Thought it had been too quiet on my Multipla problems front recently.

I've been getting a sort of cross between a squeak and a warble in the last week or two, thought it may be water-pump related, so I was wondering if it wasn't changed with the Cambelt, or if the Cambelt maybe hadn't been done when the seller said it had (it's just passed 97,000 miles now).

Wife rang me at work last night to say she'd had an engine warning and light on the way home, something to do with temperature she thought, so when I got home I took it round the block.
Stopped to check the coolant level, and found this . . .

The front idler wheel is just a lumpy stump.

Looks like that's my day planned out then

Could have been much worse of course . . .

Thats a scary sight!,
arrrr....sends the shivers down the spine...

What the hell!
That's the cambelt trying to escape?

Sure is!
Nearly made it too . . .

Bloody hell! The engine was still able to run with it like that?

What's failed then?

This did, would explain the temp message and light . . .

Locked absolutely solid!

This is what was left of the idler . . .


Never has 'in the nick of time', been a more appropriate phrase . . .



The Cambelt cover is now in six pieces, rather than the original three, held together with lock-wire.
Will do until I can find a replacement.

Replaced the Water Pump, Cambelt, Tensioner, Idler, Aux Belt and its Tensioner.

Well I would have to say that you are definately the luckiest person here. It looks like your previous owner lied to you. You're also lucky that your wife told about the sound when it happens rather than a week later like mine does. Example, does the steerig feel ok to you? Why do you ask? Because I clipped a kerb last week and its felt odd since! FFS!

When I went to see the car, there were receipts for lots of jobs, the Cambelt I'm sure was one of them (I made it a point to check).
Can't remember if the water-pump was listed though, must try to find all the paperwork, just out of curiosity now . . .

Bet the water pump was missed out as it looks like a genuine fiat pump as it has a plastic impellor

It took me a minute after looking at the first pic to figure out what I was looking out, that is a seriously close call!

Now get to the newsagent's and buy a lottery ticket !

Good idea

Jaysus that was close! Mine snapped on the way to get it replaced, ended up scrapping it as it was costing more than it was worth to keep it!

I actually can't believe you got away with it.
That's something else!

Forget a lottery ticket; it's clean underwear I'd have been in need of....

I got a belt changed on a daewoo tacuma a few years back and had a call from the mechanic, said I was very lucky I got the car to him, I said why and he said I'll show you when you pick it up. He showed the old belt which had a hole in it about 10mm across by about 25mm long!

The half-mile back to my house (from where I stopped to check it) is possibly the longest journey I've ever made . . .