ssmdhondadriver

My wife has a 2000 Honda Accord LX 6 cylinder.

Dealer claims it's time to change the timing belt. Car only has 52,000 miles on it, which is well below the threshold mileage. But it's older than the recommended maximum age (84 months).

Looks like from the dealer invoice from the last repair that changing the timing belt would be pretty expensive ($1600).

Is there any reason not to go to an independent shop for this? (E.g., maybe they won't use OEM parts?)

Is it a good idea to get the water pump changed at the same time? If so, is the OEM part issue important? And does it matter if I get a new pump or a rebuilt one?

TIA,

S

nc_jon

Hi ssmd...

You should be able to find an independent shop that does quality work and uses OEM Parts... I would think, anyways. I live in Burlington, NC, and there is a shop in Winston-Salem called GT Imports that has experienced mechanics that formerly worked at Honda dealerships. The senior staff there also have experience from Honda dealerships as mechanics and managers. They only use OEM Honda parts on any of the work they do.

I can't offer anything on your other questions except a comment on the price quoted to you. I have checked with GT Imports about the same work (I want to do a timing belt change with my tax return), and they gave me a quote of $562 if I remember right. The work also included a new water pump, belts, and a tensioner ??? I'm not sure on that last item. Anyway... the dealership price quote you got seems really high... but maybe it's pretty much in line with astronomically inflated dealership maintenance charges.

I don't have a conflict of interest in posting this. I have no affiliation whatsoever with GT Imports other than as possible future customer with them. I just thought I'd throw my two cents in based on my personal experience. Hope this helps you some.

Best regards,
Jon

TheMuffinMan

iTrader: (1)

Buy the parts yourself, give them to the mechanic to install.

On the 4cyl I've seen a full timing belt change done in 30 minutes. But keep in mind the time on the books you'll get charged is around 3 hours or so.

market525

30 Minutes? Takes me about 4-5 hours. Done about 5 or 6 of the 2.3L 4-cylinders in the past couple of years. Must be doing something wrong!

But back on topic, I know a girl who took her 00 V6 Accord to a CT Honda dealer, and she spend about $700. Included Timing belt, water pump, coolant, PS belt, AC/Alt belt, valve cover gaskets, oil & filter.

Others advice here is good - find an independent garage in your area that works on Honda/ Accura as a specialty. Guys there are usually ex-dealership mechanics that got tired of the dealership BS.

Good luck!

market525

By the way, to comment on your car only having 52K miles, I understand your frustration. I changed the Timing belt & balancer belt on a 1998 Accord 4 cyl recently, and that car had just under 100,000 miles. On this vintage Accord, Mother Honda says 72 months or 105,000 miles.

So from mileage, it was below. From a yearly standpoint, it was way overdue. Both the timing belt as well as the balancer belt looked just fine. I inspected both very carefully, as I too was curious about the mileage/year claim.

Bottom line, both of these engines - the 2.3L 4 cylinder as well as your 3.0L 6 cylinder are INTERFERENCE ENGINES, meaning serious mechanical damage will occur if the belt breaks .... (pistons hit valves, etc) Only way to prevent this is to do the preventative maintenance.

So bottom line, you have a nice low mileage Accord there, which will serve you well for years to come PROVIDING you take care of it. And taking care of it is more than just oil changes. You've got to do the preventative manintence, as outlined in your owner's manual.

Do the belt.

If you skip this and the belt breaks, you could easily be looking at $2,000 or more to repair the damage. Sometimes it becomes cheaper to just buy a used engine when damage like this occurs ... which opens another whole can of worms.

Other thoughts ...

Have you had the fluid changed on the transmission? Again, careful on who does this for you. Anyone who knows Honda's know that they use Honda Z1 ATF fluid only.

Brake fluid - has anyone ever suggested that you have the brake system flushed? You should. Brake fluid attracts moisture over the years, and moisture in the brake system causes many other issues in that system. Don't think you'll find this in owner's manuals in the 2000 model year, but most later model cars now list this as preventative maintenance.

Throttle body cleaning? Not in owners manual, but should be done, even at your mileage. Very simple proceedure ... ask them when they do your timiing belt. If
not done, the car will eventually have issues idling ..... (stalling at stop signs, etc) Some mechanics miss this, and start throwing parts at the problem ... plugs, air filter, etc.

Just some random maintenance thoughts .... good luck!

ftppnet

I just finished the timing belt on a '99 V6 Accord. Replace the timing components and the water pump while you are in there. The water pump is timing belt driven so if/when the pump does go out, you'll have to remove the entire timing belt setup again. It took me 5.5 hours to remove and replace all components.

Brahms

Just did the TB on my 97 EX coupe 2.2. At 260k, it was my third time with this car. Took about ten hours, but that includes the two hours to find all my tools, three hours for disassembly, replacement, and reassembly, 0.5 hours to track down the source of the horrible whirring scraping noise on startup, 1.5 hours for re-disassembly and re-reassembly to replace the bottom cover bolt I forgot which thus led to horrible whirring scraping noise, 1 hour for re-re-re, etc, to redo the belt timing after second disassembly, beer breaks, etc.

You MUST get the Honda crank pulley holder tool and a piece of one inch pipe as a cheater to hold the sucker still. Don't believe anyone who says you can use a strap clamp to hold the pulley. I have the scars to prove it.

jondrew55

$1600 sound way high even for a dealer. $700-$800 sounds reasonable for TB/Water Pump replacement. I recently got a quote from a VW dealer for $700 for TB/Water Pump, which I thought was ok, but plan to do it myself anyway. If you have another dealer nearby, get a quote from them. Just for grins, I'd check an Accura dealer (you never know).
If you choose to go the independent route, check out the Cartalk website and thier "find a mechanic" page. Might be helpful.
http://cartalk.com/ct/mechx/find.jsp

ssmdhondadriver

Exactly---I found that out searching the web. So, instead of "if you get the engine stopped quickly, it'll probably be OK if the timing belt breaks," it becomes "the engine is hosed no matter what if the belt breaks.

Thanks for you other suggestions, too!

Cheers

ssmdhondadriver

Thanks, folks, for all the useful advice!

Cheers! Much appreciated!

jweller

hey ssmdhondadriver

I know its a bit of a drive, but I would recommend Hondamans up in Glen Burnie for the work. They only use Honda parts and are trustworthy. Not the cheapest guy, but cheaper than the dealer and 100% competent.

matts8008

If you're up for going to NC for some reason I too recommend GT Imports. They did the timing belt on my wife's CR-V (with Honda OEM parts, including water pump and cam seals) for $760. I've had them do other work on my Honda and family member's vehicles with no problems.

For those the Winston-Salem/NC area there is another independent Honda mechanic called Steele Automotive - has done TONS of repairs on my various Honda vehicles over the years including engine swaps and body work. No affiliation with either of these, just lived there for years and used them both with good experiences.

TASAuto.com

Definitely buy the Honda components and have a shop that you trust handle the labor. I usually recommend changing all the belts, the water pump and tensioners all at once.

philipwk

Is there a manual or guide to help remove and install a timing belt on a 1994 Accord V tech ES?
Any help will do.

phil

DCFIVER

Age is a factor. The belt is rubber composite and even at only 55k the belt may be worn since it is over 7-8 years old. I would have it replaced,along with the related components. I often refer people to this website for a "ballpark" figure of what they will pay for repairs. Keep in mind that prices will vary by shop and region, but at least you will have an idea.
http://repairpal.com/
Sure are, takes me 45 mins tops!

Heat

https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-accord-1990-2002-2/how-replace-timing-belt-timing-balancer-belt-water-pump-f22b1-1908944/

And for those with an answer for the OP (ssmdhondadriver), keep in mind that his post was 2.5 years ago.