When to replace Timing Belt

[slayerized6]

My timing belt/water pump kit replacement, and the work to replace it all was $771 here in Ft.laud. It is a VERY expensive repair here for some reason. Mechs. get paid more I think. The dealer wants $1,350!!

what I paid was the lowest price I could find in 5 YEARS of looking! My OEM belt and pump etc..all lasted 11yrs. But I was 'afraid' of it snapping at any moment for nearly 5 years. My 'Continental kit' was the most expensive kit I could have put in. But it has the most parts. All the seals, tensioners, water pump, some small tube of grease for the seals, and I have heard it has a thicker well made timing belt.
Even the owner of the garage that did the work, said that most people go for the 'cheap kits', with the fewest parts and shortest warranties. Just a timing belt, maybe the water pump,....thats it. Then in 6 months , they have to open the engine again to put in the 3 seals at $1-2 each, and the tensioners. Not exactly saving a lot of money by not putting them in. Like the saying goes...'penny wise, pound foolish'.

IF I had the tools and the nerve, I have been told I could do it myself. That most people do it themselves. BUT no warranty on the work, and frankly, i dont have the tools or the nerve/knowledge, to open up my engine and try to get a timing belt aligned perfectly. Off by 1 tooth, the engine blows up or gets screwed up...so...its done, and wont have to do it again, in my lifetime.

You got ripped off at close to $800. And did that include the parts kit or did you buy that on your own? A Continental Timing Belt kit is $86 on RockAuto. Even if that was upmarked to $200, you still got ripped off.

I would always ask a shop to break down the price between parts and labor when making an appointment. By the book, a timing belt on a 2004 Aveo is 1.6 hours.