Yesterday replaced Timing belt on my Accord EX F22B1 I bought Contitech but Mecahnic said that it has one Extra teeth he replaced with DAYCO and charged me double rate for the original price of that DAYCO belt i-e $40 instead of $25 from Advance Auto.

He did not replace Valve cover Gasket, Spark plug seals, Cam and crank seals charged me $190 what do you guys say is it reasonable???

What else I can fight or argue with him as i am planning to take the car again to him on Saturday for Valve cover, Spark plug seals.

Also how is the reputation of DAYCO timing belt as I am not feeling comfortable;(

Any thoughts???

 

did you not get a detailed quote outlining what would be replaced at the price quoted before you had the mechanic start working on the car? Never just assume something is going to be done.

 

In the beginning he said tht he will replace but then he said that for Crank seal he has to take the transmision apart so did not replace it for cam shaft seal he said replaced it but I am not sure.

Also which things should I watch for next 8-10 days i-e issues or problems???

Did he overcharged me ???

 

That is why it's always best to get a written quote.

the front crank seal does not require anything be done with the transmission.

things to look for... high pitch whine that increased with rpm's, possibly indicating timing belt tension being too tight. more engine vibration than usual, possibly indicating the balance shafts are out of alignment. leaking oil from the timing belt side of the engine, possible indication of the oil seals not sealing correctly after being replaced if they were in fact replaced.

did he over charge?? his charge of $190 was only for labor right? that is probably about right, it's a labor intensive job, though I haven't had a shop price a timing belt replacement for me so I'm not completely sure.

 

you should have used a honda timing belt. there shouldnt have been an extra tooth issue (volkswagon 1999 passats have this issue-even from the dealer and they dont know how many teeth are on the belt even by vin number--hondas dont do this though). you should have gotten a honda balancer shaft belt too ( i think that engine has one) ask if he timed the oil pump correctly. theres a hole in the back of the block to do this. it is covered with a bolt that seems out of place. you remove the bolt, line up the timing mark on the oil pump and put a screw driver in the hole that goes through a hole in a shaft. this just lets you know its correct. (is this the oil pump or balancer shaft? i forgot LOL but it is there). lets see...he should have also done the timing belt tensioner, water pump (you would have to request this extra) and the balancer seal, cam seal, and valve cover gasket set. all that you would have to request extra too. but it shouldnt cost too much extra because you already have the timing belt off. he should have given you your old parts. and if he did the timing belt for 190 bucks then you got a good deal. thats about a 6 hour job with a coolant service (thermostat, fan switch, radiator flush) to fully complement the new water pump. in my shop the 6 hours would cost 390 bucks for labor and you would have about 400 for parts (oil change too). and that includes new seals and valve cover set. oh yeah, what kinda warranty did you get? he should have a warranty. the REAR MAIN SEAL is the one he would have to remove the transmission to replace. the front crank seal is usually part of the oil pump assembly. IDK what he's talkin about. it will be hard to argue with the guy at this point since he probably trashed your old parts by now. and you will have to look for leaks to argue that he didnt replace seals. you will have to remove the timing cover for this. it might not be worth it. if you came to my shop to ask if i could check his work i would have to charge you to pull the timing cover. even the prorated labor cost wouldnt be worth it because you could just pay for me to do the job right and you will be saving more than paying me to check the guys work, and take him to court. now if it turns out he did a good job then youre spending about 150 bucks for me to check it, install a new valve cover gasket set, and for you to sleep well.

 

Its just labor he replaced both the tensioners I saw the old parts i-e T/B,B/B,W/P, both Tesnioners but only balance shaft seal and retainer Kit not the crank and cam shaft seal also probably I would replace the Valver cover and spark plug seals by myself.
Is there anything to worry about the crank and cam shaft seals as I think he did not replace it.

One more thing Alternator belt is grinding with the lower T/B cover Mechanic said that it will be ok in 10-15 days.

I do not see any difference in sound except that grinding with the T/B cover else ride is smooth and tight.

Any suggestions???

 

Side note, Honda released a batch of bad belts not too long ago (past year) that caused them to break (explode practically) and damage a lot of vehicles. Saw this first hand.

The alternator belt should not be grinding against anything - that just sounds dangerous.....

 

you are correct about the honda belt issue. i got called by the dealer about a few. they replaced them for my customers at the dealer. good thing i bought them under my customers names.

 

Use Bando brand belts

 

Belt is Bando but still its Grinding with the lower T/B cover what should I do if its dangerous????

Mechanic said it should be fine in couple of days

Also any input regarding about Dayco Belts?? as my T/B is DAYCO

 

that mechanic should be shot!! he is suggesting that since he didnt do something correctly you should just let it wear a hole in the timing cover...or wear something down on the timing cover till it rubs no more. my suggestion would be to push the issue. threaten to call the better business bureau and the bureau of automotive repair and report him. youre going to have to do some research to look into possibly an attorney representing your claim. you may not need one but i've never had this issue in my shop. you may just need a second opinion from a few shops and possibly just the complaint to one of the bureaus i mentioned. the mechanic definately did something wrong. contact your city hall for more information but that guy is definately not a good mechanic. its guys like him that have hurt the trust between people and mechanics--and for good reason. he should have his business license revoked. and why did the belt have an extra tooth to begin with?

 

 

Eh, you can easily adjust the alternator/ac belt yourself. Just look and see where it's hitting and if anything looks out of place (ie the lower cover is loose or something).

 

So should I check all the bolts and adjustment on the lower T/B cover for adjusting that grinding of cover with Alternator Belt??

Also any experience with DAYCO Timing Belt from Advance Auto????

 

did you pay with a credit card? if you did take pics of the work and stop the payment, take the money and buy a honda manual or download it online and do the work yourself, but do not go back there. Anyone who tells you "it'll be good in x number of days" has no idea what they are doing. The price doesn't sound too bad for what he did but I always check here http://repairpal.com/ to get a ballpark figure of what something costs, but I do most of the work myself and rely on mechanics very rarely.