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timing belt vs timing chain
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Posted by Snowmobile [Email] (#686) [Profile/Gallery] (more from Snowmobile) on Wed, 21 Mar 2018 04:10:13 Share Post by Email
In Reply to: Re: how about maintenance?, DE [Profile/Gallery] , Tue, 20 Mar 2018 15:15:50
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I think the complaints were not about expensive timing *chain* service, but rather expensive timing *belt* service. It looks like Audi switched over to chains for the newer cars (starting around 2008), so your car likely has a chain which should last a long time just like in a saab. If/when it does go (hopefully upwards of 200k not 80k), it is a major project and expensive (sounds like they pull the engine, but perhaps good Audi techs have tricks).

The timing belt change was costly partly because it made sense to replace other things at the same time due to the amount of labour. The big difference is the belt needs to be done every 60k (or you risk breakage = disaster!!), so that really affects the value of the car, with many people dropping Audis around 60k, and many used ones not having had this done (so basically tack on $2k to your purchase price).

A couple posts elsewhere on this:

https://www.justanswer.com/audi/3g33w-when-audi-a4-switch-timing-chain-timi.html

https://www.audiforums.com/forum/audi-a6-9/timing-belt-timing-chain-176769/

Many buyers new and used are oblivious to these things and then just blame the car... Used buyers need to be educated/knowledgeable or any car can be a costly proposition. You do make a good point though that the needs or interests of a new car buyer can be very very different than a used buyer. The statistical distribution of vehicles by type or model reflects the new buyer interests, whereas a used buyer might look for other things creating a different supply/demand situation. A perfect example of this was our local saab dealer selling sedans vs wagons 7 to 1 new, but many young families looking used wanted wagons so few were available vs many sedans bought as "executive cars". I think the same could be said about Audi timing belts - buyers of the cars new mostly couldn't have cared less, maybe appreciated that they are slightly quieter, or had no idea whatsoever... what salesman warns you that you're going to need to shell out $2k every 60k for a belt change?

I think this is also a pretty significant factor in saabs demise also as many saab enthusiasts, like myself, are interested in the car mechanically beyond just transportation (so willing to fix the odd thing ourselves), happy to buy used ones affordably and drive them until the wheels fall off. That doesn't do a whole lot to keep the brand afloat, though it does subsidize lease rates or new purchases by paying for the bottom end of the cost. If the cars don't appeal enough to entice new buyers, there won't be many used either!

->Posting last edited on Wed, 21 Mar 2018 04:15:34.
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