Camry 1998

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Wed 30 Mar 2005 19:56
Camry 1998 - Avantra
Posting a question by my father:
He bought a Toyota Camry 1998 with 75000 miles under its belt+history. The service records don't say specificaly if a cam belt was changed. His questions are as follow:
1.Toyota in Barnstaple insist that they only change the belt and there is no need for tensioners or pulley to be changed as part of the service is this correct? isn't it will be better to do this at the same time?
2.Is £185 for the job and parts is reasonable? Is it an easy car to work on by the local garage and not by Toyota? they ask only £120 for the lot.
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Wed 30 Mar 2005 20:36
Camry 1998 - enchanted_beans
Hi
You didn't say which engine size the Camry was? The normal 2.0 or 2.2 are very easy to work on with plenty of access, but the V6 3.0 is a bit fiddly. Our workshop has changed several timing belts on the 4cyl models with no problems whatsoever. With regard to the tensioners, we would inspect them and with the belt removed, spin them to check for bearing noise and check for any movement in the spindles. They're normally fine and I don't recall changing one before, and certainly not at 75000 miles. By all means taake the car to Toyota if you want the job done in the most expensive way, but any reputable independant garage will be just as able and will care a lot more.

A good friend of mine drove his Lexus LS400 away from the dealer after a £450 cambelt change and the engine cooling fan fell off and smashed through the radiator. The 'expert' Toyota trained technician had forgotten to tighten the nut, and he was charged £95 per hour (+ VAT) for the privilege! Needless to say, when his current Lexus needed the cambelt change, he gave it to us, saved £200 on labour (still used genuine Toyota parts) and has had no problems since.
Good luck, and at least by buying a Camry, your father should ensure that the bonnet need be up as little as possible.
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Wed 30 Mar 2005 20:38
Camry 1998 - enchanted_beans
Oh, and yes, £120 sounds fine to me for the job.
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Wed 30 Mar 2005 23:23
Camry 1998 - Avantra
Thanks a lot for the info , the model is a 2.2 auto.
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Thu 31 Mar 2005 15:20
Camry 1998 - MW
The only advantage with going to Toyota is they may offer a guarentee (Ford do a 60K on Mk 2 Mondeos), and if the belt snaps Toyota may offer some compensation. I would change the pulleys just for satisfaction.
I have considered one of these cars for some time, and would be interested in your experience, and the costs of ownership.
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