I have a 2006 RL which I love... great car. It has 93,000 miles and I need to know when the timing belt needs to be changes as recommended by Acura, not the dealer.

 

Check your owners manual . Should be 105K miles or 7 years

 

You are way overdue. 7 years or 105k is correct.

 

Anyone DIY this? I see kits on eBay and I'm wondering if it's a weekend job.

 

If you have tools and trust your ability to turn wrenches then yes. There are you tube videos how to do this. If this is the first time your picking up a wrench I wouldnt recommend it for this job. I got all 3 of mine done at Honda dealer even though I have skills and tools as it was cheaper than eating up a weekend for me PLUS it was an awesome price and they did some extra stuff without charging me.

 

i did it for the first time and it took me a week to break the crank bolt loose

 

If number 4 pops up on your maintenance minder, then that is another indication it might be time to change your timing belt.

When I had my timing belt changed at the dealer they changed the following

Timing belt
tensioner
water pump
compressor belt
coolant

I was luck my oil pump was leaking, covered under acura care warranty, the dealer said they would replace the timing belt et al, for just the price of the parts since they had to remove most of those items anyway. This was done at 75,000 miles.

 

Problem isn't getting it loose (starter works great) it's getting it tightened back up that is impossible without the tool!!!!

 

Aren't the spark plugs supposed to be replaced at the same time?

 

The spark plugs are spec'ed to be replaced at 105k. I'm under the impression that they replaced the timing belt due to a leaking oil pump (?), that's probably why the plugs were skipped?

 

so, then who is the real winner here?


hint* not the starter method! lol