[kittykat]

Hi again

Thanks for all of your answers re the windscreen. I am so in love with this car that I see it only as a minor thing now!

I wanted to ask about the cam belt change. Basically I bought my puma last week and it has done 54k miles. The garage SAID they would service it before it left them and have stamped the book, yet I have not been given a printed schedule to see what work has been done!

I have seen a mention of a cam belt change at 50k or 5 years and as my car is in that mile range and a 2000 model I would have thought that this service would have covered it.

Should I INSIST I get a service schedule? I have looked at those of the previous owner and see no mention of a cambelt change so I am a bit concerned!!! Am I right to be?

Charlotte
KITTYKAT

[Mountain Lion]

I'm afraid that if the garage did service it, it would probably only have been a bare minimum service - i.e. oil change, air filter change.

I'd say that they almost certainly didn't renew the cam belt and tensioner.

Unless you have a receipt for a cam belt change in the paperwork that you got with the car, assume that it hasn't been done. I've heard that some unscrupulous garages even stamp the book without actually doing the work. That's why it's important to have a receipt.

Rutlandguy's figures are correct; your car is five years old and should have the cam belt and tensioner replaced. My advice is to get it done at a Ford workshop (or Puma specialist, such as Pumabuild or Pumaspeed) and, if you have the 1.7 engine, ask them whether they've done any before. I expect most Ford workshops will have tackled a 1.7 engine by now though.

[rutlandguy]

Denise,

Further thought and one which I meant to mention in my earlier post. If the car was over 5years when you bought it and the garage said they would service it before you bought it. Then they should have done the Cam Belt service along side the normal service. I'd get them to produce the service schedule and if the cam belt change wasn't done I suggest you have it out with the dealer! especially if its a ford dealer, as they should have known it was due when they offered to service it for you.

Good luck


Phil
PS A cam belt service is about £250 at either Pumaspeed or Pumabuild

[kittykat]

Thanks again for your replies. I have a horrible feeling that I may have a battle on my hands over this. I am quite p'd off that they did not produce a service schedule and I was already annoyed that in the 4 days between agreeing to purchase the car and picking it up, the wing mirror had developed a huge, deep scratch!

After a lengthy conversation of me insisting that it was not there when I bought it (I KNOW it wasn't as I went over that car with a fine tooh comb -and I am a complete fuss pot) they have said they will repair it...

ANYWAY I don't want to turn into the customer from hell and I am annoyed that they are putting me in this position! so now my tasks are:

1. get wing mirror fixed
2. ask for service schedule
3. bring up the cam belt issue

Why can't anything go smoothly. I am so so so so so delighted with the car and I wanted the purchase to go smoothly!

Charlotte

[happy-kat]

on a sticky point, as your car is under on mileage for the change, what month of production was it. You can decode the VIN to find the actual year and month of production, or even go on first registration date, only it could not yet be 5 years old (paper work wise) and therefore the garage may well wriggle out of doing the change or even giving you some money off for the change so you can take it where you want too, which if they have not done the 1.7 before may be a good bet only saying you migt be arguing on a wobbly leg
good luck

[kittykat]

I am OK on the date score as it was first registered on the 7 March 2000

I am just wondering if they might say the service they offered to the purchaser was a mini service or something? I am just anticipating all arguments. However, if this was the case, surely they shouldn't have stamped the book.

i.e they have stamped the 50k service in the book!

Sorry guys, will be more positive about everything soo, just need to get over this hurdle!

Charlotte

[happy-kat]

the Puma service interval is 10k miles or annually, which ever comes first, therefore the 50k service is not necessarily the five year service and as such the cam belt may not have been done even if it were the next service for this Puma, and may dealers still think it is the old change interval.
Personally I would only have expected them to have done a minor service
Not straight forward to me :S
The cam belt stamp goes at the back of the book, so they have not really made a boo boo stamping the normal front of the book. I'll check mine but fairly sure cam belt stamp is on seperate page at the back. Yes it is stamped at the other maintenance pages. I expect maybe they ticked the minor service tick box on the normal service stamp page

[kittykat]

hmmmmm...not straightforward atall. I think that maybe I will have to have the cambelt changed at my own cost then. Ooops, maybe I should have joined this group before I bought the car...oh well!

Thanks for all of the info though - I hadn't noticed the different service sections in my schedule book. It's really good to know!

Charlotte

[happy-kat]

you may get other repleis too, tis only my thoughts still may be worth a haggle as you bought that Puma because you thought it had a complete service history, which it does not (splitting hairs slightly.. possibly)... did they advertise it as having a complete service history....... if you don't ask you never know

Enjoy anyway

[Pearson]

Whilst timing belts do snap, its not that common, as others have already pointed out the biggest killer is lack of oil - thus if its only just gone over 5 yrs I wouldn't worry too much!! - I've just changed mine which was nearly 100K, registered early 98 - although I guess the wear is internal- the old and new belt looked exactly the same!

Jon