Honda timing belts........

[dan_erickson]

Well I guess it about time for the timing belt job on my 2015 Accord V6. It has 98,000 miles, and just recently I have noticed on cool mornings, after sitting all night, I will get a rattle noise for about 30 seconds to a minuet after starting the engine. Sounds like it was coming from the timing belt area and after some searching on the internet and a call a highly rated mechanic, I assumed right. The hydraulic belt tensioner is going bad and it seems kind of silly to only change the tensioner at 98,000 miles. I’ve called the dealer and a couple mechanics. Prices range from $1400 plus tax, stealership, to $760 out the door, indy mechanic. The mechanic said that includes a Gates timing belt, water pump, coolant, tensioner, and pulleys.

What have you’re experiences been with this job? I know we have some Honda owners on this site.

 

[clinebarger]

Buy the Belt, Tensioner, Water Pump, & Idlers from Honda & have them installed. If a customer wants to buy their own OE parts....Fine with me! J30/J35 Hondas pay quite well for the time it actually takes to do a timing belt.

 

[michaelluscher]

Aisin kit would be a better value

 

[FT92]

local highly rated mechanic did mine ,changed out everything cost me right around $700 ..dealer wanted $1500..i believe he used napa parts

 

[CharBaby]

Yes, use the Aisin kit if you're keeping the car. They are a OE supplier or "THE" OE supplier.

 

[donald53]

I've done mine twice...2003 Accord V6....first time I bought everything from Honda directly...water pump, tensioner, belt, drive and idler pulleys...nice and quiet when I finished. 2nd time I bought Contitech kit from RockAuto...it's been on there about 15k miles now and it just isn't as quiet as it used to be. Get a light ticking at start up in the morning...need to check the tensioner. The belt was made in Mexico and seemed...for the lack of a better word...flimsy and cheap. The parts in the kit were basically thrown in the box...wasn't impressed at all...and it was only about $100 cheaper than when I got all the original parts from Honda. I'm unfamiliar with the Aisin kit..but when I do it again it will be parts directly from Honda in their individual packages.

 

[mattd]

Stay away from gates. Buy the AISIN kit or get the parts straight from the dealer. Where are you located?

 

[FordMan59]

At 98K miles it's due a timing belt. If this is an interference engine a broken timing belt is going to cause extensive damage. I had a belt break on an old Ford Escort I used to drive at around 98K miles. Lucky for me the 1.9 in the Escort was non interference so it was just a matter of having it towed home and putting a new belt on. With cold weather coming on that old belt will also get more brittle and more likely to break or shear some teeth.

 

[dan_erickson]

Stay away from gates. Buy the AISIN kit or get the parts straight from the dealer. Where are you located?

I’m in Cedar Lake Indiana. Why does Gates have a bad reputation?

 

[JC1]

I’m in Cedar Lake Indiana. Why does Gates have a bad reputation?

I think Gates is ok, but the experience most people have is that use the better parts, this isn't a job where you want to cheap out and have a component fail early.

 

[zzyzzx]

Honda was still making engines that used timing belts in 2015??
Did you know this when you bought it?
That should be a deal breaker for most people here.

 

[jeepman3071]

+1 on the Aisin kit, it usually comes with everything you need. I've done a few Honda timing belts, and they are pretty straight forward. The V6s are slightly more cramped, and IMO the hardest part is getting that dang crank bolt loose.

 

[dan_erickson]

Honda was still making engines that used timing belts in 2015??
Did you know this when you bought it?
That should be a deal breaker for most people here.

I was fully aware when I bought the car brand new.
Thank you

 

[Smoky14]

Different engine, I put the Aisin kit in my Acura all the parts seemed to be high quality, but the thing that bugged me was noise from the timing belt. It sings especially when humidity is higher. Belt was made in Singapore and is way more noisy than the Honda belt it replaced. I'm thinking of replacing the belt with a OEM part just to quiet the thing down.
The hardest part of the job is the darn belt cover and the lack of room to get it out., I'm 80 now and the body just doesn't want to contort anymore
Smoky

 

[Dave Sherman]

Honda was still making engines that used timing belts in 2015??
Did you know this when you bought it?
That should be a deal breaker for most people here.

The J-series motors have always used belts, even the ones built today.

The Aisin belts are the OEM, and some folks have had problems with the Gates kits. It is an interference engine, so don't go cheap. My Pilot will be needing one in another year or so, thanks for sharing the pricing.

 

[DukeOfFrontenac]

As mentioned above, the crank bolt is the tricky part. I used the 'starter method' on my 06 Pilot with success. I've never used one, but I've read that the hot setup is using a special socket for getting it loose e.g. Lisle 77080.

 

[mattd]

That socket works very well.

 

[kschachn]

The J-series motors have always used belts, even the ones built today.

The Aisin belts are the OEM, and some folks have had problems with the Gates kits. It is an interference engine, so don't go cheap. My Pilot will be needing one in another year or so, thanks for sharing the pricing.

Well actually Aisin doesn't make the belts (at least on any of the kits I've installed), they have always been Mitsuboshi. And I've never seen an Aisin water pump on a Honda, but the Aisin ones in the kits I've installed on a Honda have been of extremely high quality. They have not leaked unlike the Chinese ones that come in the Gates kits.

As Smoky14 noted the timing covers are tricky sometimes. On my old Honda there is only one orientation where you can remove and install the cover without damaging it.

 

[kschachn]

As mentioned above, the crank bolt is the tricky part. I used the 'starter method' on my 06 Pilot with success. I've never used one, but I've read that the hot setup is using a special socket for getting it loose e.g. Lisle 77080.

I've removed several crank bolts on Honda cars and all have yielded using a holder and a 3/4" breaker bar from Harbor Freight.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Another vote for the Aisin kit

Honda was still making engines that used timing belts in 2015??
Did you know this when you bought it?
That should be a deal breaker for most people here.

Honda still makes timing belts today! Ford is even worse: they even have an engine where the timing belt is covered in oil!