Lots of work on a 99 Accord

I bought my 99 Accord LC, 4 cyl, 5-speed in October of 1998. After 8
1/2 years the car has approx 158k miles on it. Other than tires,
brakes, regular oil changes and a tune-up at 95k miles the car has
never had any major work done to it. The ignition switch was
replaced as part of the recall about 3 years ago. All of a sudden it
seems like my car needs a lot of work;

New Clutch (the clutch is slipping), Dealer quote - $995.90
Timing Belt, includes seals and H2O pump (I really should of done this
60k miles ago) - $650
Catalytic Converter (check engine light is on) - $675
Addl belts and hoses - $230.00

Plus the car is due for an oil change which is about $40 - $50 since I
use Mobile 1 Extended Protection 15k mile and a Purilator filter.

Other things that would be nice to have done would be a paint job
since the roof and trunk lid are oxidizing and some door ding removal
(the car spent 7 years in crowded So Cal).

Sooooooooooo.. here is the three part question.

1) Are these really fair prices for the work? (All prices were quoted
by the dealer, they were actually cheaper than the local mechanic)

2) I'm torn about just buying a new car... If I sell it it only
becomes someone elses problems to deal with and I can't sell a car
that I know has problems. But somehow it doesn't make sense to put 3K
+ into an a car that is over 8 years old.

3) What other things may potentially go wrong at this point? If i put
several thousand into the car now am I going to have to turn around
and put more $ into something else soon?

Thanks in advance!
Lara

 

Well the price for the timing belt is spot on. I had mine done at 105k by
the dealer and it was about 6 and a quarter.

Randy Hunt

 

Yep, the quotes came from a Honda Dealer in Oregon.

Lara

 

I think $1000 for a clutch job is about double what the local honda
specialist or clutch specialists would charge. Check around before
doing that at the dealer.

Also, if they are changing your timing belt and water pump, then all the
belts are going to be removed anyway. Don't let them charge you as if
they have to do them as a separate job, one by one. The three (?) hoses
should run under $30 each for the best quality.

Is there even an engine code for the catalytic converter? I would have
this code read elsewhere before spending those dollars.

I doubt you need hoses, but I'm not there to see them.

dan

 

The Timing belt seems a good deal...we pay on avg about $700 - 800 in
PA but that also includes the belts.

Since the car has two O2 sensors, I'm assuming the 2nd one is throwing
the error that the cat is bad. Unless the dealer knows for 100% sure
that it isn't the sensor, then I would say that the cat is shot but
I've never diagnosed a bad one before.

Unless you are mechanically inclined, there will be a few more things
that will cost you a good amount of money. If they haven't gone yet,
they will be going soon are the ball joints, upper control arms and
your springs/shocks. These could cost over $1000 to have them
repaired.

I don't want to steer you one way or another but cars don't last
forever and usually after 7-8 years is when they start to cost a lot
to fix. If you do proceed to repair these parts, your car will
probably go another 100k miles on the new parts...but you do need to
consider that seals can go bad and may need to be replaced in the near
future as well.


Nick

 

Question 1:
I had a clutch put in a 90 couple of years ago for $525. That price
seems high.

Timing belt not too bad.

Catcon seems very high. Part is $110-120 depending on source. Labor
to install, shouldn't be over another $100.

I just bought one for my truck (not a honda) paid $100 for the
convertor and local mechanic charged me $55 to install.

Question 2:

No opinion

Question 3:

Since I have two hondas with mileage greater than 170K

Alternator, Cooling fans, radiator, clutch master and slave, (unless
that was included in your clutch job, normally is not), brake master,
speed sensor, distributor ignitor, main relay, AC components.

One or two items per year, a few years with no maintenance.

These are all things that I've replaced on one or both of my current
Hondas. Admittedly, most were on the oldest, 1990 and the newer 1997
has more miles on it.

Frank

 

thanks for all the replies.. i left the car with the dealer to get
the timing belt done.. i'll make some calls on monday for the clutch
and do a bit more investigating before i do any work on the Cat
Converter.. i really stay away from car payments for a few years
until i finish grad school.. so i would like to hold onto this car
for as long as possible and for as long as it makes financial sense..

thank you for all the answers and keep them coming.. this is only the
second car i've ever owned (my first was a mitsubishi diamante) so
other than the basics i'm not very knowledgable..