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Blown Engine in 2001 Saturn L300 V.6
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YAdams123
New User
Feb 25, 2009, 3:13 PM
Post #1 of 2
(3094 views)
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Blown Engine in 2001 Saturn L300 V.6
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We purchased a 2001 Saturn L300 with a V.6 engine on January 13th and on February 13th it stalled out on the road and would not restart. It had 82K miles on it. It was towed to the dealership, who now advises that we need a new engine as the tensioner malfunctioned and caused the timing belt to break. Is there any way to determine if this defect was present when we purchased the vehicle?
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Loren Champlain Sr
Veteran
/ Moderator
Feb 25, 2009, 3:35 PM
Post #2 of 2
(3093 views)
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Re: Blown Engine in 2001 Saturn L300 V.6
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Unfortunately, no, other than removing the timing belt cover and inspecting the belt before you bought it. Even then, if the tensioner was working okay at that time, one would never know ahead of time. It's kind of like trying to estimate when a light bulb will burn out. The recommended replacement interval for the belt is every 100K miles, so in a perfect world, it shouldn't have failed or expected to.
Again, unfortunately, these are what as known as 'interference' engines. If a timing belt fails at the wrong time, the pistons can come up when the valves are open, striking the valve and bending it. With 82K miles, this engine should have a lot of life in it. It will be expensive, but a valve job and timing component replacement should be a heck of a lot cheaper than replacement of the whole engine.
Loren
SW Washington
(This post was edited by Loren Champlain Sr on Feb 25, 2009, 3:36 PM)
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