My daugther 2002 Volvo V50 blow an engine because of the time belt slipped She had only had less than 75000 and was relgious about her mx checkups timely and by only Volvo Mechanics. She is a Service member in Gemany and the Germany dealer say there is nothing she can do. Can somebably help me get this engine replaced or even credit for a new volvo. The Engine is gone and the mechanic said 7000 Euro. The car blue book at 9500 Euro.
Are you sure that this is a model V50 of the 2002 model year?
My references indicate that this model designation was not used until 2004.
Is it possible that this is a model S40, which was essentially the same vehicle mechanically as the later V50?
In any event, Volvos of that era tend to need timing belt replacement at 105,000 miles or 105 months, whichever comes first. 105 months=8.75 years. So, on the basis of elapsed time, the belt was apparently due for replacement some time last year.
All too often, people assume that low odometer mileage exempts them from having to do vehicle maintenance, and while that might be true with some types of maintenance, it is absolutely not true with any components made chiefly of rubber–like a timing belt. The passage of time, coupled with heat and ozone, will degrade and harden the rubber in a timing belt even if the engine was never started. Just being in place for the 8+ years was sufficient to weaken the belt–as you and your daughter have sadly discovered.
While I am very empathetic regarding the financial burden imposed by this catastrophic engine damage, the bottom line is that it could most likely have been avoided if the belt had been changed at least a few months ago. Please emphasize to your daughter that, in the future, she needs to read the maintenance schedule for her car very carefully, and she needs to take the elapsed time factor into account for maintenance, as well as the odometer mileage factor. It would have been nice if her mechanic(s) had alerted her to the need to replace the belt on the basis of elapsed time, but ultimately the responsibility rests with a vehicle’s owner.
I seriously doubt that Volvo will provide any assistance, simply because the engine was apparently not maintained in accordance with the maintenance schedule. While you might want to contact Volvo at the corporate level, I would suggest that you not assume that they will come to her aid. If they do come to her aid, then congratulations to both your daughter and to Volvo’s new Chinese corporate masters!
It’s a 9 year old car. Contrary to what some people think, Volvos don’t last forever. They have problems and are more expensive than average to keep on the road. Does she really need a car?
I also don’t think the V50 was made in 2002.
What car and what engine does she really have?
Is there a used engine available.
Engines do not blow when the timing belt slips. They typically smash the valves and the upper end is replaced of motor. They can be repaired.
i made a misstake it is an 2005. does that change anything??
thanks for your detail info. I made a misstake it is an 2005. with your timeline 6 year old car do I have a case. Volvo do live forever but they live longer than 6 years and all the mx inspections were done. I have my 7th volvo a XC-70 with 94000 miles(yes I will chck my belt monday). so do i have a case and how can i submitt it. The germans are no help.
The biggest problem you have is that a car is a machine, and machines break. They do come with warranties where the company says how long they will worry about things breaking. But beyond that (which I assume you are) you just own a machine - that can break. So this one is broken.
If she wants help from Volvo then her best bet is probably to start climbing the corporate ladder - i.e. don’t bother with the any particular dealership which is almost certainly not part of or owned by Volvo at all. Give a call directly to Volvo corporate.
In 2005, the V50 came with either a 2.4 or 2.5 engine. Neither is an interference engine, so even if the timing belt did break the car’s engine should not have “blown.”
Maybe she should have it towed to a different mechanic.
Now that we know the car is only 6 years old, then owner negligence can be ruled out.
However, the problem of “coverage” for this problem now arises.
While this catastrophic failure was early, by any measure, all of the vehicle’s warranties have expired.
As a result, the only hope is for “goodwill” assistance from the manufacturer.
In the Owner’s Manual, your daughter should be able to locate contact info for the customer service folks at Volvo corporate. If she can document proper maintenance (even though no amount of maintenance could have averted this failure), and if she is very polite, yet firm and business-like, it is possible that they may offer to cover half the cost of these very expensive repairs.
What may complicate matters is the question of which iteration of Volvo’s corporate entity is responsible for the goodwill assistance. If the car was purchased in the US, but repairs must take place in Europe, that will likely complicate matters. On the other hand, if she purchased the car in Europe, this should make matters simpler. In any event, she should use the contact phone number in her Owner’s Manual.
Just make sure that she does not say anything like, “I will never buy a Volvo again!”, as that would remove most of their motivation for assisting her with expenses. On the other hand, if she says that she is a loyal Volvo owner who hopes to be able to buy her next one in a year or so, that might help (even if she intends to avoid Volvos like the plague).
Good luck!
If the car is a 2005 then this means it was more than likely manufactured in the summer or fall of 2004. This makes it going on 7 years old.
Timing belts are not only age and mileage dependent they’re also susceptible to environmental conditions. Extremes of heat and cold, etc. play a part along with any trace leakage of engine oil or coolant, etc.
I think the factory warranty is 4 years/50k miles so regrettably this would be out of the factory warranty period. You can kneel humbly at the feet of corporate Volvo and ask for a Good Will warranty adjustment but don’t hold your breath while doing so.
Now and then a belt will break prematurely no matter what make of car it is. This fluke incident just happened to be with your daughter’s car.
Sounds like just bad luck. The belts are supposed to last 100K or so, but ‘things’ happen. (not the word I was going to use, but didn’t want my post to be censored)
I’d look into getting the engine repaired–it should just be the valve train that’s trashed–new or used heads or rebuilding the existing ones should do it. Or see about a salvage yard engine for it if you can find one. (make sure the belt is changed when the used engine is installed)