| Author | Message | ||
| Dave L (Davel)
Junior Member Username: Davel Post Number: 147 Registered: 7-2001 |
Well if you like the car, want to keep it for another season and dont want to be sidelined later, change the belt now. Its 4 yrs old and you can baseline the car for yourself if you plan on keeping it. Also if you sell it in the next couple years the service will be A HUGE selling point. No harm or foul doing it now. | ||
| Arnaldo Torres (Caribe)
Member Username: Caribe Post Number: 346 Registered: 2-2001 |
You see, this paranoia about the belts is self induced by the Ferrari community. All these ill founded fears, I can't understand it. If the car has only 17K mi. and has no leaks, specially around the T.Belts area, I think belt replacement can wait. I just pulled the belts on my 12 years old TR which has about 22K mi. and the T. Belts are as good as new (REALLY!). Age is less of a consideration than most people, and dealers, make you believe. On a 4 year old car, with so low mileage, PLEASE, give yourself a break! The Ferrari manual for the TR (and other F-cars as well) recommend belt replacement at around 52 Kmi.. The contradiction arises from the Workshop Manual recommending the replacement at 30K mi., Personally I believe 30K mi. is early, but not undesirable if the car is older than 6 or 7 years, but I would not do it to such a young car with so low mileage until at least the 30K mi., IMHO. My 0.02 cents. | ||
| Bill Sawyer (Wsawyer)
Member Username: Wsawyer Post Number: 251 Registered: 2-2002 |
Is there a higher quality tensioner available through the aftermarket that will last longer than the apparent junk they are using now? | ||
| sfulmer (98f355gts)
New member Username: 98f355gts Post Number: 8 Registered: 5-2002 |
This is interesting: the two dealers in the Chicago area, as well as one in the San Francisco area, feel that I am safe to wait till next spring (one even said I could wait till spring of 2004). I also got an email from a Ferrarichat user - who said that he thought that the belts could probably wait a while longer also. However, you guys have got me worried; so I will plan to do the timing belt service later this summer. (The 355 was built in July 97 (but is M.Y. 98); I bought it February of 2002 with 14,800 miles and now it has about 17,000 miles.) I don't drive the car very hard, but I don't what the previous owner was like. | ||
| arthur chambers (Art355)
Member Username: Art355 Post Number: 430 Registered: 6-2001 |
I just took my 355 in for a 30k service. I had heard a squeal about a week before. I'll keep you posted on the tensioner when they have it apart new week. The cost of a top end rebuild, given what I've done to the heads could be middle 5 figures, too high to risk. Car has 31k on it. Art | ||
| Martin (Miami348ts)
Intermediate Member Username: Miami348ts Post Number: 2138 Registered: 5-2001 |
I would answer this question this way. If you have less than 15K Miles likely you can stretch it even if it is 6 years. If you have over 15K Miles get it done immediately. It is really the tensioner that will likely fail and that means the belt will jump, same result as a belt broken. The tensioner goes by mileage and less by age. Usually you can hear the belt if it is lose. When you have a cold start and you can hear something rattling in the back, that is likely the belt. Have your Service check it out if the belt is tight and the tensioners are fine before you risk a big ticket. That can be done while doing a full oil change. | ||
| sfulmer (98f355gts)
New member Username: 98f355gts Post Number: 7 Registered: 5-2002 |
Thanks for the feedback. My MY 1998 355 was built in July of 1997 - I will plan to get the timing belt replaced in the March/April 2003. | ||
| Ron Thomas (Ronsupercar)
Junior Member Username: Ronsupercar Post Number: 102 Registered: 5-2002 |
sfulmer, what I would recommend is that you get it done, for peace of mind.. Once it's done, you know how you drive the car and you can determine if you want to stretch out the next 30k service | ||
| TomD (Tifosi)
Member Username: Tifosi Post Number: 778 Registered: 9-2001 |
whats crazy is its cheaper in the winter to service then the summer - I would think you would have more people service in the winter so they could drive in the summer. I guess summer driving puts a lot of cars in the shop  | ||
| TomD (Tifosi)
Member Username: Tifosi Post Number: 777 Registered: 9-2001 |
yeah in the NY area we have seasons - | ||
| Martin (Miami348ts)
Intermediate Member Username: Miami348ts Post Number: 2135 Registered: 5-2001 |
...there is a season price difference ? LOL | ||
| TomD (Tifosi)
Member Username: Tifosi Post Number: 772 Registered: 9-2001 |
just for belts probably about 1.5k from independant - little bit more if you do the rest of the 30k. Dealers off season may charge you mid 2s to mid 3s for the complete 30k | ||
| Lawrence Coppari (Lawrence)
New member Username: Lawrence Post Number: 45 Registered: 4-2002 |
What does a belt job for a 328 cost? Just curious because I'm doing it myself for the second time. But I would like to know the going price. | ||
| Martin (Miami348ts)
Intermediate Member Username: Miami348ts Post Number: 2122 Registered: 5-2001 |
The F-dealer is always on the high side. I just had my 30K done with my 348, which is the same work and almost the same parts, so the 348 and 355 compare pretty good. The service will cost you $4500 if done at a reputable shop. The 348 I just bought for resale will get a 30K service at about the same number ($4,500) The answer to your original question is YES, do it! It is likely not the belt that will fail but the tensioners and the bearings in them. Mine was shot when they took it out last year. I wish I would have saved the parts. They rattled mean. Don't want to break them for sure. | ||
| Cmparrf40 (Cmparrf40)
Member Username: Cmparrf40 Post Number: 276 Registered: 3-2002 |
OK, as my very good friend Steve Patterson mentioned, do belts and bearings every five years. The invoice on my f355 for a belt and bearing related failure last year was $23,875.00 $6,800 seems high, Chris Hill at Autosport Gallery quotes $4,500 for F355 if there are no surprises. By the way, it is not usually the belt that fails, it is the tensioner bearing that fail, seize and then cause the belt to fail. If you hear a squeal when you start up your car and you think you have a belt that is loose, it might be the first stages of a tensioner bearing failure, bad stuff! | ||
| Stephen Patterson (Srpatterson)
Junior Member Username: Srpatterson Post Number: 191 Registered: 11-2001 |
Change the belts (and tensioners) every 5 years, regardless of mileage. Cost should be around $4000-$4500. I've had friends who had a timing belt break on their 355's, and it's no fun. Your car goes down for a very long time, and you get a five figure invoice. Better safe than sorry... | ||
| Mark Eberhardt (Me_k)
New member Username: Me_k Post Number: 34 Registered: 5-2002 |
5 years is the standard on any car for belts and hoses, miles or no miles. The five years is based on the statistical probably of belt failure, most will last much longer, some won't. They all break if you wait long enough. | ||
| Horsefly (Arlie)
New member Username: Arlie Post Number: 8 Registered: 5-2002 |
I don't even own a Ferrari, but the major consequences of a timing belt failure (or timing chain on other autos), would be major disaster and destruction of the engine. When the timing system is out of sync, pistons start going up when valves are going down then CRASH, SMASH, etc. Pistons and valves break into pieces grinding against cylinder walls therefore ruining the piston bore. If a timing belt or chain merely jumps a few teeth, the engine would run very poorly and you would have to grab your repair manual and some wrenches. If a total belt failure occured at high speed, major damage would occur and then you would have to grab your wallet for a nice, new engine. | ||
| Tim N (Timn88)
Intermediate Member Username: Timn88 Post Number: 1022 Registered: 6-2001 |
You really dont want one to break because you would probably have to get the top end rebuilt, which will cost you much more than $6800, ALOT more. Better safe than sorry. 6800 also seems a little high, but you better wait to see what the F355 owners say. | ||
| sfulmer (98f355gts)
New member Username: 98f355gts Post Number: 4 Registered: 5-2002 |
My dealer has informed me that the timing belt on my 355 should be replaced every five years. The cost to do this (quoted by one dealer, including 30k service) is $6800. Questions: 1) Is the five year rule reasonable? 2) Is $6800 a reasonable cost? 3) Has anyone had their timing belt brake? and what were the consequences? |