Change timing belt -major service

[vectra]

I got Vectra 2002 V6 JS II CD Automatic which has done 120k. It is time to do a major service, especially changing timing belt, tensioner, etc. Holden dealer serivce has price of $1000. Just wondering if it is worth to get Holden dealer do it and just find a mechanic.

Thanks, guys.

[Fnomna]

I am about to do this (timing belt) too. Read somewhere it's good to do the water pump at the same time while all the bits are out - it's cheaper this way. Is that correct?
Is it worth going through a Holden dealer to get better quality parts. Normally I don't mind, but something this important I may do.

[Toddler78]

my mum has a 2002 vectra and has just had that service her bill $1400 (not from holden).
personnaly if you dont choose to go through holden I would be going to a major chain like kmart/ultra tune/ repco for example.

[BennyMac]

My cp has a Barina and we are coming up to the 3yr/40,000K major service
and have been quoted around the $1000 mark from Holden :bawl:

Ben

[v8 ute]

These services range between $800.00 & $1,600.00 depending on how much needs doing & the hourly rate.

I would recommend budgeting $1,500.00 and hoping for the best.
I would change the waterpump everytime the timing belt was done.

[spanks]

Just had a look at Auto-data....what a prick of a job that looks like.Also stating that some special tools are required...cams and crank have to be locked.Might just have to bite the bullet and go to Holden.

[Sonnymad]

I got Vectra 2002 V6 JS II CD Automatic which has done 120k. It is time to do a major service, especially changing timing belt, tensioner, etc. Holden dealer serivce has price of $1000. Just wondering if it is worth to get Holden dealer do it and just find a mechanic.

Thanks, guys.


Hi there,

The timing belt on your model is a very delicate job,make sure you choose a good tech and not a grease monkey who graduated from du di dah school.Secondly dont use after market parts for this particular job,use genuine as these vehicles had heaps of issues inside the timing covers.Get the tech to change all the seals,tensioners,water pump..etc..basically everything inside the timing cover.goodluck


regards sonny

[Wonky]

Just had a look at Auto-data....what a prick of a job that looks like.Also stating that some special tools are required...cams and crank have to be locked.

Hope not! :shock: My wife's late 06 Astra will need that sooner or later and I was hoping to buy the parts myself (retired Holden employee pricing) and get Chev to fit them - much cheaper than dealer rates and I trust them much more. Big Rob is very handy at making up special tools so hopefully can do that if required.

[spanks]

Hope not! :shock: My wife's late 06 Astra will need that sooner or later and I was hoping to buy the parts myself (retired Holden employee pricing) and get Chev to fit them - much cheaper than dealer rates and I trust them much more. Big Rob is very handy at making up special tools so hopefully can do that if required.

Just checked for you Wonky.The Astra seems to be ok.If you like i will e-mail a pic of it for you when you get closer to having it done.

[Wonky]

Just checked for you Wonky.The Astra seems to be ok.If you like i will e-mail a pic of it for you when you get closer to having it done.

Excellent! Thanks very much spanks. :thumbsup: Assumed they'd be similar. :doh:

[Toddler78]

and people knock the old push rod V8 I know what id rather have :stick:

[KCB50L]

and people knock the old push rod V8 I know what id rather have :stick:

+1 for that. Timing belt= rubber band :stick:.

[mmciau]

And everyone raves about how good the Family II engines are!!!!!

Major expenses to maintain

Nothing surpasses OHV for relatve simplicity

Mike

[BLACK 346]

+1 for that. Timing belt= rubber band :stick:.

They are an expensive exercise to change that is for sure.
I found it interesting that my mates 07 Focus doesn't require
a belt until the 240k mark :eek: They obviously have a lot
of confidence in that belt. They also dont recommend
doing the airfilter prior to the 50k service, we pulled it out
yesterday at 40k and it was way past it's used by date.

[Sonnymad]

They are an expensive exercise to change that is for sure.
I found it interesting that my mates 07 Focus doesn't require
a belt until the 240k mark :eek: They obviously have a lot
of confidence in that belt. They also dont recommend
doing the airfilter prior to the 50k service, we pulled it out
yesterday at 40k and it was way past it's used by date.


Do you remember the ford taurus ? ford recommended the first service at 100000km's,by golly what confidence that was...where are they all now...:1peek:,Manufacturers have a good way getting rid of the cars quickly so ppl can buy new ones..and its vbery easy..long service intervals..:confused:

[BLACK 346]

Do you remember the ford taurus ? ford recommended the first service at 100000km's,by golly what confidence that was...where are they all now...:1peek:,Manufacturers have a good way getting rid of the cars quickly so ppl can buy new ones..and its vbery easy..long service intervals..:confused:

Funny you should say that Sonny, I was the one who convinced
him to pull out the airfilter for a look, otherwise he was just
going to let Ford take care of it at the next service. One look
at the filter convinced him I was right, next I will work on his
oil change intervals :)

[planetdavo]

And everyone raves about how good the Family II engines are!!!!!

Major expenses to maintain

These Welsh manufactured 54 degree V6 motors have NOTHING in common with the inline 4 cylinder Family 2 motors!
Just about ANY front wheel drive V6 car I care to name has huge timing kit replacement costs, mostly due to difficult access and the need to remove many components before even reaching the belt. :teach:


Manufacturers have a good way getting rid of the cars quickly so ppl can buy new ones..and its very easy..long service intervals..
Not quite.
It's people neglecting the recommended service interval that causes issues, not the long intervals.
Modern vehicles have actually reached the point where the quality of the vehicle and the quality of the lubricants would allow service intervals of far more than 12 months. Pretty well every manufacturer wont pass this point though, as things like brake pads (for hard drivers) can't be guaranteed to last longer than this.

[blackbettyhsv]

Hope not! :shock: My wife's late 06 Astra will need that sooner or later and I was hoping to buy the parts myself (retired Holden employee pricing) and get Chev to fit them - much cheaper than dealer rates and I trust them much more. Big Rob is very handy at making up special tools so hopefully can do that if required.

gary let me know when you go in to chev for this service, our 2001 V6 vectra is up to 84,000, so I still have 36,000 to go but could be another job for chev.

[BLACK 346]

Not quite.
It's people neglecting the recommended service interval that causes issues, not the long intervals.
Modern vehicles have actually reached the point where the quality of the vehicle and the quality of the lubricants would allow service intervals of far more than 12 months. Pretty well every manufacturer wont pass this point though, as things like brake pads (for hard drivers) can't be guaranteed to last longer than this.

That is absolute bullshit Davo, would you leave an air filter in
your car for 50k in dry SA conditions? You do post some shite,
no doubt about that :)

[Sonnymad]

These Welsh manufactured 54 degree V6 motors have NOTHING in common with the inline 4 cylinder Family 2 motors!
Just about ANY front wheel drive V6 car I care to name has huge timing kit replacement costs, mostly due to difficult access and the need to remove many components before even reaching the belt. :teach:


Not quite.
It's people neglecting the recommended service interval that causes issues, not the long intervals.
Modern vehicles have actually reached the point where the quality of the vehicle and the quality of the lubricants would allow service intervals of far more than 12 months. Pretty well every manufacturer wont pass this point though, as things like brake pads (for hard drivers) can't be guaranteed to last longer than this.

Remind me to never let my customers talk to you about lube services,i want my customers engines to last,not die.I,ll let you in on a little secret planetdavo,the "engine oil" if the life of the engine.

[Wonky]

gary let me know when you go in to chev for this service, our 2001 V6 vectra is up to 84,000, so I still have 36,000 to go but could be another job for chev.

Not sure who'll get there first but PM me when the Vectra needs doing and we'll see how things look then.

[planetdavo]

That is absolute bullshit Davo, would you leave an air filter in
your car for 50k in dry SA conditions? You do post some shite,
no doubt about that :)
I think I know the one who's spreading the bullsh!t..:spew:
It is the consumer that demanded these extended service intervals, not the manufacturer! Dealers would be quite happy to see the cars more often, just as other ignorant people like Sonny would as well (hang on, he DOES tell them to come back more often obviously. Cha ching!!!), but as new car purchasers keep demanding reduced servicing costs, the way to achieve this is through extended service intervals. As you obviously haven't read a late model vehicle owners manual lately, they STILL recommend more frequent servicing of vehicles operating in extreme conditions. I'm STILL trying to figure out how a 9 or 12 month service interval could equate to 50,000km, when they are usually 15,000 or 20,000, and either time or distance FIRST! :eek:
Damn this forum has some ill informed, ignorant peckerheads sometimes...:goodjob:


Remind me to never let my customers talk to you about lube services,i want my customers engines to last,not die.I,ll let you in on a little secret planetdavo,the "engine oil" if the life of the engine.
See above.
I'll let you in on a secret too Sonny.
Modern synthetic oils and improved production quality allows most cars to easily do extended times! The owners manual STILL STATES that vehicles operating in extreme conditions should have more frequent services.
You know, that little book every new car comes with, but lazy people can't be bothered getting off their @rses to read...:teach:

[BLACK 346]

Damn this forum has some ill informed, ignorant peckerheads sometimes...

Arguing with someone as highly respected in his field as Sonny
shows how ignorant you are. If you step back and think
about it, you really have described yourself perfectly :goodjob:

[blackbettyhsv]

Not sure who'll get there first but PM me when the Vectra needs doing and we'll see how things look then.

yeh good point gary, we got it jan 06 with 46.600 on speedo, had it 2 years & 8 months now & we've done 42.000 k's so it could be another year or 2 yet.
pity its front wheel drive or I would stick a 6 litre in her :rofl:

[planetdavo]

Arguing with someone as highly respected in his field as Sonny
shows how ignorant you are.
What, the very same Sonny who somehow though it was a good idea to publically admit his company encourages the over-servicing of late model vehicles, as the factory recommended service intervals somehow can't be met with modern oils! :rofl:
Yeah, great idea! Hope ACA or TT don't discover this thread. Must be about time for another auto industry feature story!
Top idea you sided with that argument...:goodjob:

[BLACK 346]

What, the very same Sonny who somehow though it was a good idea to publically admit his company encourages the over-servicing of late model vehicles, as the factory recommended service intervals somehow can't be met with modern oils! :rofl:
Yeah, great idea! Hope ACA or TT don't discover this thread. Must be about time for another auto industry feature story!
Top idea you sided with that argument...:goodjob:

Can you start using spell check and punctuation in your post's,
they are getting really hard to read :)
As for your accusations against Sonny, you better take that
up with him.

[payaya]

Why the hell does the Vectra require a timing belt change after 40000kms??? Seriously I cant see the belt in the Vectra not being as high quality as most other manufacturers. Most drive belts last longer than 40000kms. There is no reason why it should be changed at 40000kms!

[Wonky]

Did I miss something? I read it as the Vectra needs the belt done at 120,000km, not 40,000km....... :confused:

[Fnomna]

done 120k. It is time to do a major service, especially changing timing belt, tensioner, etc.

Since the owners books didn't come with our car, I checked three places and they all said different for the timing belt interval - one Holden dealer said 100k, another said 120k, and UltraTune said 60k.

What does the book say?
Does anyone have the definitive answer on when it should be changed?!
Vectra JSII V6 2.5L auto

[Wonky]

Since the owners books didn't come with our car, I checked three places and they all said different for the timing belt interval - one Holden dealer said 100k, another said 120k, and UltraTune said 60k.

What does the book say?
Does anyone have the definitive answer on when it should be changed?!
Vectra JSII V6 2.5L auto

I certainly wouldn't believe UltraTune!! Most of those places look for any way they can to bleed you of money in my experience. :vpo:

[v8 ute]

Since the owners books didn't come with our car, I checked three places and they all said different for the timing belt interval - one Holden dealer said 100k, another said 120k, and UltraTune said 60k.

What does the book say?
Does anyone have the definitive answer on when it should be changed?!
Vectra JSII V6 2.5L auto


My timing belt book says that the V6 Vectra is 120,000km or 8 years.

[blackbettyhsv]

Since the owners books didn't come with our car, I checked three places and they all said different for the timing belt interval - one Holden dealer said 100k, another said 120k, and UltraTune said 60k.

What does the book say?
Does anyone have the definitive answer on when it should be changed?!
Vectra JSII V6 2.5L auto

mate when I went in at 60.000 to get our belt done, my HSV mechanic showed me the paper work, which read that the V6 only version of the vectra had been changed to 120.000 k's. all other models still had to be done at 60.000 k's.
but in saying that ours is a ZC 3.2 litre cdxi, Im not sure if there is a difference from ours to yours, lol probably made it more confusing now sorry

[seldo]

It's a pretty critical issue and worth doing early rather than late.
My daughter was intelligent enough to call into a local workshop on her way home from work last week because there was a funny "swishing" noise from the engine on her RAV4. Turns out the idler pulley had frozen and the belt was only still together by a few threads. The bloke said that it was literally only a minute away from total disaster.... :shock:

[Fnomna]

Thanks for the replies. A lot of UK info says the smaller engines are the ones that need it done at the shorter intervals. Some say the V6 has metal rollers compared to plastic ones in the 4's.

There's no noises from the engine. I'll go by 120,000 but check one more Holden dealer today as well.
UltraTune didn't seem to know any differences between the intervals for each engine. I think I'll take Holden's word over them.

[Fnomna]

Well, noises did start coming from the car. It turned out to be the water pump which I was considering doing anyway.
With the baby we thought it easiest to get a mobile mechanic out. Ended up being $600 total - 4 hours labour - for the water pump, timing belt and accessories belt. Just the accessories belt requires undoing the engine mount! They don't make it easy do they?
Interval for the 2.5 V6 is 120,000 or 8 years according to the timing belt book.