Hyundaitech - My first and last

Fred, Just curious. Did the Service Manager tell you why you need a new timing belt at less than 14,000 miles?? I believe these belts should be good up until around 70,000 miles. Possibly it's defective which might be covered under the warranty.

Also, I think if you do some research you're going to find that NOT replacing a timing belt, when needed, on ANY car is pretty much going to void the warranty. I don't think Hyundai is the only one that does this.

Mike '08 Elantra

Welcome to the real world of timing belts. The cost sounds high but the issue is normal. I first had it on a 1967 VW rabbit. You will have it on any engine with a belt instead of a chain which is many, if not most, 4 cyl engines.

The manager never looked at my car.

I just asked why I had to spend $800 to replace a timing belt with less than 14,000 miles on the vehicle.

He said I "had to replace the belt" to retain the warrenty.

Again, that sucks.

There may be another manufacturer in my future when I replace my wife's ten-year-old Chryster 300 M ( with less than 60,000 miles on it ) next year.

She really likes the Hyundai SUV, but now I don't have the "warm fuzzies".

I plead stupidity.

I ( stupidly ) thought that 10-year 100,000 mile meant "10-year 100,000 miles".

I did not know ( again, my stupidity ) that I would have to spend $200 a yaer to replace a timing belt on an engine that has less than 5000 miles a year on it.

It still sucks!

It's wrong. I would contact Hyundai Customer Service and report this dealer.

14k miles is way too soon. My 2002 Sonata 4banger was scheduled at 60k intervals for the belt. yes, the warranty can be voided if "proper maintenance" procedures aren't followed. Hyundai isn't the only one who has this type of clause.

Regardless, Hyundai I feel is the best bang for the buck out there. I'm on my 3rd Hyundai and haven't had a regret yet.

BTW, the 100k mile warranty begins to pro-rate after 12k miles. I found that out after a clutch started giving me trouble at 70k on my 02 Sonata. There's always that damn fine print!

Timing belts are made of rubber compounds. The material on belts can deteriorate with time, exposure to heat, chemical fumes, and other strains. The belts are warranted for both a miles and time interval for that reason.

From the Gates warranty

BELT MUST BE REPLACED AT THE SPECIFED INTERVAL DETERMINED BY THE BELT MANUFACTURER AND ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT CAR MANUFACTURER. FAILURE TO DO SO MAY RESULT IN CATASTROPHIC ENGINE DAMAGE, FOR WHICH SELLER HEREBY DISCLAIMED. The real problem here is your failure to research and read the maintenance schedule to see what is required. Personally, I'd not buy a car with a belt for the reasons you cite unless I thought it was still a good deal with the added cost. You do oil changes don't you? Filters? Most people do them too often and never complain, but when it comes to the more expensive items, they act surprised and horrified.

Considering that most car manufacturers don't warrant there cars for more that 36,000 or maybe 50,000 miles, they don't give a damn if you risk serious engine failure after 4 or 5 years.

I don't see a problem. You had choices to make when you bought the car. I bought the Sonata that has a chain. With my driving it would be $400 a year to replace the belt.

I don't understand is why it's so expensive on a Tiburon. I had the timing belt replaced on my wife's 2002 Elantra and the cost was something like $225. Are the engines in a 4-cylinder Tiburon and the Elantra that different?

Am I missing something, Edwin?? The guy's car has 14,000 miles on it!!!! Not 114,000 miles. You're accusing him of all sorts of things including not reading the maintenance schedule and being irresponsible. 14,000 Miles!!!!!!! It sounds like he went to MY dealership!!!

He doesn't need to look at your car. Timing belts on all cars that use them, are rated for time and/or mileage, which ever comes first.

I thought it was 6 years or 60,000 miles on a belt, but I may be wrong on the time. Check your owner's manual. You'll find your answer there, regardless of what the service writer told you.

It it is at the time limit then he's correct.

Same for any engine with a timing belt.

Belts are going away as a technology. I think all of the Hyundai engines now use timing chains. No more replacement schedule.

Yes, you are missing somelthing. Belts can deteriorate with time, not just miles. The warranty and maintenance schedule are specific that the service be done at a certain time period or miles. Yes, it sucks to have it replace at such a low mileage so he has the option of doing it ior risking failure and no coverage. IIRC, it is an interference engine so failer will be VERY expensive. See below

Ed

Why is it wrong? Miles (engine use) is one factor, but time is another. Yes, the belt may last for another 10 or 20 years, but it may go tomorrow. If the maintenance schedule gives a time limit, it must be followed or you risk losing the warranty. You have a choice to make. Don't take my word for it, read the book.

Admittedly, you might be right on the 'time limit'. I don't have one of those so I don't know what time limit is placed on the belt. They might have him on a technicality but I would shop around for a better price and also inspect the belt, if it can be gotten at easily.

Fred, in your service many what is the TIME PERIOD that is required for the timing belt replacement? Solve the mystery so we can move on.

It requires the timing belt replacement at 60,000 miles or 48 months.

631grant wrote:

Hey, Fred. I'm going to reply to your post and a few others in this space in the interest of keeping my post count down.

First, if you check your owner's manual, you'll see that the maintenance interval for the timing belt is 4 years/60,000 miles, whichever comes first. (You're welcome to verify this. I haven't looked in every manual for every Hyundai model, but I don't recall anyting prior to 2006 which had a different recommendation. Edit: during my typing this tome, I see Fred did indeed verify the interval.) The time due, in your case, would be four years from the in-service date of the vehicle. Also, if you're not the original owner-- buying a 2004 vehicle in 10/05 makes me suspect this-- you don't have the 10/100 powertrain warranty unless you purchased one. Second and subsequent owners only get 5/60 powertrain.

Second, failure to replace the belt doesn't void any part of the warranty. If you look at your warranty, you'll see that it specifically excludes items which that failed due to not having the recommended preventive maintenance done. So, if the belt fails beyond the maintenance interval, Hyundai isn't responsible for repairing any damage caused by that failure. On the other hand, if you have some componet that fails and has nothing to do with the fact you haven't replaced the belt, that's still covered.

The reliability of the timing belt on this engine is very good. There's a near zero probability it'll fail anywhere near the 4 year/60k mile interval, and in fact, I wouldn't be surprised if it lasted twice that long. Don't construe this, however, to be the same thing as a recommendation to not replace the belt. Take the information I'm giving you and make up your own mind. The longer you go, the greater the chance of a problem.

$800 is far too high for replacing this timing belt. My eployer charges $490, and I think we're too high. Shop around. If you are indeed the original owner, though, insist on a factory belt even if you don't use a dealer to do the work, keeping in mind that this may increase the cost at nondealers. This way, the belt will continue to be covered under the powertrain warranty until the next scheduled replacement or until the warranty expires, whichever comes first.

Hyundai still uses timing belts on the 1.6, 2.0, and 2.7 engines. I haven't been inspecting the owner's manuals of the newer products (since the belt won't need servicing quite yet), but I believe all the current models with timing belts have an interval in the neighborhood of 6 years/90k miles.

Grant, the reason Edwin suggests Fred hasn't read the owner's manual is that the manual indeed specifies 4 years or 60k miles as the service interval on the belt. I agree that 14k is not very many miles, and that this isn't an easy expense to stomach. But, by the same token, Edwin is correct that the rubber will deteriorate both with age and flexing (running the engine).

Razz, I'd recommend being careful with what you say. While I agree Fred's timing belt is probably nowhere near failure, saying point blank that he doesn't need one is a bit negligent. We cannot see his car, and the fact remains that Hyundai recommends replacing the belt at 4 years. Would you be willing to pay to repair his car if the timing belt failed? If not, you shouldn't make this statement. His dealer has done nothing wrong by recommending he comply with the maintenance schedule laid out in his owner's manual. The voiding warranty talk is another matter. Also, it seems you have a bit of a grudge against Hyundai, which from reading your post, appears to have stemmed from Hyundai not fixing a problem which you agree they have no obligation to fix.

Steve: Hyundai factory warranties do not pro-rate (with the exception of the battery warranty). The warranty either covers a repair or it does not. If an original owner's engine fails due to manufacturing defect at 9 years and 99,000 miles, it's still covered 100%. If your dealer has been charging you for warranty repairs, you should investigate this.

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All;

I have yet to be charged for warranty work, but on my 2002 Sonata, they finally got the clutch to replicate the complaint I had which was it would occassionally not disengage completely. I found the trouble to be the slave cylinder and was told that that since it was at 68,000 miles, it would need to be pro-rated. Maybe I misinterpreted the discussion, but $800 sounded out of line...

Nonetheless, thanks HT. You rock!

Steve

Ya I have a huge GRUDGE against them. It has been proven by three body shops that there wasn't any primer to begin with on the handles, which should be covered no matter what the warranty states. That Fuck-up was right from the factory from day one. Poor quality control and workmanship.

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Hyundai must use cheap shit since most manufactures replacement interval is