2002 Vitara reliability questions

[mr.cruiser]

HI! Since this summer , we have a 2002 vitara soft top with 145 000 km on the 2.0L gas engine. I read that there are some problems with the timing chain with theses engines. For now, I have no problems but i'd like to know at how many km I should change it? Also I have seen a few vitara with broken rear axles. Is this a common problem?

Thanks!!

[fordem]

Originally Posted by mr.cruiser

HI! Since this summer , we have a 2002 vitara soft top with 145 000 km on the 2.0L gas engine. I read that there are some problems with the timing chain with theses engines. For now, I have no problems but i'd like to know at how many km I should change it? Also I have seen a few vitara with broken rear axles. Is this a common problem?

Thanks!!

To the best of my knowledge the 2.0 four cylinder engines do not have a history of timing chain problems, it's the early V6 engines that do. The chains are not like belts wit a projected life span of xx,000 miles, so I would say listen to the engine on a cold start, and as long as it's not excessively noisy (I'm not talking about the fan noise here, but a metallic clatter or rattle) then don't get too excited - make sure to change the oil & filter regularly and you should be fine.

Rear axles - this is the first I'm hearing about it - front axles are known to give trouble, and will break on a raised vehicle with over sized wheels, if you're into rock crawling and the like - but other than that I'm not aware of any issues there either.

[mr.cruiser]

Thanks! maybe the rear axle breakage I saw is due to lack of maintenance. Can I expect to get near the 300 000 km with this engine? We take great care of it and never change speeds over 3500 rpm. Also I'm thinking of switching to mobil 1 synthetic oil. Is it a good idea ?