Hi William,

That engine has a timing belt. Oddly, in 2023 the Volkswagen Group changed strategy in terms of timing belt replacement on some engines - including the 1.0 TSI unit in the Scala described here - so that there's no official replacement schedule, meaning it's up to the owner to have it inspected periodically by a good mechanic to ensure it's in good condition. Before that there was a five-year schedule, but that seems overly cautious unless you're driving very high mileage. I'd suggest having it checked at each service and replace it after 10 years or 200,000km at the latest.

Shane O' Donoghue - 23-Apr-2024