Renault Clio 182 Possible Cambelt?

[Adem Bekir]

• Hi this is my first post!! Had all belts changed along with a dephaser pulley. All genuine Renault parts. After the works was done there was a tappy/ticky sort of sound when accelerating. I thought nothing of this as I knew i needed a new airfilter, i assumed it was that. I was driving down the A120 4 days later doing about 70mph. When the revs went past 4000 the car started to jerk every few seconds. Then all of a sudden all power was lost and once i grounded to a halt the engine wouldn't turn over. When the green flag man turned up he got the engine started but it sounded like a lot of banging a clunking was going on. The car is currently back at the garage which carried out the works for the belts. I'm worried there gonna say its nothing to do with them and end up paying for a possible rebuild. Any thoughts on what i should do and what it could be??

 

[Mr R.]

Oh dear, non Renault specialist I take it?

Correct tools wouldn't have been used, crank bolt replaced etc..

Id say the timing's gone out and hit the valves.

 

[Adem Bekir]

No not a Renault specialist
He has not confirmed what is wrong with it atm but he said it could possibly be the variable valve timing?

I have no idea what this is and what the symptoms of this would be !!

How much damage could have been done to the engine if I was traveling at motorway speeds if it is the belt that has slipped??

 

[Oggy997]

It'll be fucked.

 

[brisa4984]

^this

 

[Adem Bekir]

Thanks buddy!
If he comes back to me and says it's nothing to do with his works I think I'll get a second opinion !
Think it's too much of a coincidence to be anything else !
Obviously he will be liable to any costs !

 

[Adem Bekir]

Anyone know what the symptoms of dodgy variable valve timing is?

 

[Dan@SJM]

Not what you've described. IMO he hasn't a clue what he's doing with them. Where are you based? Get it taken to a specialist who will confirm/deny any wrong doing of the garage.

 

[Dan@SJM]

Or, as it's genuine Renault parts, the warranty of faulty parts is with them. Tow it there, pay for them to strip it down and if it's faulty parts they'll cover the costs. If it's faulty workmanship they'll tell you.

 

[Adem Bekir]

I've been reading up on vvt problems and people are saying that they loose power at high revs which is similar to what my car was doing as I described above it was jerking as if it was choking every few seconds.
However when the green flag man started up the engine there was a hell of a lot of banging going on! So I can't see it being the vvt?

I'm based in Essex!
I will let you guys know what the diagnosis is and see what you think

 

[Adem Bekir]

been to the mechanic, he said to me that the valve seat had come away and broken off which is what caused the damage. 1 of the spark plugs is about 10mm shorter than the rest where it has been blown to pieces.
I have spoken to a specialist and they seem to think that there is no way the valve seat would go just like that and the only thing connected to the valves is the belts and the gearbox.
he said that there is nothing wrong with the work that was carried out and the timing was spot on.
should i trust this guy or is he trying to cover his tracks??
Please help!!!

 

[Mike@Rentech]

Search for dropped a valve...
Cambelt etc can be perfect if a valve is going to fail no one's going to know until it happens.
When the heads removed if it's just one cylinder damage that's the cause.
If other valves are bent on other cylinders then that's more likely to be a belt or pulley issue.

 

[Mr R.]

been to the mechanic, he said to me that the valve seat had come away and broken off which is what caused the damage. 1 of the spark plugs is about 10mm shorter than the rest where it has been blown to pieces.
I have spoken to a specialist and they seem to think that there is no way the valve seat would go just like that and the only thing connected to the valves is the belts and the gearbox.
he said that there is nothing wrong with the work that was carried out and the timing was spot on.
should i trust this guy or is he trying to cover his tracks??
Please help!!!

How does he know the timing was spot on?

Ask to see the Renault locking tools.

 

[Diagro]

if there is tipex on the car then sue him

 

[Adem Bekir]

Search for dropped a valve...
Cambelt etc can be perfect if a valve is going to fail no one's going to know until it happens.
When the heads removed if it's just one cylinder damage that's the cause.
If other valves are bent on other cylinders then that's more likely to be a belt or pulley issue.

From what he told me it's just the one valve that is damaged.
Is there no contact with the valves when changing a Cambelt kit?
And also if the Cambelt was to go would all valves be damaged??

 

[Adem Bekir]

How does he know the timing was spot on?

Ask to see the Renault locking tools.

He said he had a look but I don't really trust him atm!

 

[dangerous dave]

Insist on seeing it and take pictures for everyone on here...

They'll do anything to wriggle free

 

[Dan@SJM]

I'm calling bullshit.

 

[barker22]

When my engine went after a few thousand miles after an aux belt I was fobbed off. Northwest performance did the work, they told me that it wouldn't be them and that I should take it to Renault but if I did it would cost a fortune as Renault would charge loads to strip it down and rebuild.
So I called their bluff and took it to Renault for diagnosis, to which it came back with a nice report which stated it was poor workmanship basically. All for £88
Towed it straight to Northwest Performance where they had to rebuild the engine, all 16 valves/ belt kits etc.
Its lasted me over 10k but the rebuild was a bad job and its now currently getting the engine replaced as the headgasket has gone. I had to keep topping up the oil and draining the coolant.

Moral of this little story, get a second opinion and pay for an independent garage report. It will save you more in the long run

 

[Adem Bekir]

When my engine went after a few thousand miles after an aux belt I was fobbed off. Northwest performance did the work, they told me that it wouldn't be them and that I should take it to Renault but if I did it would cost a fortune as Renault would charge loads to strip it down and rebuild.
So I called their bluff and took it to Renault for diagnosis, to which it came back with a nice report which stated it was poor workmanship basically. All for £88
Towed it straight to Northwest Performance where they had to rebuild the engine, all 16 valves/ belt kits etc.
Its lasted me over 10k but the rebuild was a bad job and its now currently getting the engine replaced as the headgasket has gone. I had to keep topping up the oil and draining the coolant.

Moral of this little story, get a second opinion and pay for an independent garage report. It will save you more in the long run

Think I'm gonna get it recovered to renoteck in Chelmsford.
The strange thing is he said only one of the Pistons has bent !
I havnt had a look myself so I'm taking his word for it so far

 

[Dan@SJM]

I'd advise taking it to a Renault dealer. It'll stand up in court a lot stronger.

 

[Adem Bekir]

Guys is it possible for just one valve to be damaged if the timing belt slipped or was out??

 

[TheEvilGiraffe]

I have spoken to a specialist and they seem to think that there is no way the valve seat would go just like that and the only thing connected to the valves is the belts and the gearbox.

Err... which specialist said that..!?

And .. who said a PISTON has bent ?! LMAO....

 

[Adem Bekir]

Another theory is the spark plug broke off and slipped in to the valve which caused it to blow?
Is that possible?? Tying to figure out if it's a coincidence or his fault something linked??

 

[Adem Bekir]

Err... which specialist said that..!?

And .. who said a PISTON has bent ?! LMAO....

A technician at Reno-tech and the mechanic said the piston has bent

 

[TheEvilGiraffe]

Another theory is the spark plug broke off and slipped in to the valve which caused it to blow?
Is that possible?? Tying to figure out if it's a coincidence or his fault something linked??

In the nicest possible way .....:

No one is going to guess what happened, typing on a forum. Go get it checked out by someone who knows what they're doing...

 

[Mr R.]

Very unlikely.


Common problems with these engines are.

Valves drop.
And people do cam belt who don't know what they are doing/don't have the correct timing and locking tools.

 

[Mr Plums]

Did he say piston bent, or rod bent?

 

[Goodj]

In any event, sounds like you've got yourself a new bottle-holder.
And before you start getting dry-bummed for rebuild costs, may as well put the feelers out for the cost of a replacement engine.

 

[Symon]

The piston won't be bent, but it might have nice indentation or two in the top of it.

 

[Adem Bekir]

Hello guys been too the garage been informed that the piston is a goner !
Got some pictures that I took .. I need a new engine!!
There is very slight denting marks on the other Pistons but he has said that is from debris that has been chucked in to the manifold and blown back in to the piston chambers!
Don't know if you guys can comment on the pics and let me know what you think

 

[Adem Bekir]

Guys just noticed now looking at the pics myself but the 3rd piston in from the left looks like there is some indentations of the valves there don't like like just debri damage there? Am I right?

 

[Mr Plums]

Timing out and valves hit your pistons.

 

[Adem Bekir]

Timing out and valves hit your pistons.

Does it look to you that more that one piston is damaged due to a timing issue?
Wouldn't all the Pistons look the same if that was the case??

 

[flebay]

He has ruined your car punch him in the face, only joking.
I remember Fred saying all the cars he sees with broken valves had a non genuine oil filters

 

[benle]

If it were timing issue it would bend the most of the valves. Not Cause that sort of damage.

 

[flebay]

robgooch said: ↑
Well Renault doesn't make oil filters, they buy them from a filter manufacturer. I sell WIX filters and sell hundreds for clios, never had any come back yet. Bosch will be as good as any other brand. They are all made to meet or exceed OE specification and most brands have block exemption which means that it would not affect the warranty on a newer car. That's good enough for me to save a couple of quid.
Click to expand...
OE is made by Purflux, we've had 2 dead top ends in the workshop due to knackered oil filters (valve inside broke off) plus by using genuine we're covered by 12months warranty, try getting a new engine out of WIX because of a failed filter - no chance! Its actually cheaper (trade) to buy genuine than aftermarket!
Fred@BTM, Feb 3, 2013 Report

 

[Symon]

I have a Mann oil filter on mine from carparts4less

 

[ADS_V6]

and fred posted a picture of cheaper oil filters compared to the original looked quite shocking the quality of the cheap ones

 

[dangerous dave]

I can't really see anything on the other Pistons from the pics and would expect something.. Are there any clear markings?

If not, it's hard to place the blame on them and you'll have to take his word.. They might be sound as a pound and totally honest in there findings, we're just guys on computers and phones typing sh1t..

Got some close ups of each piston and valve perhaps unless someone else can actually make anything out..