Last opinion about my timing belt/water pump replacement needed.....

[FlaAveo5]

Hey all. Well I cant put this replacement off any longer. (11years and 36K miles later) I don't/can't enjoy driving my car, I worry about the timing belt snapping at any moment,so I am finally seriously thinking about getting it replaced,BUT I want to ask your opinions about WHO i am actually considering to do it.

Now dont jump on me to bad. I am asking for YOUR opinions BEFORE I do this. I am considering having 'Tires Plus' do it for me. I got a $880 price, out the door, with a 'Continental Kit', including the 'cam shaft seals', I didnt even know those were in need of replacement, but it comes with the kit. I specifically asked for the Gates or Continental kit, sorry if I am spelling it wrong. I read on here that these two kits have the most parts and the highest quality. Right??? And having the 'Peak Lifetime Coolant' put back in, I had the Dex Cool removed about 8 months ago. So that added $$$ to the bottom line, they use DexCool, and I told them, I want Peak LifeTime put back in it,so it went up.

So...my question is, am I shooting myself in the foot, to have a 'tire place', replace my timing belt/water pump 'kit'?

This place will get me a 12/12 warranty, I get a Continental kit, and Peak Coolant put back in it. It isn't the cheap kit that I could get, I insisted on this one or Gates. I have a charge card for 'Tires Plus', so I can pay this off for the next year or two, the OEM one has lasted me 11 yrs./36K miles. But Chevy wants over $1,300, thats a NO! And the mechanics I WANT to do it, only want $660, and I'd get a 2 year warranty on it all, but I dont have $660, and thats a real garage of course. So it leaves me with VERY few options. What do you all think??? Should I do this at this place, or risk another year, and save up for a year, risk it breaking, and go to the mechanics NEXT Dec. ?

I asked Tires Plus if they know how to do this, if their 'mechanics' are ASE certified, etc. I trust them for my tires, struts, brakes, stuff like that, but this is a major engine repair,.... can I get a quality job there? They assure me yes, that they do it all the time. This Continental kit comes with the cam seals, and he said that is usually extra in these kits. I assume that is why it cost the most??? Because it comes with ALL the parts to be replaced....right?

So...go ahead, I have asked for it...give me your opinions. Be gentle. I have few to no options, so do i let Tires Plus do this job? OR wait another year, cross my fingers, and do it NEXT Dec., IF nothing else breaks by then, and go with my mechanics and get a 2 year warranty on the repair, and maybe a higher price.

[EAD15]

If you aren't comfortable with Tires Plus, would you be able to borrow the money from someone for the mechanic?

If not, what is the warranty from them? Could they recover the coolant from your car and just put it back in to save you money (since you said it's only 8 months old)? What is the interest rate on the line of credit you have with them (that could drive up the cost far more than you realize)?

[FlaAveo5]

Well I dont know if Tires Plus has a good engine 'repair record' or not. Does anyone know? The warranty is 12 months/12K miles parts/labor. (The OEM parts are already at 11years/36K miles), and I was suppose to replace them at 5 years....so...they last a lot longer. I assume they all usually last well past 50K miles?, but thats the warranty on the box from Continental, and Tires Plus is 12K miles or 12 months on the labor.
I cant borrow the money, got no family at all, or friends, literally, none. So no one to even ask. The interest is like 20% percent on the card, but if/when the timing belt breaks, a new engine is MUCH more expensive to fix/replace, than the interest i would pay. I am not buying another car, I wont be able to get a car with this LOW mileage, and be sure of its past care, for a price I can afford, ...thats why i am thinking about doing this SO intently.
Where can i get a 2006 car, or MUCH newer, with 36K miles if this one dies/blows up on me because of the belt/pump isnt replaced? Nowhere. I am finally at the point I actually LIKE my Aveo. It is a simple car, it's actually reliable now, it isnt giving me problems, (past a dead battery), it looks great, not stuffed with power everything, to go bad on me, no payments, only the insurance is HIGH! So..thats it. But I am not enjoying my 'simple cheap car'. I should not be afraid to start it EVERY time. This one freaking thing is just to much to have hanging over my head for SO long. So...thats it.........others?

[xintersecty]

Dude, go else where. They are charging you way too much money. When I replaced my water seal, I just let whatever drain out the pump until it quit. Then I topped off.

I would put the whole operation at 400 bucks total including the kit to replace the timing belt. You don't need your cam shaft seals replaced.

[FlaAveo5]

Well my cheapest repair quote is $660 ,with the 2 year warranty on parts and labor. But I dont have the money. I can't do it myself, i don't have the tools or the knowledge, Fla. is one of the most expensive state to replace this belt/pump kit. The coolant is the cheapest part of the deal, the cam shafts seals come in almost ever 'kit' that I have priced, so it is a cheap replacement/repair to do at the same time, they just pop off and pop on, so it isnt an expensive addition to the kit. Maybe Continental IS just the most expensive kit??? I see they have like 4 levels of kits, from 'Basic', to 'Pro' series. I do want to replaced as many parts as possible at the same time. Once the engine is open, they might as well get replaced. I still need to get a price with OEM parts, will go to Tires Plus tomorrow and ask them to give me a price with an OEM parts kit. See if that lowers it a few hundred dollars. I also think it should be around $400 tops,...but the lowest I have been given is the $660 one. But when you dont have the money, you got to go /do what you can afford, even if it is hundreds more . I have even put a post in CL, for a local ASE mech. to do it, and got like 5 quotes, from $400-$950!, and that done in my carport, not at a garage, and a years warranty,from a ASE mech. But not attached to a shop or a dealer..so how good is the warranty??? As good as the mech. that does it.