My Saab 9-3 1.9TiD was due for a new cam belt at 72,000 so it went to our local garage at 71,000 two weeks ago. Service as well. I duly paid £405 and collected it when ready. Last Tuesday I was driving at 35-40 mph when I heard a bang and clatter from the engine compartment. I stopped, lifted the lid - there was nothing to be seen but clatter from rocker box and a noisier than usual exhaust. There was nothing on the read-out screen in car.

I limped back home and called the repairer who had a listen, and looked at the cam and drive belt cover on the side of the engine that had developed odd bumps in the plastic. He decided to call back with a breakdown truck and took it to his premises. I was worried about this and called at his garage last Thursday. The owner said that the water pump had seized up, causing the belt drive to overheat and which in turn had ruined the servo for the brakes and broken a lug on the camshaft drive cog. This latter item causing early opening of exhaust valves by being out of time hence the noisy exhaust.

Now, in my opinion, if the water pump had seized, the temperature of the coolant would rocket and the dashboard readout would be going berserk. Am I correct? Also I am concerned by the fact that this happened only two hundred miles or so after the repair. To add to that, my neighbour, who happened to be here when we limped home and heard the clatter, came across to ask the outcome and ventured his opinion that the new belt was fitted too tightly (he has a lot to do with government vehicles). So there is my dilemma. What do I do and what can I say?