vs
Timing belt Continental or OEM FORD
Reviews
Continental for timing belt and Geba water pump. Gates is fine for accessories belt not timing due to more recent production issues. I will get a gates for any of our 5 vehicles for an accessories / serpentine belt but not for timing.
Pros: Continental timing belt
Cons: Gates timing belt
Vehicle:
Volkswagen Jetta
it's usually the plan with all my cars until repairs become more expensive than payments. our last car was an 2006 vw jetta tdi. sold it a few years ago (18 years old). it was still running fine-ish but a lot of things were coming up. timing belt and water pump, suspension overhaul, wheel bearings, brakes and caliper rebuild, and it was getting quite a bit of rust all around. it would have lasted and gone for 5+ more years but with 2 young kids getting into sports and stuff and the winter weather we are getting in our new home, it was a smart move to get a truck. with the aluminum body and ease of getting parts for the truck for maintenance as well as the f150 and coyote community, keeping the truck running for a long time should be easy.
Pros: ease of getting parts, keeping truck running
Cons: timing belt issues, suspension overhaul
Vehicle:
Ford
Never had a problem with Continental belts in the 15+ years I've done timing belts, at recommended interval replacements as directed.
Pros: reliable performance, no problems
I have a continental timing belt with 180K km on it. Yes it’s time to change it, but it still looks good. They are good belts, my engines life depends on it.
Pros: good belts, looks good
Mileage: 180000 km
This Continental Contitech on my VW FOX's EA111 1.6 8v engine is supposedly cracking and dry, according to the shop I sent it. It got only 5000km on it and less than a year.
Cons: cracking and dry
Vehicle:
Volkswagen Fox
Mileage: 5000 km
I have read a lot about the wet timing belt issues, and still went ahead to purchase a 308SW with 85KM...for the 1.2 Puretech, I believe companies like continental contitech have produce a CT1228 belt specifically to tackle oil on the belt, and I believe it's important we use the correct and good quality oil..
Pros: CT1228 tackles oil
Cons: wet timing belt issues
Vehicle:
Peugeot
Mileage: 85 km
Part number: CT1228
Bare in mind that this car uses a "wet belt" timing belt, where the timing belt runs inside the engine within the oil. This means that unless oil changes are carried out frequently, small parts of the belt break off and clock up the oil pickups, starving the engine and killing it.
Cons: parts break off
Regardless of servicing etc, that wet belt is still deteriorating as it is soaked in the hot engine oil.
Cons: belt deteriorates in oil
Vehicle:
Ford Focus
If it has been done they are actually a good engine when working fine. Plenty of torque and good on fuel. It’s just the reliability of them that’s the major issue. They switched to a timing chain from the wet belt from 2018 for a good reason. The 1.2 turbo engines from PSA are also wet belts and also switched to a chain around 2023. They are a terrible design and simply not going to be economical to maintain properly as the car ages.
Pros: plenty of torque, good on fuel
Cons: major reliability issue, terrible design, not economical to maintain
Vehicle:
Ford Focus
Id stay away from that motor. It uses a wet timing belt. Not a great design. Expensive to replace and will only last about 100,000 miles.
Cons: expensive to replace, short life
Mileage: 100000 km
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Which timing belt to choose — Continental or OEM FORD?
If choosing timing belt across many manufacturers, check the part ranking. If your choice is down to two brands, the PartReview part comparisons help.
We compare timing belt across these categories:
- PR Score.
- Overall ranking.
- Vote balance.
- Average rating.
- Number of reviews.
- Feature ratings.
- Car owners’ choice.
Which timing belt are better — OEM FORD or Continental?
In March 2026 on PartReview, timing belt Continental were overall better than OEM FORD.
- Continental received a PR Score of 73 out of 100, and OEM FORD scored 41 point.
- Continental ranked 6 in the overall ranking, and OEM FORD ranked 13.
- The average rating is higher for Continental (3.7) than for OEM FORD (2.4).
-
Timing belt Continental have better feature ratings than OEM FORD:
- Starting - owners believe, that this property for Continental is better than OEM FORD.
- Noise - drivers claim, that this property for Continental is outperforms OEM FORD.
- Visible wear - reviews suggest, that this property for Continental is preferred to OEM FORD.
Which timing belt are more popular — Continental or OEM FORD?
In March 2026 on PartReview, timing belt Continental were overall more popular than OEM FORD.
By vote balance, timing belt Continental surpassed OEM FORD:
- For Continental, the ratio of positive (42) to negative (15) votes is 27 votes.
- For OEM FORD, the ratio of positive (22) to negative (31) votes is -9 votes.
By number of reviews, timing belt Continental surpassed OEM FORD:
- For timing belt Continental there are 18 reviews: 12 positive, 3 neutral, 3 negative.
- For timing belt OEM FORD there are 17 reviews: 6 positive, 2 neutral, 9 negative.
Which timing belt do car owners prefer — Continental or OEM FORD?
In March 2026, according to PartReview, timing belt Continental and OEM FORD have not taken top places in car-specific ratings. You can help by adding your review about these manufacturers.
Other comparisons of timing belt
If this comparison didn’t fully answer your question, there are many others on PartReview.
For example, comparisons of timing belt Continental with: Gates, AISIN, OEM Volkswagen, OEM Honda, OEM Toyota, Mitsuboshi, Contitech, OEM Subaru, DAYCO, OEM Volvo.
Also available: comparisons of timing belt OEM FORD with: Gates, AISIN, OEM Volkswagen, OEM Honda, OEM Toyota, Mitsuboshi, Contitech, OEM Subaru, DAYCO, OEM Volvo.
You can also see who is better among other timing belt manufacturers: AISIN or Gates, Gates or OEM Volkswagen, Gates or OEM Honda, OEM Toyota or Gates, Continental or Gates.