A few things Newbie

[w207]

Ok, first of all, thanks for the welcome :grin: and now for the good bit!! :?
I have purchased a set of Ford mudflaps :? , front and rear. I have carried out my research as I should and am ready to fit....Before I do, does anyone have any major hot tips for fitting? Should I colour code them? I think they look really great in thier original colour but does anyone have any photo's of colour coded mudflaps? But let's not forget the fitting.....forget about the colour! but any feedback is appreciated.

Also.......although my car has FSH there was no mention of the timing belt change :? I took my car to my trusty mechanic and "lo and behold" under the cover was written "Belt changed 48,000 mls"......... Very good I hear you say BUT that was approx. 5 years ago and my car has just 60,000mls on it now. Here is the problem....My mechanic which I have used for many years and his son had a Puma has inspected the timing belt and says there is no need to replace but he did replace the auxillery belt as it was obviously worn and cracked, he suggested that the timing belt was replaced and not the other for some unknown reason.
So do I accept the word of my mechanic ? who "bytheway" builds cars, has rallied cars and generally knows everything about cars?????........ My timing belt has been replaced approx. 12,000 mls ago but I know that replacement is every 5 years but my "hero" mechanic says it's fine!!! HELP! I think I know what you are going to say :roll: "Don't forget about my first question!" But I am torn because of the peace of mind but also because of the money factor!! AARRRGGHHH! and because of what my mechanic tells me, he is very confident! :|

 

[red]

If it was done 5 years ago then it is due a change going by the service interval as you say so if you choose not to replace it at this time then you are accepting the associated risks.

As for mudflaps, these should be quite straight forward to fit and I think look better in the original colour.

 

[russv]

Aren't the mudflaps made of rubber? If so I would leave them unpainted, otherwise the paint may crack and look rubbish after a while.

I would get the timing belt changed, its not just the timing belt which can go, its the tensioner as well.

 

[XIIVVX]

I don't want to accept any responsibility for this advice, but I would leave it. Ford's original spec was ten years and 100,000 from memory. As a company they couldn't live with the small number that failed within this timescale and so pulled it back to the current shorter interval. A no brainer for them because they covered themselves and provided more lucrative work for their dealerships.

If it were my car, and unless I were planning to keep it for another five years, I'd be pretty relaxed about it.

 

[YOG]

You just need to ask yourself - Is your "hero" mechanic so confident, that he will supply and fit a new engine free of charge, if it fails?

 

[quest63]

Just follow the instructions that came with the mudflaps you should be ok. A couple of small points are that on the front the lower screw you have to remove before fitting is a plastic screw in a plastic retainer and might be a bit tricky to remove.It might also be a good idea to have a look behind the arch liner at the bottom of the wings as they usually collect a pint of dirt and can rust the inside away in time.

I would keep them black theres probably some kind of rubber paint that would work but they look great in black and imo dont look good colour coded.

 

[bunch1980]

Are they rubber mud flaps extensions of the stock contoured plastic ones all pumas have? if so I think on the front they would serve me well as all manner of stuff gets flung off and I got the rust around corner of bottom door area where stones hit be becuase its proud!

Any links to mudflaps?

Maybe these: -

http://www.passionauto.co.uk/products/black-sparco-rally-style-mud-flaps.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Fixed to existing plastic contoured ones with self tappers?

 

[Ian G]

If he's inspected and it looks OK then that is the best guess you have.

Its a judgement call and if you need the car not to leave you stranded, I would do it.

Having said that, the job itself is probably £200 which if its recent you are paying out unnecessarily.

Curious as to why the aux belt wasn't changed if the cam belt was done, whoever has chosen to do the cam belt early obviously wasn't conscientious enough to do that one, not as catastrophic if it goes but it would leave you without an alternator, power steering or a water pump so the car can't really be driven.

 

[quest63]

It could be the case that the guy who didnt change the auxilliary belt is a guy who didn't change the cam tensioner

Mine needs doing as well but currently cant swallow Fords £380 which doesnt include the auxilliary belt, and doesnt include rocker box gasket

 

[JonB]

Good call quest63, most failures seem to be the tensioner rather than the belt although the end result is the same.

For the flaps, remember to save all your screws as Ford do not supply new ones with the flaps. You might want to warm them up in a bucket of hot water before fitting to soften them enough to get a good fit. I found the best treatment for mine was black shoe polish as they are more a dark grey than true black, but then my car is black.

 

[w207]

Thanks for the replies. The mudflaps will remain as they are I was just curious what they would look like colour coded? :| As for the timing belt it was really a matter of cost I think I'll go see my mechanic and see if he is willing to replace the engine if the belt goes :wink: :!:

 

[Longyear]

I had a very similar scenarion with my Puma, which I bought just over 2 weeks ago.

"Ford FSH" in every other regard, but no evidence of a Timing Belt change in the last 5 years.

At first I was going to forget about it, but I found it reduced my enjoyment of the Puma, worrying about it snapping, or the Tensioner going. I then contacted my local small garage who quoted £200 but when I asked him about things that are specific to the Puma's Cam Belt change (like a different cam locking tool, and changing the cam cover gasket) he didn't have a clue..... In fact his pricing strategy for the job, when I asked for the quote, was "Timing Belts: £200 for petrols, £230 for diesels...".

So, to cut a long story a little bit shorter, my Puma is getting collected by Holiways Ford tomorrow morning, to get the full timing belt kit done (cam belt, tensioner, bolts, aux belt, cam cover gasket) at a cost of £341 inclusive.

This may be unnecessary spend for my car, but it comes down to the fact that I will just enjoy the car more, and relax more, knowing that it has a new timing belt and kit on.

 

[ScubaSteve]

Some people are just old fashioned and hence use old fashoined methods, marking the pulleys with tip ex etc, which can work just as well.Infact having that discussion with someone on the other forum

 

[russv]

Check out http://www.performancepuma.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; if you live near london, its STEAVIE on this forum. He done mine and its fine, really good price too, £250 for supply and fit of cambelt kit, water pump, bolts, rocker cover gasket, and aux belt. Though I did have other work done too so may have been discounted a bit, but still! He will beat Ford's price by a mile and he knows what hes doing. So if you live nearby get your arse down there

 

[Noit]

There must be a rash of Pumas that haven't had it done- I picked up mine three weeks ago and it only went into the shop yesterday to get the belt done as there's no hint in the FSH that it ever has been. It's got 96k on the clock too, so I was driving it around a bit carefully in the mean time. Looking forward to getting it back once it's shipshape and Bristol fashion and going for a good long trip.