By Bob Aldons - Northstar Chrysler Jeep Dodge

The age old question about when to service rather than should I service raises its head again. A reader of Carsguide posed this question to Graham Smith. Don't know that Graham rang our service department, but if he did we would have given him an appropriate answer.

My opinion is that a Timing Belt should be changed every 4 years or 100,000 kilometres. The belts, generally made of rubber deteriorate over time and most manufacturers recommend changing it at the 90k - 110k service. Those services are every 12-15k or every 12 months whichever comes first.

So on the basis that the car is 8 or 9 years old, it should have had this done about 4 years ago and would definitely need it done NOW. Skipping or missing services is a trap for customers - some think that by skipping a service it's ok. Far from the fact - cars are made of metal, rubber, glass, plastic, vinyl and rely of things like oil and rubber belts to transfer the power generated from the engine to the road.

As far as the other belts in your car, look at changing these at 2 years or 50,000 k's. Better to be safe than sorry. It's way too late to do it after your car is left as an overheated mess on the side of the road

If you're interested in discussing anything to do with the servicing of your PT Cruiser or any other vehicles in our range, visit www.nsmg.com.au and click on the service icon - leave a message and one of our service representatives will get back to you with prices, advice or anything else to do with your car.

If you're interested in one of the new cars in our range, click on the brand or specials drop downs and check out what's available from Northstar Motor Group.

Q. My daughter has a 2003 Chrysler PT Cruiser that has only done 80,000 km. The handbook recommends that the timing belt be changed at 140,000 km, but there is no mention of time. On this basis the car will be 14 years old before this mileage is reached. Should the belt be changed at five or six years, as it would surely perish as it gets older?

A. Belts perish and stretch over time and need to be replaced even though the mileage is low in your case. We couldn't establish a recommended time, from mechanics or Chrysler dealerships, but I would suggest it would be worth changing the belt given the car is eight years old.

Graham Smith