Cambelt etc costs?

[Kev0607]

Originally Posted by stuart bowes

I had mine done at a Volvo specialist, they recommended replacing the pump (53k + 20 years take your pick) and I didn't bat an eye, they were spending £700 of my money already so what was an extra £60? be daft to have it go and have to do all that work again just to get it out

now of course it IS possible they wanted to get their hands on my original pump as a good spare and send me away with a different one but that does seem a bit far fetched

tbh I didn't even know about the "legend" but of something like 15-20 cars I have had, only one water pump died on me in the past.. a Volvo. ok that was a 360 but it had done, guess how many miles... 56k (and just to complete the coincidences it was about 20 years old as well)

if you look at my pictures you'll see it also cost me a radiator, but in all honesty that was an engineering fail on my part plus I blame the merc who tried to race me down the A13 when I was relying on a dubious get-you-home bodge. but I digress

If I didn't do it, it would be serious case of not learning from past experience wouldn't it. ok it wasn't a V70, it came from a different factory at a different time blah blah. but still

Am I correct in thinking that if a water pump fails that it won't do catastrophic damage like a derailed cam belt can?

Or would it it damage the head of the engine & the radiator leading to costly repairs? So in essence, a water pump failure is just as serious as a cam belt failure?

[stuart bowes]

if you're referring to the radiator comment that's a bit different

on the 360 with the 2ltr 240 engine the water pump is on the front and the fan bolts to it. only when I replaced the pump, the fan had a different bolt patten or diameter (pcd or whatever) so I made a plate to adapt from one to the other

only the plate was too thin, the fan kicked into higher gear, twisted the plate and sheared a massive hole in my rad, steam exploding everywhere

that was my fault.. hands up.. but the pump failing in the first place didnt in itself do anything except leak and stop cooling the engine


on the V70? I wouldnt know but I also dont want to find out, i guess if it jams it would shred the belt? whatever happens it's a bad thing

[Kev0607]

Originally Posted by stuart bowes

if you're referring to the radiator comment that's a bit different

on the 360 with the 2ltr 240 engine the water pump is on the front and the fan bolts to it. only when I replaced the pump, the fan had a different bolt patten or diameter (pcd or whatever) so I made a plate to adapt from one to the other

only the plate was too thin, the fan kicked into higher gear, twisted the plate and sheared a massive hole in my rad, steam exploding everywhere

that was my fault.. hands up.. but the pump failing in the first place didnt in itself do anything except leak and stop cooling the engine


on the V70? I wouldnt know but I also dont want to find out, i guess if it jams it would shred the belt? whatever happens it's a bad thing

Now that you say it, I simply forgot this (not sure how, as it was a major event!)...

The water pump on my Dad's P3 V70 exploded, derailing the cam belt & melting it in the process & the heat also put a hole in the timing belt cover. Here's how it happened...

He brought my mum to the local supermarket. On the way, he heard a weird noise & knew something was wrong. He made it to the car park, turned off the engine & as soon as he opened the door, he could hear fluid draining onto the floor. Luckily, he didn't start the engine & called the AA to recover the vehicle to the local independent Volvo garage.

The mechanic had a look at it & fitted a new cam belt, water pump & timing belt cover. The owner of the garage told my dad that he should have done the lottery that day, as the engine was on the verge of being destroyed (cam belt was just hanging on). No other damage was done, luckily.

The mechanic did say it wasn't an original Volvo water pump that was fitted. It must have been replaced at some point by the previous owner.

Admittedly, the water pump must have been in a bad state to literally explode, but it wasn't using or losing any coolant. There was no noise that I'd describe as alarmingly obvious that the water pump was failing weeks before it happened... it just made a very weird noise one particular morning & then packed in.

[stuart bowes]

close call lol

I remember when I was about 7 or 8 we had a ford granada where the airbox caught fire lol (was that the pinto lump? Im not sure) but anyway i think that's the quickest I've ever seen my dad move

fun and games eh

[Kev0607]

Fun & games indeed.

[Bashy]

Originally Posted by LucasSilver

I got timing belt kit for 64 quid and alternator belt kit for 45. Gates brand from autodoc.

Thanks, but had a bad experience with those cowgirls...

[Bashy]

Originally Posted by Kev0607

Am I correct in thinking that if a water pump fails that it won't do catastrophic damage like a derailed cam belt can?

Or would it it damage the head of the engine & the radiator leading to costly repairs? So in essence, a water pump failure is just as serious as a cam belt failure?

IIRC, i am fairly certain that the water pump failing can be/is catastrophic for the D5, i am sure folks say dont replace the pump unless its needed cause you dont want to replace it with an inferior pump, there has to be a reason for that and for me to keep seeing that, it must be very good reason

If the pump seizes, the belt may break, in turn could end up making the cambelt jump breaking the timing sequence or actually break thus well, im sure you can picture it, i think thats why the pump is such an important player on these cars.

Disclaimer.

Now then, i have been known to be wrong many more times than i care to imagine or admit, so take what i said with a pinch of salt unless you hear from someone with more brains...

[Kev0607]

Originally Posted by Bashy

IIRC, i am fairly certain that the water pump failing can be/is catastrophic for the D5, i am sure folks say dont replace the pump unless its needed cause you dont want to replace it with an inferior pump, there has to be a reason for that and for me to keep seeing that, it must be very good reason

If the pump seizes, the belt may break, in turn could end up making the cambelt jump breaking the timing sequence or actually break thus well, im sure you can picture it, i think thats why the pump is such an important player on these cars.

Disclaimer.

Now then, i have been known to be wrong many more times than i care to imagine or admit, so take what i said with a pinch of salt unless you hear from someone with more brains...

See my post above... I remembered my dad's very lucky escape with his V70 (P3 shape) when his water pump exploded. I think I answered my own question when that sprung to mind... water pump failure is serious on the D5's.

I think its important to fit a genuine Volvo water pump, if possible. These aftermarket ones don't seem to hold up as well. Clearly, that was evident with my dad's car. The previous owner must have fitted, or got a garage to fit a non-genuine water pump on the car. The mechanic that fixed my dad's car confirmed it wasn't a genuine one.

If fitting aftermarket, then make sure its a decent brand & not the cheapest one you can find.

[Paul240480]

I’ve recently had a full cam belt and water pump plus aux belt done on mine. Also did the VVT intake pulley as it had too much play.
The cam belt kit was an SKF kit.
Aux belt was à Meyle.
Tensioner for Aux was a PPS from PFV.

I recall doing the same myself on my old 850. I got the SKF kit and in that one of the pulleys was INA ( yes in the SKF kit). All the SKF parts had the same numbers on as the Volvo parts I removed, including the belt. the SKF one just didn’t have the Volvo name on them.
So I assume SKF to be OE?

[Bashy]

Originally Posted by Paul240480

I’ve recently had a full cam belt and water pump plus aux belt done on mine. Also did the VVT intake pulley as it had too much play.
The cam belt kit was an SKF kit.
Aux belt was à Meyle.
Tensioner for Aux was a PPS from PFV.

What did it sting you?

Should i do it myself? is it a hard job? or is it worth the 2hr labour cost?