2001 accord LX timing belt at 60K miles

Your timing belt should be changed, since it's at the 7 years or 105K miles (or whatever your spec was). In my opinion, since your accord only has 60K, you really don't have to change the "pumps, seals, etc.", until the next timing belt change. At the most, I would probably change your rubber accessory drive belts, but that's it, but only due to age.

It really shouldn't cost more than $400 or so, in my estimation.

dan

lora wrote:

The big cost is usually dealer labor, no approaching $100 an hour. To replace and restore the belt you have take out and restore a lot of other parts which takes time. Theres lots of ads in alternative newspapers to do this substantially cheaper, but I wonder about the risk.

lora wrote in news:2d92a893-5fc6-40eb-918e- snipped-for-privacy@t11g2000vbc.googlegroups.com:

The price is about in line with a /proper/ service at dealer rates.

The only thing I'd question is the mention of seals. If they're not leaking, you don't need to replace them.

You will be able to do maybe $100-200 cheaper than this at an independent garage, but make sure they use ONLY Honda parts, not aftermarket ones. That savings would be only on the shop rate.

Your belt is past its 7-year replacement interval. You're not even close to the 105K distance interval, but the time interval is there for people like you who don't drive much.

Correct. Belts don't fail because of cracks, they fail due to internal damage to the fabric carcass.

Beware of the chain stores. Unless you know a good independent who specializes in Hondas, just bite the bullet and bring it to the dealer.

It sounds a little high. Are you talking about Canadian dollars?

Timing belt and water pump are about US $140. That means labor is $700. I would ask around. From my experience, the mechanics at the dealers aren't always better. They could even screw up an oil change.

Thank God, I have a tming chain on my Acura.

personally, i would not let them change the seals - it's not necessary unless there is a genuine leak. in fact, i've seen more seal problems subsequent to a badly performed change than by leaving original seals in place. use a quality branded motor oil that has seal conditioners and you won't have any leakage problems. you'll get all kinds of resistance from the dealer who loves to add this little things to the profit margin, but you'd expect that.

yes, true. you can inspect for signs of wear, but this is not a reliable indicator of impending failure. since this is an "interference engine", the cost of belt failure far outweighs the cost of replacement. the best thing is to follow the manufacturer change schedule.

The maintenance interval for your model of civic is every 110K miles or 84 months. I recently had my 2001 Accord done (with water pump and new belts) for $640 at a local independent shop I've used quite a few times in the past. That's in Wichita, KS, which tends to run about mid-point on the price scale for these sorts of things. I had this done because I hit the 7 year limit, which is annoying but required. You don't want this belt to break. Once they've taken the car apart enough to inspect the belt condition, you might as well have them change it. You do wind up getting a coolant change out of the deal, so it isn't all that bad.