I have about 40000 miles on my Kia. My mechanic just told me that even though it’s less than 60000 miles, I should get it changed because it’s been six years. He said it would destroy the engine if the belt goes out and then I will need a new engine. Is this reasonable?
Thanks!
Yes it is. You can look in your manual for verification.
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Whenever you are dealing with rubber components, you must consider Time as well as millage. Go ahead and have him change the timing belt. Does your water pump have a time component too? You could have him replace that too since much of the water pump labor is duplicated with the timing belt (although I wouldn’t think a water pump is about to go after 40,000).
I agree. I’d change the timing belt and change the water pump perhaps every other time.
There are other factors besides miles and time. Oil and coolant leaks or vapors, extremes of heat and cold, and so on are also a factor.
Being as the seals in the water pump and the grease in idler/tensioner bearings is 7 years old my vote would be for the entire timing kit.
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I’m with @ok4450 on this
Since this Kia is 6 years old and getting a timing belt, if you don’t do the water pump now, you’re gambling it’ll last until the next timing belt job
Not a gamble I’d be willing to take
At work, I regularly replace leaking water pumps that are far less than 12 years old . . .
OK4450 has, as always, offered a compelling argument. Compelling enough that I’ve changed my thoughts on the subject. I support his recommendation to do the whole kit. I humbly retract my own earlier recommendation.
Agree with the others, timing belts – irrespective of mileage — should be replaced at least every 7 years. It’s a good investment to make to keep your Kia running for years and years. The belt itself only costs about $75, but there’s 3-3.5 hours of labor involved, so the total will be in the $400 range I expect. Not too bad for a timing belt job. From what I can tell here your Kia’s 2 L engine only has one cam sprocket the belt has to go around, which makes the job quite a bit simpler, and less chance of a mistake.
It’s true that a lot of the labor involved w/replacing the water pump is already done as part of the timing belt job. So there’s an opportunity to get some two for the price of one labor here. But if I were doing this job myself, if it were own car w/40K miles on it, while everything was taken apart I’d check the water pump the best I could, and if it looked and sounded ok, no signs of leaking, I’d leave it alone. Same with the timing belt tensioner. The water pump on my Corolla remains original with over 200 K. There’s some merit to keeping things simple when doing car repair.
This would be an excellent question to email Kia Usa headquarters. You have a 10 year 100,000 mile powertrain warranty if bought new but maintenance is on you. What does Kia say about a time interval for replacing your timing belt? Do not ask your local dealer, they will not be determining if a repair is covered under warranty.
I tried an on-line search and I am not clear whether this car has a timing chain or a belt. OP should look in the manual and also online, this car apparently has two engines, 1.6 & 2.0 and they might defer. Also seems like that in 2011 one of the engines went from belt to chain.
If it has a chain, then that would change all advise.
It depends on which engine you have. If you have the 2L, then six years is a reasonable interval. Gates sells timing belt kits, and they say to inspect at 60,000 and replace at 80,000. There is no mention of time, but six years is appropriate for the mileage recommendation. It is an interference engine, and if the belt breaks in service, you could easily damage the engine badly enough that you would have to replace it. Do it now.
If you have the 1.6 L engine, don’t bother. It has a timing chain and typically will never need replacement.
Thanks for all the replies. I guess I’ll bite the bullet and get this done. It will be more like $600 here in Phx, but that will include the water pump, as it comes as a kit.
Great price. Since the water pump is replaced, I guess you get new coolant, too? You should.
Boat payment time. You’re easily good for another year.
I found the 2011 Kia Soul owner’s manual online
The 2.0 liter engine has the timing belt
According to the manual, the timing belt is due for replacement every 96000 kilometers or 48 months, whichever comes first
That means the timing belt is already way overdue
48 months? Wow, that’s the shortest time interval I’ve seen for recommending timing belt replacement. You’d have to drive the car nearly 25000 miles per year to avoid the time requirement on that belt. I wonder if there’s something unusual about that belt configuration? It appears to be nearly the same as my Corolla, one cam sprocket belt path, which has a 7 year timing belt recommendation. Maybe it is b/c the Kia is a 2 L engine, and my Corolla is 1.6 L, maybe the 2L displacement puts a little more stress on the belt perhaps.
For whatever reason, or reasons, maybe the 48 month recommendation is because Kia got slammed by some owners because of belt breakage and they’re erring on the side of caution.
That’s not saying that Kia did anything wrong but you know how things can go sometime when things go sour.
Guess I need to look up the 2016 models and alert my daughter in law who just bought a Soul not long ago.
I like those. I think it was the hamsters that attracted me. 
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I found the same owners manual online but since the mileage interval was given as 96000 kilometers, I don’t believe it was a US manual. It also instructed you to check oil, coolant and windshield washer fluid every time you stop for gas. It also wants you to check every nut and bolt on the car, and pretty much everything else every 4 months. Also change the oil every 8000 km 0r 4 months.
You may have a point
That said, until OP reports back to us what the owner’s manual in his glove box says, that’s all we’ve got
My brother owns a 2010 Mazda, and it also wants oil changes every 4 months
And it lists the service intervals in kilometers and months
He also lives in Los Angeles, and it’s a US-spec car