Timing belt change on 2006 Aveo LS: My new detailed write-up

[bann]

This is supposed to be a 60,000 mile part however I have had to replace 3 times in less than 60,000 miles this is an expensive fix since every time it breaks you have to replace the water pump also min fix cost is $550 once it even blew a head gasket so I ended up paying $2600 to get everything fixed and 2 of the 3 times the car has left me stranded on the side of the road in the dark. I am female so this is a huge concern for me. I take good care of this car and change out oil every 3000 miles the spark plugs every 10000 and rotate tires every oil change. I take it for the 90k 120k check ups. This car has not been neglected however has definitely let me down. The rest of my family owns Toyotas and they barely every have to take their cars for any repairs only change out the oil and take for a bath. I spend so much time in the shop and have spent now thousands on rental cars at this point it would have been cheaper for me to get an upgraded car and just go with the Toyota which will be my next choice. Here I bought this car because we are supposed to support American brands however this car wasn't even made in America so I guess the Korean's don't care if some woman half way across the world is stuck on the side of the road in the dark.

[avguy]

This is supposed to be a 60,000 mile part however I have had to replace 3 times in less than 60,000 miles this is an expensive fix since every time it breaks you have to replace the water pump also min fix cost is $550 once it even blew a head gasket so I ended up paying $2600 to get everything fixed and 2 of the 3 times the car has left me stranded on the side of the road in the dark. I am female so this is a huge concern for me. I take good care of this car and change out oil every 3000 miles the spark plugs every 10000 and rotate tires every oil change. I take it for the 90k 120k check ups. This car has not been neglected however has definitely let me down. The rest of my family owns Toyotas and they barely every have to take their cars for any repairs only change out the oil and take for a bath. I spend so much time in the shop and have spent now thousands on rental cars at this point it would have been cheaper for me to get an upgraded car and just go with the Toyota which will be my next choice. Here I bought this car because we are supposed to support American brands however this car wasn't even made in America so I guess the Korean's don't care if some woman half way across the world is stuck on the side of the road in the dark.

IMO you have been getting some bad advice, along with much worse service from whatever shop you are taking your Aveo to.
First off, the water pump does not need to be replaced every time the belt is changed, unless it's damaged. Those of us who DIY this work tend to replace all 4 timing belt components every time, but only because it's not much more $$ for us to do so. A shop however is marking up the water pump along with the bill for the rest of the job, and the tab goes up in a hurry adding in the other parts. The general practice for those paying a shop is to have all 4 belt components changed every other interval (i.e. 120K).

Next, unless I'm misunderstanding, you had 3 belts break within one 60K mile interval. If so, somebody is doing something wrong on this job. These belts are made extremely well, are very durable and long-lasting, and rarely would one break for no reason. The 3 belts that I've changed (all over 60K) all looked brand new when they were removed. So I believe that either the mechanic is making a mistake on the installation, or one of the other 2 pulleys is defective. Unfortunately, there is of course no way to prove this after the fact.

Last but not least (again JMO), a quality repair shop that stands behind their work should be doing these repeated repairs at N/C to you. They should be trying to chase their parts supplier for partial or full reimbursement. The failure to do this is again a sign of an unprofessional shop. I believe these problems have nothing whatsoever to do with the quality of the Aveo - many of us who are not professional mechanics do this job with complete success.

I think you've been badly raked over the coals by this shop, even though they may be trying to put the blame elsewhere, such as on the Aveo or the parts. I advise you to ditch this shop and find another one to have your future work done.

[thankful_ragamuffin]

I agree with Avguy; you need to find another shop. As a service manager, I can tell you a well run shop will have a good relationship with its suppliers and if a part failed, even outside of the basic warranty period, the supplier will step up to the plate and help out. Most shops have a fund set aside to help customers when things go wrong that are not really anybody's fault (crap happens) - my boss just did a goodwill engine on a Duramax ($12,000) because the rebuilder has a B.S. warranty. So you shouldn't be continually paying for the same repair. If the shop blames the car, it is a sign that the techs are too lazy to research the repair procedures - the engineering in these cars is sound. These engines were used in Europe for years before the Koreans started using them. Ask around to find a better shop.

[Niran]

Thank you Zubin, your instructions and photos are better than a Haines workshop Manual. I was able to replace my daughters Holden Barina TK timing belt (after much consternation as to why any engine designer in their right mind would incorporate the water pump into the valve drive system) with a sense of achievement, specially since I saved many hundreds of $$ as quoted by my local Holden service department.

Your idea about marking the new belt with white-out saved a lot of time and energy when trying to line up the belt for tensioning. I was also able to get away with using adjustable locking plumbing pliers instead of the special tool to rotate the water pump for tensioning.

I was also lucky (keeping my fingers crossed), that the water pump was in good shape and hence my considered decision to leave it alone (without completely removing it from the engine to replace the housing gasket). I would advise to readers to use their own judgment depending on the age of your Engine.

thanks muchly.

[xintersecty]

I replaced the seal on my water pump the last time I did this repair. No way I am touching that again. I had to remove the plastic that was covering up the water pump that was covered up by the valve gears. I love my aveo but after that process I really wanted to punch that engineer (committee).

[L88]

I have experienced the miserable job of changing a 2006 timing belt twice over many miles and I spent the big dollars for a factory service manual, and I read many people's articles so I know what I'm talking about. This is a tough job and it took me a lot of hours and many days. It can be done but it is not a job for the weak at heart. Zubin Chandran's explanation is very good but I think I can add a couple very valuable additions to it. #1 don't waste your money on the expensive water pump tools J-42492-A or Sealy VS090 nor try to cheap out with a pair of channel lock pliers but instead spend the best $20 of your life on the Lisle 41 mm 13500 tool (see attached picture) and you will thank me. #2 If you are going to do this job buy yourself a new belt tensioner and water pump and for god sakes, make sure that every time you touch this job you buy a new water pump oring, and put some clean engine oil on it before installing, being cheap is a stupid idea when you are this deep in to the engine. #3 make 100% sure that your timing marks on the two cams and the crank all line up perfectly (see attached picture #4 you can remove the water pump with the lousy plastic inner timing cover still bolted in place at the top but you have to be very patient and be a contortionist, it can be done. #5 The most important step which Chandran describes well but does not show well-the procedure for adjusting the water pump marks (see my attached pictures). When you first put everything together you want to turn the water pump until the front pointed marker lines up with the U-shaped depression in the rear piece of the tensioner, and then, as Chandran's writeup reads you want to gently turn the engine over twice and then gently loosen the water pump bolts and turn the water pump counterclockwise with the Lisle tool until the front pointed marker lines up with the rear pointed marker (see attached picture). Then, because I fretted to death about this because I didn't want to bend a valve, I turned the engine over by hand time and time again watching the cam pointer line up to each other and seeing the crank pointer at the bottom line up to it's mark and watching the front and rear pointers on the tensioner move around a bit. You want to put a lot of patience and time in to this or you'll screw yourself. Kevin Lambert
L88@email.com

[Valalvax]

So, I'm looking at doing this soon, but I just can't see myself doing that myself, at least not right now and it's our only vehicle so if I do it wrong... you get the picture

About how much am I looking to spend for just the belt and how much for both belt and pump, I saw a figure of 300/800

Would it be worth it to buy the parts myself and have the shop put it in or is the markup not high enough to warrant that? (wouldn't care if it'd save me a whole 20 bucks and I'd still be paying close to 800 dollars)

Reading the thread I saw a comment about first gen and second gen Aveos, second gen replacement being at 100k, is a 08 first or second gen?

[xintersecty]

Reading the thread I saw a comment about first gen and second gen Aveos, second gen replacement being at 100k, is a 08 first or second gen?

You want to buy a kit. On Rock Auto they range between 70 to 110 including water pump.

You did not mention your year, so I am assuming 2008. Here is a link to a kit:
http://www.amazon.com/Gates-TCKWP335...eo+timing+belt

So that should get you in the ball park price. Most shops don't bother marking up parts (not too much). So if they are charging hundreds for the part, then you need to go elsewhere.

[Valalvax]

You want to buy a kit. On Rock Auto they range between 70 to 110 including water pump.

You did not mention your year, so I am assuming 2008. Here is a link to a kit:
http://www.amazon.com/Gates-TCKWP335...eo+timing+belt

So that should get you in the ball park price. Most shops don't bother marking up parts (not too much). So if they are charging hundreds for the part, then you need to go elsewhere.

Yea, 2008, I guess I should have said that first

I always assumed they overcharge on the parts... but if they don't there's no reason for me to get the parts myself when the shop can get them for me lol

[xintersecty]

Yeah, but get a quote first. It's actually an easy replace. It's tedious and there is not too much in the way. However if you have to replace the water pump, that's a bitch as you have to take off the cam gears. They don't break easily and then there is that crap plastic in the way.

But since I don't trust mechanics, it's takes a lot for me to part with my cold hard cash to give to a mechanic.