Holden Vectra Problems

You don't need to do anything if you tighten the studs correctly.  Tell them to check their wrench and then have them tighten the studs to the correct torque while you watch.

The crank angle sensor was prone to giving trouble on Vectras, so I would check that to make sure it was doing what it should. You could also check the electrical system generally as it too was prone to the odd gremlin.

If it hasn’t been changed already I would change it now that it is going on six years old.

You’re right; the reports on the Vectra are mixed, for good reasons. It was a good car to drive, but it also had some issues that sometimes made the ownership experience less than pleasant. Look for oil and cooling system leaks, particularly pay attention to water leaks around the rear of the engine that could be from the heat exchanger. Timing belt wear was a real issue, the belts need to be changed every 60,000 km or four years, which makes it expensive, and not changing can lead to very expensive engine damage in the event the belt breaks. On top of that the crank angle sensors are prone to failure, and the electrical system tended to be troublesome. The asking price is about the middle of the range, so it’s on the money in that respect.

It has a timing chain, not a belt, so it doesn’t need changing.

Our information is that it needs to be changed at intervals of 120,000 km. If you want to confirm that, I suggest you contact Holden’s Customer Assistance Service.

It’s generally the industry practice of paying for part of the cost of repairs like yours once the new car warranty has expired. They also generally like to have control of the work being done when they’re paying even part of the freight. That said the $1000 they’ve offered does seem a bit miserable. I’m guessing all of this is being done through a dealer, if that’s correct you could take your case directly to Holden through its customer assistance service.

As I often write in this column tracing intermittent or odd problems can be difficult, and mechanics today are trained to replace parts rather than spend hours searching for the cause, often without finding it. Finding a mechanic who is keen enough to dig deeper into a problem is a blessing.

No, there is no need to do the head gasket while replacing the timing belt, that would have been done for some other reason.

I would be checking the idle stepper to make sure it is working as it should.