# The deal with timing chains/belts on the 2.5



## ajd187 (Feb 6, 2012)

What's up with timing chains/belts on the 2.5 engine?

This weekend I mentioned to a friend that I had gotten a VW. He used to own an 00 Jetta and said "do the timing chains when they say to, it's expensive when you don't", and then went on to recount a story about his car and a timing chain failure that led to an $1800 repair.

I know that was before the 2.5 engine was out and it looks like this was a VR6, a 1.8, or a 2.0T.

On my 09 2.5 do I need to worry about the timing chains/belts and a change interval? I recall reading somwhere that these are "lifetime" belts but I wasn't sure if that was the case.


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## LampyB (Apr 2, 2007)

no, you're good to go on your '09 model's timing chain. it will last a very long time, and i believe it's technically rated by VW as a lifetime part. the only years that experienced premature issues with the timing chain were '05-'07 2.5l models, and it wasn't the chain itself the plastic guides wore down easily. from '08+ we're good to go!

your buddy's old car most likely had a rubber belt, which should be replaced around the 75K mile mark. and often it was the water pump that went bad before the timing belt on the older models that caused everything to blow out.


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## ajd187 (Feb 6, 2012)

After I posted this I saw that the recommended interval in the manual was 110K miles, "where applicable".

I have another friend who has an 07 Wolfsburg which I think is the 2.0T, and she was complaining about the cost of some maintenance at a 70K service interval.

Good to know that it is good to go. I figured as much, this seems to be a newer improved breed of VW engine.


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## BPoilspill (Oct 9, 2010)

I just picked up a clean 07 2.5 Jetta, are there updated plastic guides that I could put on that would remedy this issue?


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## alwaysdutch (Oct 19, 2011)

Yes. If you buy the guides now, you will get the ones that will be good. However, you will probably also need tensioners, a new chain and some tools to do this job. There are many threads about this matter....


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## [email protected] (Jan 2, 2009)

We're actually putting together two kits- one with the parts to rebuild the upper chain, and one to rebuild ALL the chains. 

We made the cam locking tools, so they are cheaper then the OE ones. The whole thing should be quite reasonable. Time to see some of these engines getting FIXED, not replaced.


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## gl_volks (Sep 19, 2011)

[email protected] said:


> We're actually putting together two kits- one with the parts to rebuild the upper chain, and one to rebuild ALL the chains.
> 
> We made the cam locking tools, so they are cheaper then the OE ones. The whole thing should be quite reasonable. Time to see some of these engines getting FIXED, not replaced.


:thumbup:

I have an '06 with approx. 116,000km (72,000 miles), no issues so far (knock on wood), but I would be happy to have the peace of mind with replaced, updated parts.


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## quaudi (Jun 25, 2001)

Did upper and lower chains on my 05.5 VE at 132000 miles. Slight stretching in chains due to metal wear but other than that, never a problem. All new components in there now. Cannot believe how quiet and smooth and responsive the engine is. I'm sure syn oil changes every 5K had a bit to do with the chain life.

Also just had my first part failure at 138000...right side rear wheel bearing.


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## Gott ist gut (Jul 2, 2010)

quaudi said:


> Did upper and lower chains on my 05.5 VE at 132000 miles. Slight stretching in chains due to metal wear but other than that, never a problem. All new components in there now. Cannot believe how quiet and smooth and responsive the engine is. I'm sure syn oil changes every 5K had a bit to do with the chain life.
> 
> Also just had my first part failure at 138000...right side rear wheel bearing.


Good to know Quaudi.
I've been stressing about my timing chains, did you purchase the pieces separate or buy the IE kit? How much did you pay for parts? Did you install yourself? And I'm at 101k and my front right bearing started howling about 5k miles ago.


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## quaudi (Jun 25, 2001)

Gott ist gut said:


> Good to know Quaudi.
> I've been stressing about my timing chains, did you purchase the pieces separate or buy the IE kit? How much did you pay for parts? Did you install yourself? And I'm at 101k and my front right bearing started howling about 5k miles ago.


I never stressed about the chains, just always changed oil religously. I purchased a complete kit from ECS Tuning for about $550. It is a pretty heavy duty job to do upper and lower chains so I had a great indie shop perform the work. The ECS kit has absolutely everything needed. As I mentioned earlier, the new chains and components worked wonders on the car. As the tech explained to me, its a job that addresses a lot of adjustments and settings that over time slowly deteriorate. It is a very noticeable difference. FWIW, I'm not a big fan of ECS but their kit for this is fantastic. A :thumbup: to them for this.


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