I have a 1994 Honda Accord EX sedan with 98,000 miles on it. I have owned it since it was new. I am going to replace the timing belt and water pump (both for the first time) and have been getting estimates from local shops. The estimates to do this work have varied widely, and I do understand and appreciate the concept that work done by a quality shop may cost me more money.
Having said all that, can anyone give me an idea as to what a reasonable estimate for this work would be so I have something to go by? If it matters, I live in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. Thank you in advance.
Whichever shop you use, make sure that they are using OE parts and Honda's antifreeze. Some shops will try to up their profit by using cheap parts. These either don't fit well or don't last like OE. Another variable is which parts are replaced. For example, some shops will replace the tensioner bearings as well as the cam, crank, balance shaft, and valve cover seals. Other shops will just replace the timing belt and water pump and leave the rest alone. The merits, or lack thereof, of either approach have already been thoroughly discussed on this group. Search through the old posts at
$700 is way to much to pay for that. you can actually do it yourself and save all that. there are also very good shops that will charge alot less than that and still do the job right. you can buy the parts yourself and pay them for the labor. i would look for one of those.
Changed my own, on my VTech engines, and ALWAYS do the kit of tensioner with belt, plus, water pump, Thermostat, and all belts and hoses.
I'll spend about $160.00 for the parts, and got them for two of my most recent cars at the Central Auto Parts store, Aloma Avenue (SR426), Goldenrod, near my home in Casselberry, Seminole County, Florida. They sold me a $111.00 kit of tensioner and timing belt. Had the
It is North of Orlando, the megapolis that is an octopus in Orange County. I know, TMI... But, the local Honda dealers charge around $600 just to do the tensioner, belt and Water Pump. That includes antifreeze. I trust Courtesy Honda absolutely, if I want to spend the $600 and let them do it.
But, I have been a mechanic and also have worked on the line, since 1964 (20+years in the USAF). So, I already have both; the tools, and the 'feel' for working on machines.
I use genuine antifreeze and cut it myself. All A/F is supposed to meet Federal specifications, and be interchangeable. Never had a problem with Prestone or any other I have mixed. The only fluid I DO insist to use from Honda is the Power Steering Lubricant!
But, I was born in St. Paul, in 1946. Relatives report similar pricing there.
The job takes me about 8 hours, with lots of coffee breaks. Biggest part of the work is removing the crank bolt! Honda uses Anaerobic Thread locking compound. You might know it as Lock Tite. The crank bolt is then torqued to about 360 Foot/Pounds of torque.
The cause of the ungodly tight bolt is still controversial - there isn't any sign of lock-tite on the threads when I've looked - but there is no doubt the bolt is way tighter than it needs to be. A Big Honkin' Mama impact driver is indispensible. Accept no substitutes, like the Wimpy Slacker Dude socket wrench ;-)
That's interesting. The factory service manual for my Civic specs 119 ft-lbs for the torque on the crank pulley bolt. It also states that engine oil should be used on the threads. Moreover, in all of the years that I worked on Hondas, I've never come across any trace of Loctite on the threads.
Hey, thanks for all the responses to my original post!
I had my timing belt and water pump replaced last week. They quoted me $600 for this and then added another $20 for a "drive belt" they said I needed once they got in there.
I ended up getting a 10% discount for being a long time customer so my total for all this came to $560 including tax.
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