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I am buying my fathers 2003 Toyota Avalon. It has only 59000 on it. He just had the airbag recall done at the dealer. They suggested the timing belt be changed saying that while the miles are not that high, the belt is original and 11 years old. While doing that it would be cheapest to change the water pump at that time because of it's location, which is original too. They quoted 750 dollars for all which does not sound outrageous. Does this sound logical or are they trying to do unneeded work?
At 11 years old, yeah I'd say get it done. The cost of replacing the water pump at the same time is nominal compared to having it replaced separately since the labor is almost entirely duplicated so you'd only be paying the labor cost once instead of twice -- and labor is roughly 80% of the cost of this particular service. That's why just about every mechanic will suggest replacing one any time they're replacing the other. At 60K the water pump isn't at high risk for failure any time soon, but the risk grows exponentially between now and the next scheduled timing belt change. So I guess you might as well do it now.
$750K seems on the high side of reasonable, but still reasonable.
Belt, water pump, idler wheel cost less than $100 [$80 for my Honda] So you're paying $650 for labor. Many parts have to be removed to get at the belt. Job takes a few hours.
The dealers always charge an arm and a leg for repairs. Find a reputable shop in your area to do the timing belt replacement and you'll save a bunch. I am actually surprised that none of you " car" guys... Didn't suggest this and I am a girl!
Yes, the price is actually fantastic. I replaced a 2002 Subaru timing belt and water pump when it had around 80K on it, specifically because sometimes car age > mileage. But $750 will be a great preventative sum well-spent.
I killed a perfectly good running Honda Accord by being cheap and lazy and not having the timing belt done. I kept putting it off and one day, while driving down the road, it let loose and that was the end of that motor.
Yes, 11 years is a long time, do it. $750 is reasonable IMO.
I have a 2002 Subaru WRX with 57k miles and included all belt replacements and water pump with its 60k mile service. It definitely behooves you to get this done now and not have to worry about it basically ever again.
wow, you dont find bugeyes with that low mileage anymore. Probably good you went ahead and did it even though it technically isnt due til 105k...that's an old belt even with 57k on it.
For a motor that is supposed to run “forever”, 59,000 miles is pretty short. The engine is barely broken in .
Belts are wear and tear items. The car is 11 years old which means the belt is 11 years old.
With your thought, would you tell someone who has an 11 year old car with 1,500 miles that the oil in it is still good since it only has 1,500 miles?
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