Elantra @60k miles...T-belt REALLY due?

[XS650]

97, Hyundai has a reputation for being CS about warranty coverage. Because of that, there is some extra value to getting the work done at a dealer.

Don't pay too much attention to the Magneson Moss fans. They usually don't understand the limitations of MM and almost always underestimate the effort and $$ involved to get a recalcitrant car company to comply with it.

Unless Hyundai water pumps have a reputation for failing early, there should be no problem waiting until your 2nd belt change at 120k miles. Changing a water pump at 105k instead of waiting until 210k miles makes some sense, but 60k is just too early unless there is some reason to do it.

 

[brianl703]

Ford dealership's warranty on items they repair is a paltry 1 year/12K.

 

[CBDFrontier06]

Hmm..that would suck if you're having a Ford crate engine installed. Ya think that's across the board?

 

[brianl703]

It's been a while since I read that, but I think that was everything except transmissions and engines.

 

[The_Jeff]

True, it may sometimes be hard to get a car company to comply with MM, but it is THE LAW and if people keep paying for, say, a Gates timing belt in a Hyundai box, for twice the money, that's extortion and only encourages the illegal behavior of denying warranty claims over aftermarket parts.

Saying one should buy all their parts in OE boxes at the dealer is like saying they should give their lunch money to a bully, "to be safe".

 

[XS650]

Telling people they should do whatever they want because MM will protect them without letting them know there can be downsides is irresponsible.

I've noticed that people are much more conservative when picking their own battles than when they are picking others battles.

 

[Gene K]

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True, it may sometimes be hard to get a car company to comply with MM, but it is THE LAW and if people keep paying for, say, a Gates timing belt in a Hyundai box, for twice the money, that's extortion and only encourages the illegal behavior of denying warranty claims over aftermarket parts.

Saying one should buy all their parts in OE boxes at the dealer is like saying they should give their lunch money to a bully, "to be safe".

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If a aftermarket belt installed by an independent shop breaks it is not Hyundai's responsibility to warranty the damage caused. According to M-M they can deny coverage because the part directly lead to the damage. I dont think they would have much trouble proving the broken belt lead to the valves kissing the pistons.You would have to sue the installer / manufacture of the part to attempt to recover.

If however a dealer using OEM replacement parts does the work and the belt breaks its the Dealers/Hyundai's Baby.

 

[CBDFrontier06]

In addition, buying a Hyundai belt and having your own mechanic install it will yield you no warranty either. They have no way to ensure that your independent mechanic isn't kinking and bending the belt during the install, which is what likely caused the belt failure in my Eclipse. This is no different than Mazda's policy about Mazdaspeed parts installed post-factory. We sell it, we install it, Mazda warranties it. You install it, you're on your own. It's legal.

 

[ems1]

I have a '02 Elantra with 47,000 miles. After reading the owners manual I realized the manufacturer's recommendation was 60,000 or 4 YEARS, whatever comes first! For anyone interested in keeping your Elantra in warrantee. You need to change the belt after 4 years regardless of the mileage. I am taking a chance on mine, and waiting for 5 years to change the belt. By then I should have about 55,000 miles
I did call the dealer when I hit 4 years, the service rep said, "the belts never break before 5 years and it would not be much of a risk to wait". Who would ever think a service rep. would suggest you wait to have expensive maintenance done?

 

[CBDFrontier06]

He wants to do the work on your cylinder heads.

 

[Gary Allan]

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True, it may sometimes be hard to get a car company to comply with MM, but it is THE LAW and if people keep paying for, say, a Gates timing belt in a Hyundai box, for twice the money, that's extortion and only encourages the illegal behavior of denying warranty claims over aftermarket parts.

Saying one should buy all their parts in OE boxes at the dealer is like saying they should give their lunch money to a bully, "to be safe".

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If a aftermarket belt installed by an independent shop breaks it is not Hyundai's responsibility to warranty the damage caused. According to M-M they can deny coverage because the part directly lead to the damage. I dont think they would have much trouble proving the broken belt lead to the valves kissing the pistons.You would have to sue the installer / manufacture of the part to attempt to recover.

If however a dealer using OEM replacement parts does the work and the belt breaks its the Dealers/Hyundai's Baby.

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This is obviously been configured to afford the dealer network a decent share in the post sale revenue of the car. It's designed to basically neutralize MM. Sure you can use any oil filter on your car and have the oil changed anywhere you want ..but I assure you, if your WIX filter fails ...GM or anyone else isn't going to pay the reman bill ..Wix's insurer is.

Hyundia made a bunch of inexpensive cars with a fancy warranty that can cost a whole lot to maintain.

Now I imagine that you would be in a different position with something like their sheduled AFT drain interval. There the dealer would have to prove that the fluid (or even if you didn't change it) was the cause of the problem. As long as spec'd fluid was used ..they would have a bit of difficulty not honoring the warranty.

 

[JTK]

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One thing about timing belts. They may look OK but the metal belting (like a tire) gets fatigued, so a visual inspection is not reliable...

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My experience with timing belts is, it's rarely the belt itself that fails . Usually it's weak tensioner, wobbly idler or bad water pump that causes the belt to jump out of plane. I've never actually seen a broken timing belt. I've seen all the teeth sheared off or some fraying, that's about it. It was always an 'accessory' related failure.

Joel

 

[toocrazy2yoo]

I've read that California recently demanded the belts be good for 105,000 miles.. Now, does the factory install a belt solution for California that's more substantial than the belt solution for the other 49? I believe the emissions for my 2005 AccentGT purchased new in 2006 in Va. conforms to California, but how about my belt? Hyundai schedules it for a 60K R & R..

 

[Cutehumor]

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A friend and I changed the timing belt on my 94 Eclipse at around 70K. I decided to trade it in about a year later, at 84K. 3 days after I traded it in, I got a call from the dealership asking if there was any warranty to go along with the new timing belt, as someone bought my Eclipse and the belt broke on the way home. This did $1400 damage to the engine, and there was no warranty. Don't let this happen to you. I dodged that bullet by 3 days.

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wow, you were lucky. hope the new owner didn't get stuck with it especially if it was 3 days after the sale. I hope the dealer had to eat it!

 

[surfstar]

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I've read that California recently demanded the belts be good for 105,000 miles.

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Its not that recent - my 1993 Mazda (2.0L interference) owners manual states R&R @ 60k, except for CA, inspect at 60k, replace at 90k.

When I buy a belt online, I sure don't see a separate "CA timing belt".

I've had it done at 81k and 170k. After 89k, my mechanic said some small stress cracks were forming. Next time at 250k I plan on doing it myself.

 

[Cutehumor]

if you want to keep the car, I would change the timing belt. I should start a thread "no more timing belt changes until it explodes" referring to my 92 mitsubishi mirage. 83K/9 years on my belt. $450 timing belt change to a $300 car. this is a third car. as they say "I'm doing it for science!"

 

[KieferS]

It's not worth making a big deal over, pop the timing belt cover off, and see if the belt is good or not, it shouldn't be able to turn more than 90 degrees, and the 'teeth' on it shouldn't appear or feel worn, inspect the outside of the belt visually for any cracks, and use your best judgement.
400 bucks isn't all that bad at the dealer, and you don't have to worry about voiding anything. Or, if you have even a little technical knowledge, you may even be able to do it your self. drain oil, pop timing cover off, relieve tension from belt, slide belt off, line up gear to '0' and TDC mark which usually looks a little something like '|' slide belt on (make sure your still at TDC!)put tensioner back on, put cover back on, add oil, have a beer. i do the water pump every other timing belt change, but it never hurts to be safe.

 

[Gary Allan]

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this is a third car. as they say "I'm doing it for science!"

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Home grown failure analysis. Take a hit for humanity!

 

[q2bruiser]

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If you lived in California, the timing belt would be good for 105k miles.

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Some states have laws which state a vehicle cannot require major maintenance until 100k miles. This is why you see the 105k in most vehicle's TB replacement schedule. It has nothing to do with the belt and sorry to say if it breaks before 105k and your car is out of warranty, tough luck.

JKH

 

[Norm Olt]

"T-belt REALLY due?"

1) If it is within the warranty period and you wish to maintain the warranty coverage... Just DO it!

2) If you believe that the manufacturer actually knows something about their product... Just DO it!

Do you doubt them when they recommend oil change intervals? Just about every comment on factory-recommended service intervals I see has to do with someone anticipating doing MORE than the minimum. "100K sparkplugs" come to mind...

I feel the auto magazines do their readers a dis-service when they don't advise vis-a-vis service & warranty considerations when they review new cars & trucks: even on their long-term test vehicles they commonly have someone, typically a dealership, perform only the most basic required service needed to retain the warranty. In other words, they act JUST LIKE THE TYPICAL LESSEE or those owners who get a new car every couple years or so: with a total disregard for anyone unlucky enough to get saddled with their leavings.

Not your typical BITOG'er, eh?

Enough ranting & raving. Cheers!