had timing belt job done on 2 cars, IDK if MECHANIC CHANGED PARTS!!! HELP

hey guys so i got my 2 cars timing belt kits chanegd.
i had all enw hardware for every single bolt that had to be removed aswell as some camshaft and vacuum pump gaskets/seals

on my 2003 alh i had a complete kit (rollers/tensioners/etc.) when i peeled back the timing belt cover to check it out i noticed the top ina idler roll had already started to have material pickup/wear. you know how they have like a chrome finish to them new, well this one had chrome wear already on it with about 150km on it since the jobs done!!!! should it be wearing this quick or did he most likely not change the rollers?

SECOND i gave him all new thermostat/housings/bolts i got to check out the housings to find and see that the old hardware was reused ON BOTH CARS its the same old corroded bolts not new clean finish bolts.

my issue is how can i trust he did the rest of the job if he couldn't even change the 2 bolts to the thermostat housing, it looks like he changed all the TTY stretch bolts but im just concerned as i noticed the 3 glow plugs beside the vaccum pump were all cracked and broken now i assume the vacuum pump was removed and he wacked the plugs and faield to mention how they damaged all . IS MY ONLY WAY TO VERIFY timing belt job is to take off the timing cover. ????

Here is a crazy thought: why don't you ask him?

FWIW, it is normal for the new roller to pick up some black stuff off the new belt, it goes away after a while.

While I would certainly use new thermostat housing bolts if someone wanted, I would not normally replace them myself unless there was something wrong with them... in which case I have a bin full of good used ones to grab. Still, if you provided them, and he didn't use them, I'd ask him to give you your new bolts back.

Because i cant trust his word if i cant trust his work

The new roller pickup black stuff/rubber within 150km?? Ive been reading most guys notice in the 1000+MILE range

I just did a new belt and all the associated goodies and after I'd started the car and let it idle to warm up, I always pop the top timing belt cover just to be sure I didn't make some big goof and the belt is being eaten away on the edge or something catastrophic like that. That top roller was already starting to collect that black fluff with 0 miles and only about 15 minutes of run time.


I'd say if anything it suggests he did change the belt and top roller at least. If you don't trust him then don't take it back to him.

Idler roller between cam and injection pump will have black rubber stuff on it in less than 1 minute after starting the car with a new timing belt. As far as the 3 coolant glow plug connectors cracking, they get brittle over time and since the vacuum pump has to come off for the timing belt job, they probably crumbled a bit when the mechanic took them off to access the vacuum line bracket nuts.

As Brian stated above, ask the mechanic. From what I read of your post above the evidence suggests the mechanic most likely did the job correctly. The new damage to the coolant glow plug wires suggests the vacuum pump was removed to lock the cam, indicating it was not a mark and pray job.

I always save the old parts and offer them to the client, 99.9% of them don't want the parts back but many like to at least see them when they pick up the car.

Who did you use as your mechanic?

03tdiwagon said:

The new roller pickup black stuff/rubber within 150km?? Ive been reading most guys notice in the 1000+MILE range

Click to expand...

The belts have some kind of coating so it pretty much happens soon as it wears off onto the rollers. It's not a big deal.

You can inspect the top roller easy enough to see if it's been replaced. The bearing area will look clean compared to a roller that's been in the engine for years. Same for the tensioner.

Another thing I would recommend is to ask for the old parts back when a major service is done if you have trust issues.

As many as I've changed, I cannot remember for sure, but I think if you use a small mechanic's mirror and flash light, you should be able to see if the Water Pump was changed (try to see where the WP housing meets the block) If he did that, surely he did everything else properly.

I agree with the quick build-up of black stuff on the small roller.