how hard is it to......

[bad boy]

change the cambelt on a 98 clio 1.2? my mate reckons we can do it, but im not sure especially as the engines tranverse, making it awkward to get to.
so is it worth the risk of trying it??

[JohnL]

Shouldn't be all that hard.

Get a Haynes manual and read through the relevant section/s 5 times - it will seem an easier job each time you read it. Also look at the engine while reading the manual, try to figure out what they're talking about all the way through before picking up a spanner.

[Pigeon]

Cambelts are generally a fundamentally simple job confounded by access difficulties. The usual "thing that goes wrong" is getting the timing one tooth out, which is unlikely to be far enough out to damage valves and pistons but will make it run like a dog.

[pdV6]

^ wot he said, but pay close attention to any section in Haynes that describes how to lock the cam(s) in place whilst you're fiddling.

[deltaf]

Crashes valves on renaults iirc.

[bad boy]

thanks for the replies well you have all convinced me.
me and my mate(whos car it is) are going to try it. i think we will just take our time and make doubly sure everything is done properly. thanks for the tips too