Question Author
Hi All,
Thanks for all the replies.
I've taken on board all the suggestions and decided to bite the bullet and get my wallet out. I've put the car into the same garage as the service was carried out and the work is being done today, at a cost of �108 for the cam belt change and �253.61 for the clutch, with all parts, labour and vat included for both costs. Going by the other quotes I got from other garage's in my area (Berkshire), I think that's quite a competitive price but it would be good to hear from anyone if they agree/disagree with those figures....
I've also noticed that when I'm driving the Escort, some times when you have to turn sharp to the right (almost full lock), as I release the steering wheel back through to straight there can - at times - be a knocking sound. Turning to the left is not a problem but to the right there is this noise and whilst it's fairly quiet, I'd like to have an idea of what it could be, and to see if I can get to the bottom of it before it developes into another problem and I have to shell out again!
It sounds like I've bought a right pile of cr*p but my view is the car for an L Reg, has only done 78K, so although I'm shelling out for all this (as she's obviously been neglected in the past), there's still a fair bit of life in the old girl....