New owner - cambelt advice required
 

Hi All
Long time Volvo fan but picked up my first one yesterday, a 2001 V40 2.0 Petrol Auto
All good so far but seems like the cambelt was last changed in 2010 (although that was only 20k ago)

Been doing as lot of internet trawling about cambelt changes but seems like there are 142 or 148 teeth belts available without any clear info on which one I would need. Is there any way to tell without physically counting?
Also any recommendations of where to buy parts? A few old posts recommend FLF Volvo online but these don't seem to be around anymore. Would prefer not to have to buy from Volvo dealer as it will cost more than I paid for the car but want a decent brand and not an eBay special
Cheers
Wes

I bought a kit from amazon, I think it was a run out, cost £33 with free postage, it was either SKF or another major brand, the bearings were the same make as those installed as was the tensioner. It's done 12000 miles in the 2 years since then.
Keep looking on the net or, if all else fails, buy from sc motor factors or eurocarparts which always discount the price though you will be remarkably lucky to get one for the price I did.

Sorry, got it wrong. It was £30 and it's a Hella brand one. It had a contitech belt, toyo bearings/tensioner, oe water pump.

Contitech or INA are good brands to look out for.By and large[ime]the belts these days seem to last a lot better than in times past,it's more the tensioners/rollers that give the problems which then wrecks the belt,the makes mentioned above generally have SKF bearings in their kits.Are you sure it's not FRF Swansea you were thinking of and not FLF as you state a this could explain why you can't find them?

yes you are correct it was FRF, but still doesn't seem to have the online parts anymore. I think I will just try and get a named brand from a decent supplier, one of the ones mentioned in the threads

Hopefully its not beyond the home mechanic. The write-ups I have seen so far suggest no special tools needed
thanks
Wes

yeah I think you struck lucky there!
By any chance do you recall if it was 142 or 148 teeth?

The top part of the cam cover should come off fairly easy.. you may be able to still see the part number on the belt if you can rotate the engine by hand. The supplier should be able to cross reference any part numbers ?

No special tools are needed, & you don't even need to remove the crank pulley, as there is enough clearance to get it past, by carefully twisting the belt & feeding it in, after you've removed the plastic bottom shield.
It's also probably a good idea to put extra marks on the pulleys before you start ?

You can also check the water pump for play,roughness, leaks, etc, but if it's the original volvo pump. it's unlikely to need replacing as they are excellent quality ?

I used FRF Volvo Swansea in the last 12 months.

I don't know whether the phone numbers are still current but the post is here.

https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showp...&postcount=368

Just give them a ring, very helpful.

You are looking for Simon.

thanks all for the help. Will take a look at the various options suggested and give it a go!!
Cheers

Front engine mount needs to be removed, so be prepared to clean up the threads before re-installing the bolts. I could not get mine back in without the help of a tap and die.