Bongo Fury

hellow everyone
bongo just passed uts mot again
it now has just over 100.000 km on
the clock took it to mechanic said didnt
look as the timing belt had been done he's never worked on
a petrol bongo before.he's got a great reputation
he gave me what I think was a great quote
Iv'e bought the manuels to help out .what else
do I need along with belt for the job also would I
be aswell getting the rest of the belts done at the
same time
cheers jimmy

Hi Jimmy. Did he see the manuals before quoting? You probably realise it's a pretty labour intensive job. Personally, while spending on it, I would change the other belts, although they don't actually need the cambelt disassembly work to get them changed - had mine done as part of its annual service last year. Also, while it's being disassembled far enough for the cambelt job, make sure your crankshaft and cambelt oil seals are not leaking. It seems to be a V6 weak point - 'search' on here, and you'll find threads on both. Leaking seals don't necessarily bring the Bongo to a halt, of course, but they make a mess, can cause excessive oil consumption, and the cambelt seals particularly will plague you with burning oil smells when the engine's hot - if you've got that already, suspect them. The cambelt springs/tensioners only really need changing if out of tolerance as specified in the manual but you won't know until it's stripped down - and they're not cheap. I think apole found a sale or return deal for them, when he had the whole job (including the seals) done. You could PM him for tips on the best supply sources, including seals if needed. Cheers, David

That's pretty comprehensive advice David. The power steering and alternator belts do get removed to do the cambelt/timing belt, so you may as well change them while you're there... especially if they look dodgey or you don't know when they were last changed.

And the V6 engine always sound sooo quiet after this job's been done.
So quiet, I'm quite tempted by a V6 flat top myself.

Doone wrote:That's pretty comprehensive advice David. The power steering and alternator belts do get removed to do the cambelt/timing belt, so you may as well change them while you're there... especially if they look dodgey or you don't know when they were last changed.

And the V6 engine always sound sooo quiet after this job's been done.
So quiet, I'm quite tempted by a V6 flat top myself.

Don't they. We had silky synthetic oil (Mobil 1 0W/40) put in as well as the belt changes at the last service, then recently changed to quieter running tyres, and the whole thing now purrs along. Go for it

hi Ron thanks for the reply.the mechanic only took a quick look at the manual thenl had a look at the engine
he thinks its about a days labour.as I said before he's never worked on apetrol bongo before.he's a lucidia expert
plus all the other cars he looks after are as old as our bongos and in as good condition
when I told him the price of the belt he thought it would come as a kit with tensioner/etc
or what ever usualy comes with the kit.
Iv'e seen the price of the tensioners this could turn in to a very expensive job
but it would definetly be money well spent
thats 18 months ive had the bongo sailed 2 MOTs with 2advisories
also mechanic wants the manuals for afew days prior to job
is there any way to tell if its been done without striping everthing out to see it
cheers jimmy

Sounds like you are in good safe hands there nice to see a mechanic who is happy to do a bit of homework to get the job done right.

As a footnote, we have managed to source a supply of the crankshaft and cambelt oil seals and will have these in stock in the Bongo Shop shortly.

Whether or not stripped out, I don't think you can tell if the timing belt was changed inside its rated 100k km, unless it breaks - in which case you can be pretty sure that it wasn't, and pretty sure of getting a big bill to fix a mangled engine. I'm sure your guy is right - at just over 100k km, and with no positive record of a previous change, change it now. Timing, and other belt changes, should leave you still able to eat but if the seals do have to be done as well, it will be likely to take more than a day's labour and costs will mount. I would PM apole who can give you chapter and verse. You may find a supplier who only sells the timing belt and springs/tensioners in a kit BTW but I've only ever heard of them sold separately - best that way, as the springs/tensioners may not need changing, although if you want belt and braces while this work is done, then perhaps you'll want to change them anyway?

Thanks for the speedy reply as I want this done ASAP
you couldent give me a rough price for the parts then maybee I'll sleep tonight
Ive got an early start in the morrning leaving at 6:30 for snowboarding
the mechanic definetly diddnt think the front cover had ever been of
cheers
jimmy

Jimmy. From the Bongo Shop (top right on this page) and assuming you're a Bongo Fury member, otherwise a bit higher:

Cambelt £119.50
Alternator belt £13.50
Aircon belt £13.00

None of the other mentioned parts are sold there. I think apole found better prices anyway, so hope he can give you more complete advice.

More than that, I can't tell you, I'm afraid. Our Bongo's cambelt was changed as part of a composite job/price, during original UK preparation, and camper conversion, by Imperial.

Enjoy your snow boarding!

David

well thanks again everone for the speedy replys time for bed for me
cheers
jimmy