67 plate A4 quattro s-line cam belt / water pump replacement

[norfolkngood]

Good morning all. 

Newby just passing through. 

Been looking at a 2l A4 quattro s-line on a 67 plate. The drive belt has been replaced as just over 5 years old, but the water pump was only inspected and not replaced. 

My understanding is whilst not necessary,  it makes sense to change the pump at the same time.

Would appreciate any comments / opinions, with apologies if this has already been covered elsewhere.

Thanks in advance .

[Anton8]

Ni A

Had mine replaced a few months ago. Cam Belt and Water Pump. It does make sense if you are that deep into the engine and the labour involved. (£915 at Audi) How many miles has the car done?

Tony 

[norfolkngood]

Thanks for reply.

millage is 30k 

[Anton8]

Should be OK with that mileage

[norfolkngood]

My concern is more it won't be checked again until next drive belt change in 5 years when it will be 10 years old! Unless it fails before.

Also if the didn't change it to save money , what else have yhey been economical with. 

[Magnet]

Hello ‘A’ (can you please fill in your proper name on your Profile).

It really depends on what your anticipated annual mileage is going to be, so you/we can estimate the total service miles this pump will have done, to add to the 30K it’s already covered over the period of the next 5 years. 
It sounds as if you have reservations about buying this car, and this can be the situation with any used vehicle. 
Was the belt changed by a main dealer - and therefore shown on the computerised service history? If it was, then I don’t think it’s unreasonable not to have changed the pump at 30K, and this decision may have been made on the assumption that by the time it’s changed again, it will only have covered 60K miles. 
You now need to let us know what your annual mileage is going to be. 
Pardon my ignorance of the layout of this particular engine, but is the water pump actually driven by the cambelt on this? 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[norfolkngood]

Hard to estimate my mileage other than I anticipate being a low user. 

Certainly under 10k a year. 

The belt was changed at a main, dealers, post being traded in. 

My understanding is the water pump is belt driven, but happy to be corrected but someone else more knowledgeable than me. 

Edited January 19, 2023 by norfolkngood

[Magnet]

OK, ?    - what is your name please? 
So the best estimate we can get of the total mileage in 5 years time ( when the belt will need changing again) is 30k + your estimated <50K = max. of 80k service life from your water pump - not frightening in my book. 

Obviously your call A. if you want to dismiss this car on that account. 

My more positive slant on it would be that it seems the previous owner spent out to get the cambelt assembly changed prior to trading the car in. That’s unusual, and does suggest a respectful  owner. 
Perhaps you could let us know what you intend to do.

Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[norfolkngood]

So the life expectancy of a water pump is 100k? So you're implying as long as that isn't exceeded it should be OK. No guarantees I understand. 

No the drive belt was changed by the dealers post trade in. 

Im still very hesitant although the price has just been reduced by a few hundred. 

Tried too add my name but can't see where on phone. Will try when on laptop later. 

[Magnet]

Sorry, missed the ‘post’ trade in bit, so it’s understandable that the dealer wasn’t going to spend ‘unnecessary’ on it, but at least they have done the cambelt for you. 
I honestly cannot see why you are hesitant about it, if ( in caps) you were seriously interested in it before you knew they hadn’t renewed the water pump. If the car meets your expectations in all other respects, then beware of the ‘finding a reason not to commit to buy’ ( with any car) syndrome.

Bottom line:- get the dealer to renew the water pump before you buy it - would that give you the confidence to commit? Personally, I think you are throwing the baby out with the bath water, but It’s not my money. 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 
p.s. You should be able to amend your name on your Profile. 

[norfolkngood]

Thanks Gareth.

Dealer appears to have no appetite to change pump, which is their prerogative of course.  

My understanding was the water pumps are prone to failure - or is that not the case? 

Ill have a think over the weekend. 

Just tried to change name, under profile and can see lots of things other than name! unless im looking in the wrong place. 

[Magnet]

Point I overlooked asking:- 

Is this car being retailed at a main dealership? It can be borderline for 5 year old cars to be sold by main dealers.

If not, has the current seller changed the cambelt, and is that  change recorded against on the Audi service history?

Have you actually had copy of the on-line service history of the car, and have you checked it’s 2 year on-line MOT history? 

‘Water pumps prone to failure’ - this is where you might be lucky, since in my experience, original main- dealer pumps tend to last, whereas aftermarket pumps can be prone to failure. So if  the cambelt wasn’t changed at a main dealer or independent, then you might have been at greater risk of a premature water pump failure if indeed they had changed the water pump. 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[norfolkngood]

It is indeed being retailed at a main dealer, who done the cambelt. 

MOT checks show no issues, or advisories. It will be MOT'd should I purchase too, as its about to expire.

Strangely its been MOT'd 3 times already

Oct 20 11689 miles

Feb 21  11692

Jan 22 21644

Strange it only done 3 miles in 5 months from Oct 20 - Feb 21! 

Havent seen the service history

Edited January 20, 2023 by norfolkngood

[Magnet]

If you haven’t seen copy of the service history then I would certainly be marking your pre-purchase homework well down - with a comment ‘ Could do very much better’! All in good humour. This would have been my first port of call, since it’s surprisingly common for FSH to get seriously diluted when copy is requested! 
The 20/21 MOT ‘gap’ is probably accounted for by the Covid extension whereby vehicle MOTs could be as long as 18 months. 
The virtually zero usage between MOTs is questionable, and may mean the car sat unused at a dealer during that period - not really good news. 
With concern over new water pump/ no new water pump, it does surprise me that you haven’t requested/seen the service history print out. This would have been my main query. Just nip into your nearest Audi dealer armed with the reg. no. and they should be able to give you a print out.

Perhaps you can let us know what materialises. 
Kind regards, 

Gareth. 

 

[norfolkngood]

Thanks Gareth, was aware whilst I was in negotiations with the salesman I could ask about service history, wasn't  aware they would show me the docs, and even less so I can get a print out from another dealer. 

I'll try to give it a whirl, see what they say. 

Thanks. 

Edited January 20, 2023 by norfolkngood

[Magnet]

Homework and evidence is always king -A!
Car sales? Best procedure is to always treat everything they say as if it never exists, until you actually see copies of the evidence they claim to be true. 
Have you checked the on line DVLA history to see when the last  V5 was issued? Can sometimes give an indication of short term ownership (discontent?) with the last owner. 

Not being unkind, but you seem to be hung up with a water pump and ignoring the remaining pedigree - or lack of it. 
Trust all of this is taken in good spirit, and will hopefully be reassuring rather than negative. 
Let us know how you get on.

Good luck and kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Red Robbo]

Had my B9 67 plate 190 tdi ultra timing belt, tensioner, ancillary belt, waterpump, oil and filter change done in November with 70500 miles on the clock.

Had it done because it stripped some teeth on the M62. I felt juddering, then no acceleration,  and the most evil noises!. But it still ran "ok" (oh no it didn't!) to drive it onto the back of the recovery truck.

I also drove it over half a mile to the garage, sounding so incredibly tapety!!

Boy, was i lucky dude, no internal damage (apparently 🤔) and it's running a dream now (as it was prior to the incident).

£831 including vat/labour

[Magnet]

Hello A,

Wondered if you decided to buy it or not - ? 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[norfolkngood]

I was biding my time a little, mulling things over and noticed today that it's no longer listed on their web page. 

Thanks all for your comments though. Much appreciated. 

[Magnet]

 

Thanks A, 

Well cars sell when advertised, and biding time is fine, but a decision to buy or not to buy has to be made during the time slot when no one else has bought it. I guess we’ve all been there, and my conclusion is that if anyone was that keen in the first place they would have bought it. 
Please accept this as not being too critical, but I think your concern about the water pump, gave you an excuse -rather than a reason - not to commit to buy it. 
Having said that, hopefully this thread will have armed you with enough additional information to do the essential homework before expressing any serious interest in the next vehicle. 
Good luck with your search.

Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[norfolkngood]

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