Do I really need new timing belt on '03 TL w/ only 23.8K miles??

cameo wrote in news:jr110r$odg$ snipped-for-privacy@dont-email.me:

The Owner's Manual you linked above is for both Canadian AND US versions.

So what versions were the ones Al showed maint. sched for?

cameo wrote in news:jr8l3h$abr$ snipped-for-privacy@dont-email.me:

Al's link, for me, gives a single page for Maintenance Schedule. And that page does not mention the timing belt. The other pages are all Specs.

Is there something you're seeing that I'm not?

I think you need to forget that link I posted. It was just something that came up on a search. As was noted by someone else, it would appear that the poster said it was "Official 94-97 Accord Maintenance Schedule From the official Honda Shop Manual, Honda Motor Co., Ltd. Service Publication Office" but the actual pages posted could have come from some other source, since those pages have no such identifying marking.

Well, then what about that web link from Honda Canada that I've shown earlier? That also indicates 60K mile interval for timing belt change on '94 Accord.

cameo wrote in news:jr96n2$qjf$ snipped-for-privacy@dont-email.me:

Yeah, I saw that one. I'm at a loss for an explanation. All the Canadian/American paper manuals I have for Civic-based vehicles say 90K miles for the timing belt. The Accord manuals, on the other hand, do all say 60K.

However...

I also have a factory 2004 TL manual. It says that timing belt replacement is part of Maintenance Sub-Item 4, along with valve adjustment and spark plug replacement.

For the timing belt service, there is also this qualifier: "If the vehicle is regularly driven in very high temperatures (over 110F), or in very low temperatures (under -20F), replace every 60,000 miles and inspect water pump".

This qualifier implies that, inside of the extreme temperatures given in the qualifier, the belt would be changed at some mileage /higher/ than 60K.

Al wrote in news:4fd80503$0$1228$ snipped-for-privacy@cv.net:

The pages in the link you gave were copied out of a factory manual.

Not even "very cold". Honda says all of Canada should use the "severe schedule".

The guy who runs the local independent Honda/Acura repair shop in my town says the timing belt life is overwhelmingly a question of mileage, not time. So, per his suggestion, I drove my 94 Accord until 2011 without changing the belt at all. It died in a traffic accident (nobody hurt) with about

I think he's very likely right about that, but on the other hand, neither he nor I will reimburse you if he's wrong.

The other factor is that when you go to sell the car, the cost of the timing belt replacement will be a hit to the price you get if belt replacement is due per the manual. So if you're going to sell it within the next five years or so, you might as well go ahead and do the belt now and not take any risk.

But if you're going to drive it till it dies, maybe every 14 years would be a reasonable period so long as the mileage isn't exceeded.

I just think it's EXTREMELY unlikely that you need a timing belt at 23,800 miles. The manual says 7 years only because it assumes 15,000 miles per year. There is no column for other assumptions.