best small car suggestions and why.., page-12

Years ago, most cars with timing belts had free spinning engines, which meant that if a timing belt failed the pistons would 'not' hit the valves. All it would take is to put another belt on, turn the key and away went the happy customer. Today, manufacturers are chasing every last bit of performance, efficiency and control of emissions pushing clearances to the limits, so if a belts breaks so would the engine. To top it off, usually belt idler pulleys and belt tensioners must be replaced during the schedule as well, adding to the already high replacement costs.

These kits alone can be around $400, then you have to add labour costs. What used to take around an easy hour can sometimes take half a day! Also, some manufacturers, like Renault, are cutting manufacturing costs by not having key-ways machined into the camshafts and sprockets. That means your mechanic will not have any guide of where to exactly put the gear back onto the shaft unless he (or she) has the correct tool. That means your car can only go to a dealership to get the job done to avoid expensive engine damage. It's just getting worse and worse.

And now we have a lot of manufacturers using dual-mass flywheels to chase engine smoothness. That is great - until the clutch needs to be replaced. Did the car salesman bother to tell you that the duel-mass flywheel must be replaced during clutch replacement, and that the cost for the D/M flywheel is around two thousand dollars? Didn't think so!