[Rick G.]

96 jetta 2.0L

bought it at 140,000 miles and changed timing belt at 200,000. it now has 255,000 and i'm wondering when to change it.

i called my mechanic & he says he's not sure when to change it . . so . . my question is . . .

when?

 

[96GolfGL]

Around 60k is a good time to replace a timing belt. Take off the timing belt cover and give it a visual inspection to see how everything looks. If you want to run to 300k without worrying you should replace it fairly soon.

I got lucky the first time I had to replace my timing belt on my daily Golf. I could smell a kind of burning plastic on top of the engine - the tensioner was pretty much seized and it was no longer spinning really, just creating a shit load of friction on the belt. I'm lucky it didn't snap and ruin the valvetrain. The car has had another timing belt replacement since and now has 255k on it and runs like a top.