danrgleason

Need to get mine done asap, and I am torn between doing job myself (TKit and tools for $280 on blauparts) and paying a very solid Audi shop $900 to do it.
I bought the car two months ago knowing I had to replace it, but figured I would do it myself. Bought a Bentley Manual from another forum member, and looked at a few videos and I believe it is within my comfort zone to do the job. The Audi guy just shook his head and said Don't do it. It's not worth it.
How about others on here. Is it worth it to do the job yourself for one-third the cost (and the appreciation of doing the work yourself), or is this something that is too important to leave to do if you are not a "professional"?

lyleswk

1.8t? If so, it is a moderate job. I have done it twice on the 1.8t and the only part you need to pay attention to is marking the old belt / cam and belt / crank. Transfer the marks to the new belt and that will ensure the cam doesn't move. In my case, it didn't move on the first job, but did on the second. A quick rotation of the cam and things were lined back up.

obtw, $900 is not too bad for a timing belt job. Dealer's generally charge over $1000.

danrgleason

Thanks. Havd not heard of making the marks on the new belt to line up with the cam/crank marks. I like that. I can see that this would add another level of crosschecking. I think I am going to do it. Blauparts has a special right now on the kits.

Prospeeder

Which engine? if its the V6 dont do it without the cam locking tools. If its a 1.8T then be sure to do the tensioning portion of the belt exactly how is says. If done wrong the belt will be too tight and will wear the water pump out very quick, like 15-20k miles quick.

as far as should you do it yourself? How mechanical are you. What other things have you repaired before? If you feel confident to rip the front end of an engine down and put it back in time with no mistakes as they lead to valve bending, then you should be fine to do it. Its not super difficult if you have some background on some engine work.