Are we alone in this ... I suspect we're not.  Your views ..

Parents have a Camry 98, cambelt is in need bought at 90k as an import and now 210k, was purchased in 2007-08.  Drive belts came off so the mechanic came to the supermarket carpark and yanked out and they drove to their place.  No tow fee.  But they did had to pay a bit more for a pulley.  $450 ish all up.  Now they say they don't care about the timing belt and when it dies, they will get a tow and they can fix it then or they might just get another car as the car now is not worth much $1.5k on Trademe or maybe $1.1k due to the scratch paint finish was bought like that, probably used a a delivery wagon in Japan.  They got it for $5k at Turners.  But yeah we're in Wellington the Toyota guys want $1100 for the cambelt + waterpump etc for it, someone else on Trademe can do $500, if Toyota only do the belt that would be $800 for that one item. 

Other than last year when I did it - they would have spent their life going to the mechanic for WOF, they had never replaced even a air filter.  They only did the oil and oil filter and the sparks, battery, brakes, tyres when it had issues ie - difficult starting or cannot pass the WOF or makes noise.  I guess one time, the last the access. belt came off but the other times it made noise then they took it to the garage but it was Xmas period so they had to use another but the guy wasn't that great and that fell out a day or two afterwards - was a franchise place just near their home. 


Even with the WOF.  Is there a grace period?  So they take the car for the WOF 1 or 2 weeks after it expires, get a new WOF and therefore the next expiry gets pushed back 2 weeks.  And .. so after each other WOF he does the same thing. 

Cheers.

PS - it is a non interference engine.  They don't do long trips, 99.5% 30kms return daily.  The last time they drove out of Wellington was maybe 5yr ago.  Kapiti maybe even never.  Masterton / Wanganui was maybe 15yrs ago.