My car is at 108,000 miles and I need to get the timing belt and water pump replaced. I dont have 1500 to pay the dealership to fix it. They just tried to get me to pay 600 for my Knock sensor that a rodent ate through. A friend and I replaced the Knock Sensor with no problems. Has anyone changed the timing belt and water pump on these cars that can give me some pointers? We are tackling this job this weekend. Thanks!!

 

I forgot to mention Acura said my front wheel axles leaking. Anyone have any info on that?

 

dude the timing belt is not a novice job, if your timing marks are off by a tooth or more you can cause serious engine damage (bent valves, hole in a piston) hope you have the tool to remove the crank pulley too. ive done this job in the shop several times before but without the proper tools it will take you the whole day.

 

I just did the Timing belt on my '04 in my garage. Getting the crank pulley bolt loose was the hardest part but, I decided to do it the "shadetree way." Mechanics, skip the next sentence. Jam a breaker bar and socket against the subframe/control arm and use the torque of the starter to break the bolt loose. Just don't hold the key for too long. After that, you'll see everything you need to remove to get the belt and water pump off. If you're not replacing the hydraulic tensioner, you'll have to remove it and compress it in a vise and insert a pin in the hole. Remive the pin after you get everything back together to tension the belt. Make sure your marks line up and turn the engine over by hand until the marks line up again. If they are off at all, then DON'T start the car. Fix it. Don't be scared. Save the labor money and replace all of the parts you find suspicious. I ended up replacing my tensioner and the right engine mount since both of them had fluid seeping out of them. Some independent shops will do the job for cheap, but they'll use cheap parts and only replace the parts you mentioned. Belt and water pump. There is a LOT more to replace at the same time. Research on here before you start and come back if you have questions.

 

or just take it to an independent mechanic. Dealerships always charge much more money than the job is really worth.

 

thats how dealerships make their money with 100 dolalrs labor and rip off of parts. just like how i replaced my cabin air filter for 15 dollars and dealer charges 75-125.

 

NE14, how long did it take you to do it?

 

i suggest taking it in somewhere. its like an hour and a half to 2 and a half hour job if you do them . it should be about 5.5 hours labor plus parts. it may also need the auto tensioner, they leak and are about $100.

 

The rain kept us from doing it this past weekend but this weekend coming up should be okay out to get it done. I'm really just leaning on trading this car in...its really starting to annoy me with all of these issues.

 

dude am at 110K miles and its time to get the servicing done....and exactly like u am in the same boat.....

timing belt and water pump is something very critical and i say get it done at the dealer.....other than that i did everything at home.....at 100K miles i got the UR stock size crank pulley.....and replaced the belt with a gates belt......i switched the spark plugs myself.....i replaced both the air filters myself.....i bought the timing belt and water pump online....also bought 2 gallons of coolant.....

so now the idea is to go to a dealership and ask them for a deal....my dealer is ready to do the water pump/ timing belt for $300 labor only.....coz i have all the parts.....

i spend around $300-350 on all the parts....so got the 110K servicing done for around $700 with the belt and pump done at dealer....so if something goes wrong with that i can tell them i got this done at the dealer....didnt do it myself

 

The whole job took me 3 or 4 days. I had to wait for parts when I found the timing belt tensioner and engine mount leaking. It only took an hour or three to get to the belt and remove it. Breaking that damn crank pulley bolt loose took the longest. I think a well equipped shop with some experience can get the job done in 4-5 hours. It was my first time getting into an OHC engine that had to run again.

 

I did an 03 Pilot (same thing) in my garage in 5.5hours a couple weeks ago. This was my first V6 and I had only done two other 4cyl (one single-cam and DOHC). I had my friend help me and it was cake. I seriously doubt I could have done it without the extra hands though.

Getting the crank bolt off is ALWAYS the most difficult part of working on your Honda.

BTW: I went to the dealership and one of the service writers let me make copies of each step in the factory service manual. Really helped out w/ the small things as well as torque specs. I recommend you try that if you can't find the TL manual online...

PS: Here is a link to my writeup on HondaTech. It has a bunch of tips that will all apply to the TL as it's exactly the same. Only difference is that you won't have to do is disconnect the Power-Steering pump or remove the oil dip-stick tube:

http://www.google.com/#hl=en&source=...ca7b2e99206b9c