller pulley, and there are fewer belt teeth engaged. But you get a slightly smaller and lighter engine and a reduction in rotating mass, probably save a few cents worth of fuel, costs less to make, and hey - so long as the cambelt lasts the warranty period or is excluded from the warranty, it's not the car maker's problem.

martin11, Sep 11, 10:19pm
Gates actually recommend the belts are changed at 60,000 km . Also a lot depends on the pulley size and other factors also its a lot cheaper to change the belt than to rebuild the engine if its an interferance motor

thunderbolt, Sep 11, 11:40pm
There are many influencing factors in recommended replacement intervals, sometimes the tensioners are the deciding factor, not the belt.
Printed replacement guides are only accurate at the time of printing, and some manufacturers reduce the recommended intervals if they start seeing premature failures. Vehicles sourced from Europe account for most of these.

Back to the OP's question, I would recommend replacement on that timeframe.

intrade, Sep 11, 11:57pm
thats the most dumbest advice i ever seen you post.
you just have to do the belt nothing more as the rest wont be worn , if you want to save loads of money , i would write in the service history exactly belt only change rest was checked, coolant should be exchanged probably also if it was not and brake fluid.
if its got a self tensioner you replace that also with belt the bearings will normaly last 40% longer then the belt so at that milage they wont have rotated much, if its true geniuen milage that is and its not idled as a taxi all day long for years.

ema1, Sep 12, 3:03am
Can't imagine a Peugeot 206 being used as a taxi . intrade, but I would expect lots of short runs or no use time in the car to have such a low km reading?
With such a low distance traveled in it's lifetime the car will have very little wear as mentioned and it would seem a comparatively cheap exercise and wise to do the cambelt job and even the seals in the vicinity( seals do dry up go hard and shrink) purely as preventative maintenance.
That's what I'd do, and change fluids as well would be a good idea given the time frame.

robotnik, Sep 12, 3:46am
Yep, you are right, a belt only change would be fine with such low mileage. But anyway how much would a PSA dealership charge do do it, over a grand at least, right? That is too much on a car you'd have trouble giving away.

poppy62, Sep 12, 4:59am
You seem to have a propensity for the absurd. Why does a PSA dealership have to do a simple job like a cam belt change? There are places that offer a belt supply and replacement for about $200.00. You've obviously got a Euro problem, which makes you say stupid things.

trogedon, Sep 12, 5:13am
Agreed.

djrandomguy, Sep 12, 11:33pm
"Euro's are expensive to repair" said the ill informed time traveller from 2002.
The TU series of engines is easy to repair, easy to access and pretty damn tough if maintained. Get in touch with a garage familiar with the car and it'll cost no more or less than a honda civic cam belt job.

franc123, Sep 13, 12:32am
Precisely, its common sense and especially so if you are planning on keeping the car for several years. From what I've seen of timing belt designs on the smaller later model Euro engines they are pretty straightforward to do and preferable to having an underengineered chain setup or equally as bad an excessively complicated belt setup that's a $1200 marathon to do. Its a pity that some are on a quite short replacement interval which needs to be stuck to in my experience. Its only once you get into the likes of V6 Passats etc when things get complicated but it helps dramatically with having the right tools.

franc123, Jul 4, 1:02am
Yep, belt width and tooth profile are pretty important in determining these intervals. The older square profiles were definitely more prone to shearing off around the crank sprocket while round teeth were more prone to jumping if the belt tension decreased enough, a compromise of the two works the best.