# timing belt @70k



## twisted turbo (Mar 12, 2005)

how much longer should i wait? the belt is still tight and i dont see any cracks. how much longer should i be able to wait


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## guiltyblade (Jul 12, 2007)

twisted turbo said:


> how much longer should i wait? the belt is still tight and i dont see any cracks. how much longer should i be able to wait


personally im gonna do mine around 80-90, closer to 80 though.


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## seanarms (Oct 16, 2010)

It depends. I have a 2008 A3 with 82,000 miles. I opted to wait because the car is still under a 100K warranty. That said I will probably wait until 95,000 to change. If it were not for the warranty I would have changed the belt at 75,000 or earlier.


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## Kriminal (Jul 3, 2007)

Personally, I wouldn't wait any longer. Not to try and scare you into buying it, but there were issues on TT sites when Audi had printed, initially, that the belts needed changing every 100k. It was around 60k that they snapped, and screwed the engines !

After many complaints, and vehicles being returned on the back off trucks, Audi then changed the print to 80k, although they never informed any owners of previously bought TT's.

I bought my A3 last July at 70k, and told the dealer that I wouldn't shake hands unless they were to replace the belt, due to the above circumstances.

Personally I wouldn't wait for the worst to happen


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## MisterJJ (Jul 28, 2005)

Nobody has reported an early failure of a timing belt on a 2006+ 2.0t FSI engine. Ever. Prove me wrong.

There was some guy that reported one breaking at well over 100k miles, but that's it. I've got over 80k and plan on doing it when I have time.


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## Travis Grundke (May 26, 1999)

Within the last year Audi of America sent out a bulletin to all A3 owners stating that the interval had been bumped from 75,000 to 105,000, IIRC.


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## Spitzbergen (Sep 10, 2010)

Travis Grundke said:


> Within the last year Audi of America sent out a bulletin to all A3 owners stating that the interval had been bumped from 75,000 to 105,000, IIRC.


Good to know!


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## Krieger (May 5, 2009)

MisterJJ said:


> Nobody has reported an early failure of a timing belt on a 2006+ 2.0t FSI engine. Ever. Prove me wrong.
> 
> There was some guy that reported one breaking at well over 100k miles, but that's it. I've got over 80k and plan on doing it when I have time.


2 that I remember that broke at or around 80,000.

also, iirc at least one other has their belt jump timing, but that was a while back.

if it was important, id do a search, but I just dont care enough. lmao.

when we pulled mine, the belt looked great, no cracking, fraying, drying, kinks, anything.


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## MisterJJ (Jul 28, 2005)

Krieger said:


> 2 that I remember that broke at or around 80,000.


Not on this forum. I've been here since 2005 and haven't seen any. You can also search the general 2.0t engine forum here. No reports of failures that I can find. So I stand by my words... Prove me wrong.


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## vwlippy (Jul 17, 2001)

Needed it or not. I had mine done around 72k. I was going on a long trip and just wanted it done. 
It is expensive though...... over $1k (from Audi).


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## Krieger (May 5, 2009)

MisterJJ said:


> Not on this forum. I've been here since 2005 and haven't seen any. You can also search the general 2.0t engine forum here. No reports of failures that I can find. So I stand by my words... Prove me wrong.


not on this forum, but a local to me by the username of matteo716 had his 08 GTI's timing belt snap on him. only mod is an air intake.

as for on this forum, I could have sworn there was at least 1 belt that broke, or skipped timing or something. in the technical section for 2.0t FSI.

link to the local guy's thread: http://www.cfleuro.net/forums/showthread.php?t=4036&highlight=timing+belt


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## Digipix (Jun 6, 2006)

did mine at 90k


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## A3_yuppie (Jun 5, 2006)

Travis Grundke said:


> Within the last year Audi of America sent out a bulletin to all A3 owners stating that the interval had been bumped from 75,000 to 105,000, IIRC.


Hey can anyone confirm this? Dropped off my 2006 A3 2.0T FSI for its 75K miles service this morning, was told that Audi recommends changing timing belt, water pump, etc. at 75K miles. Seems quite early. Was quoted $1730 for the job! Would like to let the service department know ASAP. Thank you.


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## dmorrow (Jun 9, 2000)

Travis Grundke said:


> Within the last year Audi of America sent out a bulletin to all A3 owners stating that the interval had been bumped from 75,000 to 105,000, IIRC.


I read the same thing but would add that Audi also doesn't pay for it if some percentage don't make it to this mileage (the recommend it but don't guarantee it).

I got mine done at 75k miles as I won't keep it long enough to have it done again at 150k miles so I would have to have done it once while I owned it and there isn't much to gain by pushing the limit and a huge amount to lose by pushing it to far and causing a huge amount of engine damage.


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## cldub (Jul 2, 2010)

Did mine at 78k, no cracks or anything wrong with it. Preventative maintenance ftw


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## Uber-A3 (Feb 23, 2002)

A3_yuppie said:


> Hey can anyone confirm this? Dropped off my 2006 A3 2.0T FSI for its 75K miles service this morning, was told that Audi recommends changing timing belt, water pump, etc. at 75K miles. Seems quite early. Was quoted $1730 for the job! Would like to let the service department know ASAP. Thank you.


Yes I received my card in the mail and put it in the owners manual.


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## Rob Cote (Dec 6, 2006)

vwlippy said:


> Needed it or not. I had mine done around 72k. I was going on a long trip and just wanted it done.
> It is expensive though...... over $1k (from Audi).


If you know how to spin a wrench, you can do it for


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## cldub (Jul 2, 2010)

robs92jettv2.0 said:


> If you know how to spin a wrench, you can do it for


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## KnockKnock (Jun 30, 2005)

pardon my laziness, what does the lightweight pully do? anything wrong with the stock? thx.


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## yakkonvazn (Jan 14, 2003)

DIY detail by detail vimeo/youtube please!.. i'd rather donate my money towards that... well not all of it.. but you know.


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## Rob Cote (Dec 6, 2006)

KnockKnock said:


> pardon my laziness, what does the lightweight pulley do? anything wrong with the stock? thx.


I assume this is an alternator underdrive pulley. A lot of people claim it increases engine acceleration. I suppose it would increase it to an extent. What it's really doing is spinning your alternator slower, decreasing its output. This reduces the effect of inertial forces inside the alternator, increasing overall power. I don't really buy into its effect being noticeable, but I've never had one. A friend of mine has one on a 1.8t and said he noticed no difference. I think it's a placebo effect. You spent money on it, so you feel that it's faster/better/more powerful.


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## cldub (Jul 2, 2010)

I've noticed a slight increase in how quickly the engine revs, more so how quickly it de-revs (for lack of better words). The lightweight pulley I installed is the one that the timing belt wraps around, that directly affects the cylinders

I wouldn't say you gain more power, just you lose less, if that makes sense


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## skotti (Sep 27, 2005)

Timing belt failure at less than 40,000 miles on a 2007 A3:
http://forums.audiworld.com/showthread.php?t=2804767


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## crew219 (Oct 18, 2000)

skotti said:


> Timing belt failure at less than 40,000 miles on a 2007 A3:
> http://forums.audiworld.com/showthread.php?t=2804767


Looks like it was the cam chain which probably meant the either the hydraulic adjuster failed or that the cam follower punched through and a piece of it lodged in the chain.


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## vwlippy (Jul 17, 2001)

robs92jettv2.0 said:


> If you know how to spin a wrench, you can do it for


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## TBomb (Sep 23, 2009)

vwlippy said:


> ....uh, pretty sure its a little more complicated than that.


Ok...if you know how to spin a wrench and read instructions :laugh:


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## mike3141 (Feb 16, 1999)

Here's the page with AoA's recommended service schedules:

http://www.audiusa.com/us/brand/en/owners/audi_service/service/maintenance.html


It says that they recommend changing the timing belt at 110K miles.


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## Rob Cote (Dec 6, 2006)

vwlippy said:


> ....uh, pretty sure its a little more complicated than that.


Not really. I did it.


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## VWAddict (Jun 12, 1999)

robs92jettv2.0 said:


> Not really. I did it.


yeah... but you're a _mathmagician!_

:laugh:


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## Machnickiⓐⓤⓓⓘ (May 14, 2008)

I'd be willing to give it a shot once it warms up a little more. Does anyone have a guide?


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## Rob Cote (Dec 6, 2006)

VWAddict said:


> yeah... but you're a _mathmagician!_
> 
> :laugh:


Hahaha apparently not because I ended up with 2, not 288. 

Bentley Publishers has a VERY GOOD write-up on how to perform this service :thumbup:


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## forma (Nov 22, 2005)

many times it's not the "belt" that fail but the water pump and/or the tensioner, by changing just the "belt" won't suffice, IMHO

60K interval is what i subscribe to.


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## MisterJJ (Jul 28, 2005)

forma said:


> many times it's not the "belt" that fail but the water pump and/or the tensioner, by changing just the "belt" won't suffice, IMHO
> 
> 60K interval is what i subscribe to.


The water pumps used to use a plastic that would not last but that's been changed. Tensioners have been improved as well. I have not seen a single instance of a premature timing belt, water pump, or tensioner failure on any 2.0t FSI engine. Too bad I can't say the same about HPFP cam followers, which can jam the camshaft and cause the belt to break. I'm at 82k miles and will get around to changing it soon... I think.


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## ruso (Jul 29, 2004)

MisterJJ said:


> Nobody has reported an early failure of a timing belt on a 2006+ 2.0t FSI engine. Ever. Prove me wrong.


 I know this thread is a few years old... but I'll prove you wrong. 

Stay tuned for details.


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## MisterJJ (Jul 28, 2005)

ruso said:


> I know this thread is a few years old... but I'll prove you wrong.
> 
> Stay tuned for details.


 Looking forward to it. Make sure you include details on any cam follower failures in the engines history.


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## ruso (Jul 29, 2004)

MisterJJ said:


> Looking forward to it. Make sure you include details on any cam follower failures in the engines history.


 Well, here you go... 

 

2007 VW GTI 2.0T FSI 
77,007 miles 
Oil and filter change every 5,000-7,000 miles 

The cam follower for the high pressure fuel pump went at about 12,500 miles after an APR High Pressure Fuel Pump installation at about 8,000 miles (http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...-like-this&p=48733510&viewfull=1#post48733510), which required replacement of the intake cam shaft. The OEM high pressure fuel pump was then re-installed and didn't replace the next follower until about 60,000 miles. At that time,the coating was worn off, but the follower was surprisingly in good shape. 

Fast forward to 77,000 miles:


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## JPK_ (May 25, 2012)

I'm in New Zealand and it is 5 years or 100,000kms here. No idea why there is such long intervals in the United States.


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## Dr Chill (Aug 24, 2011)

In answer to the original poster's question, if you are planning on keeping the car well past 100,000 miles, there's no reason not to change the timing belt and water pump earlier than 80,000 miles. Why wait and take any chances since the aftermath of a broken belt usually is a motor rebuild or new motor.


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## MisterJJ (Jul 28, 2005)

ruso said:


> The cam follower for the high pressure fuel pump went at about 12,500 miles after an APR High Pressure Fuel Pump installation at about 8,000 miles


 As I suspected. Broken cam follower pieces flying around likely caused stress on the belt as they jammed at various points in the cam drivetrain. This could cause premature failure later on or it's possible one of those piece got dislodged much later and jammed something at the time of the belt failure. That's why I do this :banghead: when people say they will just ignore the cam follower and wait for it to break under warranty. 

I don't believe that one case of a belt breaking at 77k miles proves that the timing belt can break prematurely when the valve train had suffered catastrophic failure at some point. And that's not even counting the additional stress due to the APR pump and whatever other mods have been done.


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## Xymox (Jul 1, 1999)

Travis Grundke said:


> Within the last year Audi of America sent out a bulletin to all A3 owners stating that the interval had been bumped from 75,000 to 105,000, IIRC.


 Cheers to you. Adhere to the guidelines, folks. Simple as that.


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