Hey all, im looking to do a few maintenance things on my 96' accord 4cly over the next few weeks and wanted a second opinion as to the order in which i should do them. I dont want to do the same thing twice.

-Timing belt & water pump (I will be paying a mechanic to do this)
-Valve adjustment
-Head Gasket
-Spark Plugs, Wires, Cap and Rotor
-Spark Plug Tube seals and Valve cover seal
-PCV Valve
-Coolant Flush
-Power steering fluid change
-Brake fluid change
-Rear engine mount

I have a general idea as to the order I should do these in, but wanted a second opinion. I am still contemplating doing the timing belt and water pump myself, however I found a mechanic that will do it for 349.99 which is pretty reasonable. My car has 182k miles FYI.

Thanks in advance.

 

i work in a shop and when you do the timing belt on those you have to have the vavle cover off. so it could save you some labor if you do the valve adjustments and tube seals, anything under the valve covers. and if the shop seems like it is a lot lower than other shops in the area, chances are they are cutting corners somewhere on it. make sure they use a good timing kit where the tensioner and idler are replaced with the belt. you probably could do everything yourself, if you can get the crank bolt off. that is usually the hardest part. just make sure you get the engine timed right when it goes back together.

 

oh i didnt see the head gasket on there at first. make sure to do the timing belt when you do that cause you have to have all of that off to do that one.

 

Thanks for your opinion, I have done head gaskets before and just slipped the timing belt off to release the head. The quote for timing belt was for timing belt, water pump, gaskets and new pulleys. The crank shaft bolt is the only reason I dont want to do it myself because I dont have any air tools.

 

Why replace Head Gasket and Rear engine mount? Preventive measure?

If you let the mechanic replace water pump, he needs to replace coolant, no need to do it again.

I would suggest drain and fill transmission fluid with Honda Z1 if your car is auto.

 

You don't have to change a head gasket unless it's blown. Is there coolant in your oil? Have you done a compression test?

 

Timing belt package needs to me number one. Valve adjustment, valve cover gasket and tube seals can easily be done along with timing belt. At that price I would be very curious as to what kind of parts he is using. OEM is the only way to go. Should replace timing belt, balancer belt, water pump, and oil seals without fail. At that mileage I would also carefully inspect idler pulleys. I would also replace o-ring to oil pump housing. If it is not leaking yet it will very soon. Only takes a few minutes while in timing cover.

As far as the head gasket and rear mount, Those don't need to be touched unless you have a problem with them.

All of the other fluids are important but out of all of them I would be most concerned with the transmission unless its a 5 speed.

 

if you have the tools and arent afraid to tear into it, i would just buy the parts and do it myself. at least then you know what parts are going in, and that its done right... plus save a few bucks in the process.

i would do the timing belt kit, water pump, valve adjustment, plug tubes & seals, valve cover gasket, and draining the radiator all in one shot. then once the engine is put back together, i would fill the coolant system w/ the flush, install new plugs, wires, etc, and siphon & refill the p/s and brake fluid.

id also change the atf or gear oil... i mean, if you're going through with everything else, why not? you can also use "castrol multi-import vehicle" atf instead of the honda z1.

 

The head gasket is preventative measure, yes. The rear engine mount however, needs to be replaced. I have done some diagnosing and have determined that the rear mount is bad.

 

Thanks for the info! I think you are dead on with your suggestion. I need to just crank it all out throughout a couple days. I will also be needing to do the Valve stem seals I think. I am smelling a burning oil smell from my car as I drive it. The compression seams to be fine, Power is good, the tube seals are not leaking from a simple plug wire pull. Note: I have not yet pulled the spark plugs. I do not see any blue smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe. But I figured, if I am doing all of the above, I might as well replace the valve stem seals while the head is pulled apart. Unless anyone can think of something else that may be causing the smell?

 

if your smelling burning oil, but its not smoking or smelling at the tail pipe, it could be something simple like a leaking sensor or seal... esp if its leaking and hitting the exhaust up in the engine bay. id give it a good look-over first. if you dont see anything externally, go ahead and get the parts, then if you get it torn down, and see that they need replaced, you'll have them ready to go. if it turns out to be something else, or you just decide that they arent needed, you can always take them back. but they arent that much, so i'd probably just throw them on while i was into it.

 

Head gasket replacement should not be considered preventative maintenance. I suggest you leave it alone unless there is a problem.

Also, Honda ATF isn't very expensive compared to a new transmission. I would not risk putting any fluid in the transmission except for Honda ATF.

The rear engine mount going bad will give a vibration at idle. Replacing the mount is a pain in the *** and the mount itself is expensive. I would put that at the bottom of the list.

 

Honda ATF is nothing magical when it comes to the transmissions. I live in Portland, OR and both the Beaverton, Tualatin, and Portland Honda dealerships use valvoline atf for all of their services. They sell honda atf by the bottle but use valvoline to do their services.

 

What sensors are barriers to oil? Where might they be located? Any seals that you may recommend checking first?

 

By saying changing a head gasket is not a preventative measure you are saying that a brand new engines head gasket is equally reliable as it would be 150k miles later. Head gaskets dont just break just to break, They wear at a micro rate and then a simple failure can cause they to go. The point is, My head will be pulled apart, timing belt will be off, so I am planning on spending an additional $60 to do the head gasket.

 

to be honest with you, im not real familiar with the accords. ive had mine for years, but its sat parked for most of the time due to dui and stuff. im only recently becoming reacquainted with it after a few years of working on neons, caravan and passport/rodeo... and had forgotten most of what i knew back then!

but generally speaking, almost any sensor thats screwed into the block or head, but is not for monitoring fuel, air, or coolant would probably be in contact with the oil... he odds would be in your favor, at least.

the real problem to me though, as mentioned in your other thread about the 'burning oil smell' (you should keep it all together, btw), is that you dont actually see the smoke, even when parked with the hood up, but it comes through the air vents... even when parked, right?

logically, if it were a sensor leaking onto the engine or exhaust, enough so that you can smell it inside the car, you would think you would at least see a wet spot somewhere or smoke.

does the car 'mark its territory' when you leave it parked in one place for a long time? if so, look up from the spot to get a general idea of where its coming from.

 

The car doesnt leave any type of a mark in its parking spot. The car is parked indoors and I would definitely notice a leak spot. The oil has to be leaking when the engine is hot because the smell does not come around until the engine has reached operating temperature. I dont even know where to start with checking all of the sensors. Would it be possible that the oil pan could be leaking only when the engine temperature is up? or would it leak the same rate no matter the temperature.

 

well, generally the oil is going to be thicker when its cool. think cooking oil before and after you put it in the pan. if its a small leak, then it is possible that its not leaking until the oil heats up.

as for the sensors, i wouldnt go just pulling them and ****. id stick my head in there, look for fresh oil, and if you find some, wipe if off and check it after driving to see if its coming back quick.

but im doubting that its a blatant leak. it just seems that if its leaking so bad that its burning and stinking up the car, it should be leaving marks on the ground, smoking under the hood when parked... something! know what i mean?

im stumped really. when you think about the heat/cool system, its pretty well segragated from the engine bay. except for the a/c lines and heater core connections, i cant think of any other links between the two. and neither of them pass oil that could cause the smell themselves.

so does the smell leech in without the a/c or heat running? or does the fan have to be on to draw the smell in? do these cars have a cabin filter?

 

The smell will be there if I open the hood with a running engine. The fan is what draws the smell in through the vents. I think it probably is just too thin of oil for the vehicle at this time. It was the first oil change since the summer heat kicked in (around 85-100 daily) and it has been happening ever since. Not to mention it was a last minute oil change at jiffy lube and im pretty sure they just used a crap 5w30 penzoil. I think i remember reading that penzoil also has a tendency to raise the engine temperature slightly. I am going to start with an oil change; cant decide between a 10w30 or a high mileage 5w30? and then I am going to take a look at the spark plugs and replace them with ND or NGK's.

 

Since your 96 Accord has 182Kmiles, you may want to check/replace your radiator hoses since you are planning on a coolant flush (depends on when the hoses were last replaced). If you are replacing the radiator hoses, then the thermostat should be changed also while the radiator hose is off.

 

i hear ya. i'd go with 10w-40, just because its high mileage vehicle, and the 5w is already causing problems (we think). the reason i'd opt for the 40 over the 30 is that some of the oil charts show 10-30 topping off at about 70 degrees, while 10-40 is shown to handle 100+. other charts show 30/40 being the same, but i find that hard to believe, or else why would they make the 10-40?

the temps are about the same where i live, and i run 10w-40 in the summer, and 5w-40 (if i can find it, if not 30) in the winter. the 5w makes for easier cranking in the winter, while the 10w doesnt burn/leak as bad during the hot months.

beyond that, i mention a cabin filter because they can retain smell and you only notice when the blower is running. i know the 99+ super duty ford trucks have them, and if they are used for work, they often get clogged with dust and retain a bad diesel smell. ive never heard of one on these cars though, and since you say it just started, its doubtful that its the issue. just thought id throw it out there though.

 

Why replace the radiator hoses if they look fine? Any risks involved or just for caution? Just wondering.

 

I think I will probably spring for a mobil 1 10w40 or Castrol. Thanks for the advice, I will let you know how it goes when I change the oil, I will also let you know what my spark plugs look like when I pull them but I wont get around to the service until Monday realistically.

 

After driving it around today, I looked under the car as soon as i stopped and parked. I noticed some oil dripping right above the cat. I had my oil serviced at jiffy lube and the problem started ever since then. I am hoping it is just a poorly placed drain plug, and not a gasket. But I will take a bad gasket over bad rings any day. I am going to take it back there today, and will post results.

 

yeah, better than a stripped out drain plug too!