Timing belt / water pump

I own a 2001 Honda Civic. It has about 100,000 KMs (62000 miles)

I just brought my car in to be repaired. The Honda dealer told me I have
to change the timing belt and water pump. Athough the timing belt is not
broken, he recommended I change it since it is all cracked. Unfortunately
changing a timing belt is not under the warranty (unless it snaps in
half…this is just maintenance). But, the water pump is under my warranty.


I know that to change the timing belt and water pump, it is pretty much
the same job. The question is, what amount of labour is required to
change the water pump and what amount of labour is required to change the
timing belt. I want to make sure that I am not getting screwed. I want to
make sure that I am only paying for the timing belt portion of the labour
and not the water pump portion of the labour. Can anyone give me an
estimate on the time required? Thanks

 

I own a 2001 Honda Civic. It has about 100,000 KMs (62000 miles)

It is one and the same job because you have to remove the belt to replace
the pump -- suggest you pay for the timing belt and they pay for the water
pump+labor. It should only take 10 minutes to replace a belt so they
shouldn't give you any lip about it. Since they don't charge by the minute
and the pump is not going to replace itself, they should pick up the tab for
labor.

Remco

 

thats not until 90k, or so. id try another dealer.

 

Wha???? 10 minutes? When I had it done by a mechanic on a '95 Integra
GS-R, it was more than 5 hours of labor. I looked at the procedure
in my factory service manual, and there was no way I was going to try
doing it myself.

Oh - if you're going to do this job, the belt tensioner pulley should
als be replaced. Here's a pretty good article on a timing belt change
for a Civic:

<http://www.hondatuningmagazine.com/tech/0406ht_timing>

So here's the condensed version of what was done (they didn't do the
water pump):

1) Raise car and place on jackstands.
2) Remove spark plugs.
3) Remove valve cover.
4) Loosen drive belts.
5) Unbolt driver's side engine mount and support engine with a jack.
6) Remove upper timing belt cover.
7) Set #1 cylinder to TDC.
8) Break loose the crank bolt.
9) Remove crank pulley.
10) Remove lower timing belt cover.
11) Loosen timing belt tensioner.
12) Remove timing belt and replace with new one.
13) Put everything back in reverse order.

 

I'm pretty sure remco meant 10 minutes additional to change the belt in
the course of replacing the water pump.

 

So what would it cost to get the timing belt and water pump changed at the
dealer for a 97 civic? How many hours and what's the cost for the parts?

 

bout $450, all inclusive. less is better, but MUCH less and id start
wondering if they really even did the job.

 

Standard package should include timing belt, water pump, tensioner
pulley, and new valve cover gasket. The vast majority of the cost
is labor. I once bought a belt, water pump, and tensioner pulley
for a shade tree mechanic to do the job. The belt was about $40,
the water pump $35, and tensioner pulley $30.

 

I'm pretty sure remco meant 10 minutes additional to change the belt in

No, YPW is right -- I think when I typed this I must have been gitty with
lunch and did not read his message correctly.
While I did reply typing "timing belt", my mind was stuck in park thinking
regular "belt" (alternator, waterpump, etc).
I wasn't thinking so my comment was way off base. Sorry if I sent you down
a dark alley - it wasn't my intent.

 

Actually - a Honda water pump isn't driven by an accessory belt. It's
driven directly by the timing belt. If the water pump or tensioner
pulley seizes, the belt will likely break. That's why these parts
are usually replaced with the timing belt. It's little additional
labor and replacing them is extra insurance for the timing belt.

If a water pump is leaking and has to be replaced, it's probably
worth having the timing belt replaced. Honda has often been
criticized for this bit of engineering.

 

Um, anyone else think the dealership would rather sell an expensive
service (necessary but performed early) rather than perform warranty
Work?

They are 80-90% the same job and one could be used to 'mask' the other.

Selling someone a belt early, would be a way to make money rather than
put in for warranty reimbursement which might make the dealership less
popular .

-- Bror Jace

 

I don't know of many water pumps that won't last through the warranty
period. I was thinking maybe sometime between the end of the warranty
coverage but before the timing belt change is due. In that case it's
a good idea to change the belt and tensioner pulley proactively.

 

ok lets get this straight. we do timing belt packages at my dealership for
about 600 dollars or so depending on the vehicle. there is no need to
replace the tensioner unless it shows signs of damage. we replace the water
pump, timing belt, cam seal, front crank seal, any drive belts and the valve
cover gasket. and we use OEM parts of course. you can have a Honda
Technician do it, or some grease monkey that's touches Hondas once in a
while do it.

 

I've seen many recommendations that the tensioner pulley might as well
be replaced while the mechanic "is in there". It's only a $30 part,
and I"ve heard of cases where a tensioner pulley has seized and
destroyed the timing belt. With all that stuff off, it's supposed to
be a chance to replace a mish-mash of parts that might break.

 

Replace tensioner and spring every second belt change. Leaving them in for
a third belt is asking for serious trouble.

This is assuming you're sticking to the Service Manual's replacement
interval...

 

A quick check of the Maintenance Schedule in your 2001 Honda Civic
Owners
Manual will show that the recommended interval for timing belt change,
under normal driving conditions, is (drum roll....) : every 110000
mi/176000 KM , or @ 84 months. The water pump has no replacement
interval, but is to be 'inspected' at each timing belt change or 'as
required'.

FWIW, I commute 110 miles daily (rt) via I-95 in Florida driving a 2001
Civic EX Coupe. I bought the car new Dec, 2000 and it currently has
157000 miles on it with original timing belt and water pump. I'm going
for the 84 month (7 year) replacement cycle. I'm going to inspect the
timing belt soon, when I change the OEM plugs !