XC60 Auxiliary Belt - Replacement date changed by Volvo!

[Whyman]

I can understand why the emergency service vehicles have a lower mileage:- they often spend long periods of time at incidents with the engine running to keep the blue lights running hence additional strain on the belts.

On most replacement cycles for police vehicles about 150,000 miles you will have to replace the cam belt once so doing it earlier makes good sense but might pose a problem for later owners unless they know the vehicles service history.

[Clan]

Originally Posted by Whyman

I can understand why the emergency service vehicles have a lower mileage:- they often spend long periods of time at incidents with the engine running to keep the blue lights running hence additional strain on the belts.

On most replacement cycles for police vehicles about 150,000 miles you will have to replace the cam belt once so doing it earlier makes good sense but might pose a problem for later owners unless they know the vehicles service history.

They are also up and down the motorways at very high speed ...

[GusGecko]

So helpfully...my aux/serpentine belt just snapped.

I'm on a service plan with Volvo, and have been since I got the car 7 years ago, the last service with 07/22 , 109k miles D5 - surely this should have been either suggested or changed already as part of the plan?!

[RDesign4Life]

Yes at service 7 your mileage +18k interval should have triggered the cambelt conversation. I can see why it may have been left out at that point based on your historic mileage indicating you would still be under 108k at service 8 (which you were) but then no real excuse for it not being done at service 8 with cambelt unless you specifically requested it to be excluded.

Looking at your pics of the perished rubber I'd also be checking if it was done the first time back at 54k (when I checked mine at 76k it hadn't been done either so I got it done then).

Seems you can't trust anyone these days!

At least it sounds like you got away without any damage to your cambelt as part of the failure which is good as some aux belt fails have pulled the cam belt off and ended in valves slamming into pistons!

[Clan]

Originally Posted by GusGecko

So helpfully...my aux/serpentine belt just snapped.

I'm on a service plan with Volvo, and have been since I got the car 7 years ago, the last service with 07/22 , 109k miles D5 - surely this should have been either suggested or changed already as part of the plan?!

That is obviously the original belt , the aux belt must be changed every 54000 miles . why wasn't it changed ???

The cambelt ( and aux.belt) should be changed every 108000 miles or 10 years which ever comes first, why wasn't it changed at the service No 8 ? It could well have exceeded 108000 miles by the time the next service was due.

Some serious questions need to be asked and compensation expected from them...

[GusGecko]

I save all my invoices... And can see the following:

- Service 3 / 2017 / 38k miles - claims to have changed the aux belt. As per service plan and invoice/schedule from Dealer.

- Service 6 / 2020 / 82k miles - is the next estimated time for aux belt AND camshaft belt - NOT done as stated on paperwork by dealer (presume due to mileage)

- Service 7 / 2021 / 92k Miles - marked again as belts not done

- Service 8 / 2022 / 105k miles - No record of any belts being changed - this is the critical service for belts due to mileage and has resulted in it breaking.

Despite not being at the "108k mile mark", surely this is close enough, plus the next service being estimated to be 117k miles....

Some photos below.

[RDesign4Life]

Service 7 theoretically covered you up to 110k miles which is 2k beyond the interval for the 1st cambelt with 2nd aux belt change. Should have been done then unless you elected to exclude it based on your lower annual mileages. Your paperwork shows they replaced your aux belt at 38k so at this service 7 with 92k on the car your aux belt had seen its 54k miles and should have been done anyway.

At service 8 they were preparing your vehicle to cover up to 123k miles so absolutely no valid reason to not do the belts.

They should be embarrassed about this and falling over themselves to look after you with some 'goodwill'. That belt snapping could have jumped your cambelt off and killed your engine!

[GusGecko]

Thanks for your input.

Absolutely did NOT opt out of it being done!

Not expecting special treatment, but certainly want this rectified promptly on a complimentary basis.

[Captainfieldmouse]

Originally Posted by Clan

it depends if yours is a 5 cylinder or the new 4 cylinder ..

5 cylinder ..
Cambelt = 108000 miles or 10 years which ever comes first ..
Aux Belt = every 54000 miles ( irrespective of age )

4 Cylinder
Cambelt every 90000 miles or ten years which ever comes first
Aux Belt = Every 144000 miles / 10 years

Just about to pick up a D4 with 77k on the clock. No way of telling from the service book if the aux belt has been done or not and dealer bought car at auction so can't check with previous owner. Is there a simple way of checking if it's been done or not?

[Bromie]

Originally Posted by Captainfieldmouse

Just about to pick up a D4 with 77k on the clock. No way of telling from the service book if the aux belt has been done or not and dealer bought car at auction so can't check with previous owner. Is there a simple way of checking if it's been done or not?

If it was serviced at main dealers at any point in its life, the quickest way is probably to give a Volvo dealer a ring and ask them for the service history. I did the same with mine and confirmed that the auxiliary belt had been changed as expected, even though there was no record in the service book.

Someone may otherwise have a suggestion for a date code or something similar on the belt, which would at least tell you that the belt is younger than the car (depending on whether the belt was from stock and already a few years old upon being fitted!).