Hey, first of all I must say, these forums are awesome and you can find a lot of information here. I've been coming to the forums a lot, I've just never posted anything, but this time I got a question for you guys.

I have a 98 1.8T A4, and I need to change the timing belt, tensioner and all that good stuff. The dealer quoted me $1,000 for the job. I really don't want to pay that much. What do you think would be a fair price to have this work done? I have a local guy that works on Audi's, and I want to see what your opinions are before I get a quote from him.

Also, are there any good sites where I can get everything for a good price that has quality?
The guy I know can order them from Audi for me, but if something with good quality comes along I'd buy that instead if its going to be a lot cheaper.

Thank You

 

for parts get the ultimate timing belt kit from www.ecstuning.com

and to install it at a local shop I would say about 500-700. Or do it yourself I did mine last friday it's really not hard at all

 

I took my 99 1.8t in today and was given the same quote, $1036.... from just a place that works on audi and VW's. When I took it to the dealer last month, they quoted me 1600 and then another place quoted me close to 2000. I saw that some others on here put it should be about 800 to 850. When I took my car in today I was told that the parts are a little bit more expensive for some audi's depending on some numbers they got off of something under the hood. Sorry, I can't be more descriptive because I really wasn't paying all that much attention to what was being said, because the guy was talking to my father, not me. I've found that when I take my dad with tme, the price miraculously falls from when I go by myself and talk to them. But then when we asked about having the cam seals replaced (which it seems people here on the forums and my father recommends) , they quoted me another 900 dollars. So i'm going to wait and have that done at a later time, but mine are only very very slightly leaking. I guess it really just depends on where you live how much things will cost. I KNOW that when I lived in california, which should be more expensive than where i live now, everything was much cheaper and i received much better service than i do here in charleston, but oh well.

 

Thanks,

skid,
That ultimate timing belt kit looks good. I'm probably going to go ahead and get that. I'd like to do it myself, but I just don't trust myself enough about something like this. I know a guy that used to work at an Audi dealership, but now just works on them at his home. I see what he says he'll do it for if I buy the parts from that site.

lauren,
Yes, Audi dealerships usually do a great job, but they are rediculously overpriced. i haven't heard about the numbers under the hood, but in general the dealer is quoting in the $1,000 range--which I'd still like to go a lot less.
If I were you I'd try to find a trusted guy that really knows Audi's well bacause the dealer is going to rip you off.

 

yah....i have tried, but i live in the south now, they only drive and rave about "american made" cars down here.... ok and bmw's, but i really can't find ANYONE that will even look at my car, it is so sad.... i LOVE my car, but the frustration i've had since moving and trying to get stuff done to my car is ridiculous.... hopefully as the area grows, the demand will go up and i'll be able to find someone reliable...... being new to the area though makes it hard.... i guess i'll just have to trade it in soon for a new one with the warranty,..... maybe THAT would be my best bet (and wouldn't that be unfortunate, lol)..... yah, maybe i'll just do that! ha ha

 

One of the girls I knew moved down to N. Carolina from Jeresey a few months ago and says she really can'yt stand it. She has a BMW Z3 and still drives up to Jersey to have my friend do any kind of work to it. She says she trusts him, and dos'nt want to get a new mechanic down there. I think shes out of her mind, but what do I know. Anyways good luck finding someone to work on your Audi.

 

hey thanks, yah i prob seem kind of whiny because all my post seem to go back to me not being able to find someone to work on my car, but it is just really annoying.... and your friend is probably being smart, i was just making plans to go back to cali for a few weeks at the end of the summer and was just talking to my friend about maybe doing a roadtrip, lol.... but then realized I really didn't feel like driving the whole way back there just after driving from cali to here last summer , i'll prob wait till i'm done with undergrad cuz my car sits in a parking garage half the day anyways during the school year, then i'll trade up

 

lol I was hoping you weren't thinking about driving all the way back to Cali to get your car worked on.

Maybe a new Audi wouldn't be a bad idea, I mean it can't be that bad

But yea, it must be tough not really knowing many people since you're new to the area. Do you have any friends with Audi's there, or even someone who really takes care of his or her car? Maybe they would know of someone?

 

Front seals when doing the timing belt take an extra 15 minutes.