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JaneGilbert

Hello.
I have been advised by the Subaru dealer that my 2008 Subaru Impreza needs to have its cam belt replaced.
Is this really necessary? The car has done 68,000 km from new.
They say the cam belt should be replaced at 100,000km (which I can understand), or at 5 years of age, whichever comes first.
Do I really need to do this now?
Regards, Jane

Anon

Yes, it is time to replace the cambelt. The cambelt is made from rubber and it deteriorates over time. The cost to replace the cambelt is a lot less than having to repair the engine if the cambelt fails.

david.wood

I've been wondering about this also. I found some schedules here which includes both Legacy and Impreza models but I'm unsure how authoratative this is...
http://www.cars101.com/subaru/subaru_maintenance.html
I wonder if there is a Subaru site somewhere with their official guidance.

Anon

The cambelt replacement interval (time and mileage) will vary depending on the vehicle model year and engine. You could purchase a service book (if you don’t have one already) at a franchise dealer for your particular model which normally has the detailed service schedule.