Bought a 59 plate with 68k miles, change chain tensioner?

[rsmagee]

Hi guys,

Quick question about my awesome new car. Its a MY2010 GT with 210hp

Should i get the tensioner changed or is less of a problem than I think?

If I do change is there anything else worth getting done while its on a ramp?

Thanks!

[Paradox1]

Hi,

I have similar mileage to you and ive been thinking of getting my tensioner done too for piece of mind.
You do hear so stories of peoples car having a tensioner fail and chew the head.
For the money its worth it for piece of mind. whats a couple hundred to a couple grant for a new engine right?

[rsmagee]

Hi,

I have similar mileage to you and ive been thinking of getting my tensioner done too for piece of mind.
You do hear so stories of peoples car having a tensioner fail and chew the head.
For the money its worth it for piece of mind. whats a couple hundred to a couple grant for a new engine right?

Yep thats my thinking. Getting ti done at Midland VW on Friday for about £350 with a health check on top. Almost want to hear it was looking dodgy when they change it!!

[Paradox1]

Yeah I agree with tour thinking.
Im planning on doing the same thing. may be worth doing every 50,000 miles to be on the safe side

[Roy_01]

Yeah I agree with tour thinking.
Im planning on doing the same thing. may be worth doing every 50,000 miles to be on the safe side

Good decision!

[salsajoe]

Definitely do the tensioner (two design changes) and you also need to check the chain - apparently there is also a revised chain so worth thinking about doing this while the engine is apart.

[rsmagee]

Definitely do the tensioner (two design changes) and you also need to check the chain - apparently there is also a revised chain so worth thinking about doing this while the engine is apart.

Tensioner is booked along with an inspection of the chain, hoping its ok though as its so so expensive with labour. Hoping MIdlands VW will use the most up to date part for the tensioner!

[Paradox1]

Let us know how it goes.

May be worth getting some part numbers and making this thread a sticky

[rsmagee]

Just dropped the car of at Midland VW. Seemed friendly. They agreed to let me have the old tensioner so pics to follow!

[KarmaSumatra]

I bet the old one looks perfect!

[Roy_01]

Updated tensioner: 06K-109-467-K

[rsmagee]

Good news and bad news,

Bad news I have paid to have it changed, and it was already the updated part!

Good news, someone has been looking after this car, and its probably better to have a brand new one on anyway!

[rsmagee]

Here is the removed part. Pretty sure it's the newest rev. Been replaced with the part number above in this thread.

[KarmaSumatra]

Called it!

In all seriousness, that's kind of annoying! Do we know when the latest revision started being used?

I found a similar thing with my DV. I already had the latest revision in a 2009 car.

[rsmagee]

It's one of those things I guess. Advantage is I don't need to worry about this issue again and can just enjoy the car for what it is!

[KarmaSumatra]

Yeah, it was always a gamble. At least you now have a brand new part in there.

[wakey1512]

For those unsure about getting this done, a common telltale sign that this could be an issue is a 2 second rattle on startup. These are tensioned on oil pressure and once the tensioner becomes defective it will start weeping oil past the seal overnight and losing their tension, and the chain will rattle on startup briefly while the engine builds up oil pressure.

As already mentioned, the chain and tensioner have both been superceded. The old chain is fairly durable. The guide system is robust - you have a good chance of running the engine with no tension at all for 30 seconds at the most without it skipping. Before I got the lot done on my 122 TSI the 2 second rattle turned into a much longer 20 second + rattle just getting it into the garage and it was OK. Luck was with me that day. Not for the faint of heart.

[super cowboyjon]

For those unsure about getting this done, a common telltale sign that this could be an issue is a 2 second rattle on startup. These are tensioned on oil pressure and once the tensioner becomes defective it will start weeping oil past the seal overnight and losing their tension, and the chain will rattle on startup briefly while the engine builds up oil pressure.

As already mentioned, the chain and tensioner have both been superceded. The old chain is fairly durable. The guide system is robust - you have a good chance of running the engine with no tension at all for 30 seconds at the most without it skipping. Before I got the lot done on my 122 TSI the 2 second rattle turned into a much longer 20 second + rattle just getting it into the garage and it was OK. Luck was with me that day. Not for the faint of heart.

THIS!

The tensioner and indeed the chain are robust as hell. Its kinda the whole point to having the chain and not a belt which are usually recommended to change at 60,000 miles, so its kinda nuts to assume you should be throwing £350+ at your local vw garage for 'peace of mind'.

Your car is not going to go from purring like a kitty one minute to 'holy shit the engine just blew up!' the next. There will be signs and sounds preceeding things going downhill. If you have a doubt i advise getting a second opinion from a more experienced friend before handing over your wallet and bending over.

[wakey1512]

Obviously if you have the money and want the peice of mind its worth doing but i wouldn't be scrimping and saving just to get it done, just incase it fails, its an expensive job.

Thats my mentality with it - Obviously if you do motorway driving and it spits its dummy out at 70mph its a bigger issue than it happening on startup but there will be telltale signs in 99% of cases. Its just that not everyone can identify the telltales. People need to understand the abnormal noises and not be 'accustomed' to them. Just think of the amount of old 1.0/1.2 litre Corsa C's we see on the roads where the timing chains are rattling their heads off, drivers completely oblivious because they are used to the noise! Then a few weeks later it wont start because its finally skipped a few teeth!

(The problem on corsas is usually not changing the oil frequently enough, doesnt help with the VW unfortunately )

[rsmagee]

Wish I had that before! Guess I let the scaremongering get to me.

Ah well, lesson learned