Timing belt

Fuck! I am so screwed! I will have to rerereredouble my poker efforts. 6 more weekends like this past one, and I'll have paid for it.

Seriously though, fuck.

Timing belt: "On an interference engine, if the timing belt slips even one notch, the piston can crash into an open valve causing serious engine damage by bending valves and breaking pistons. Non-interference engines will usually not self destruct, but in either case if the belt fails, the engine will immediately shut down leaving you stranded. The link at the bottom of this article will tell you which category your engine falls under.

Timing belts fail without warning and on some vehicles, are almost as hard to check as they are to change. In most cases, your only protection is to change the belt at the recommended intervals. Timing belt replacement is not a cheap job but it is far less costly than the alternative.

Some technicians may recommend that you replace the water pump during a timing belt job even if there is nothing wrong with it. This is because 90% of the labor to change the water pump has already been done with the timing belt job and some technicians consider it good insurance to replace the pump at this time. My feeling is that some water pumps can last the life of the car but many do fail and will cost big money to replace at a later date. So ask your technician what his experience is with the water pump on your model car and look at how long you plan to keep the car. This way, at least you will be making an informed roll of the dice."