Timing belts, the sleeping time bomb

When buying a used car always insist on determining if the vehicle has a rubber timing-belt. Be aware that about five years ago an International Oil Company did a follow up on 5,000 cars it had turned back after 3 year leases and traced them to their eventual private owners. All the cars had by then passed through wholesale auction markets and likely one or more retail dealers before being sold to a private owner. The survey disclosed that 50% of the cars had their odometers illegally turned back.

When buying a used car, supposedly with 40,000 miles for example, and determining it has a rubber timing belt, insist on a written guarantee from the seller to guarantee in writing to replace the timing belt at no charge if it fails within another 20,000 miles, a typical recommended total amount (Call any Dealer to get the recommended amount for the particular make of vehicle). After all, the vehicle may in fact already have 55,000 miles on it. If the seller will not make that guarantee, then he is admitting that the mileage is probably not accurate and by implication may well have been turned back. If the seller will not make that guarantee, consider a compromise, such as $100 maximum cost. If not acceptable, walk away and look elsewhere."

Before buying any car, especially 4-cylinder foreign cars, or even 6-cyl. BMW, be aware of the unavoidable cost of $400-$800 to replace the timing belt at anywhere from 50,000 to 70,000 miles if the car has an 'interference' type of engine. The sales person will invariably not mention that an 'interference' type engine powers the vehicle and may not even know what one is. If a timing belt on an interference engine is not replaced at recommended intervals, the repair cost when the belt breaks (not gradually, but always catastrophically) could increase to $3,000 to $5,000 due to engine failure because parts have smashed into each other.