To add a bit more info, most ICE engines are separated into "interference" and "non-interference", basically it's the shape of the piston heads and the valve cl

To add a bit more info, most ICE engines are separated into "interference" and "non-interference", basically it's the shape of the piston heads and the valve clearance when the piston is in the top position and the valves are open. If you have an "interference" engine and your timing belt/chain fails you smash your engine to pieces, if you have a non interference engine it just stops because the cylinders lose compression because the valves aren't being actuated. Timing belts/chains can also damage ancillaries when they go, and as most timing belts tend to be external, they can fail and take alternator, water pump, fan, radiator, etc, with them when they catastrophically fail, a timing chain tends to be inside the engine block and when they fail one tends to be more lucky, but they can also puncture the block and cause fatal damage to the engine. AFAIK nearly all modern consumer cars are non-interference engines, barring maybe some higher-end performance engine options in otherwise pedestrian cars.