Hey guys,

I've been reading this forum for a couple weeks since my car stopped working, trying to see if I can get some info on what I should do. Finally making a post because I'm still not clear on everything and I don't know any honda experts that I can talk to in person.

Basically what happened is: one night when I was parallel parking, it almost shut off, then came back on, a few times by itself without me doing anything to the gas. I was able to park, and the next afternoon when I went to take it out again, it wouldn't start (turns over fine though).

I had it towed to a nearby Honda dealership. The first thing they did was a compression test on it and then the guy was like "did you ever change the timing belt? this car has like no compression" (I hadn't). They told me that if my timing belt broke then I probably had severe engine damage and would need a new engine. Then they came back again 10 mins later, and said the timing belt actually didn't break, and they thought it might be the tensioner. They said they needed to take the engine apart to really find out what happened and extent of the damage, if any, so I left it with them. This was a Saturday evening.

Monday morning they called and said I'd need to put in a new engine for $2300. I only paid $1600 for the car in the first place. I asked the guy if he could give me more details, like whether the valves were definitely bent (I had been reading up), and he was like "the valves are definitely bent" and then basically just repeated to me the same thing the guy said on the first day in a really patronizing tone. I got the strong sense that they hadn't done anything in the few business hours that'd passed since I dropped it off.

So, I went back to the dealer to have it towed away. The bill from the dealer had been left for me on the front seat, all they charged me for was a compression test ($100), which I know only took 5 minutes because they did it in front of me when I went in there the first time. This is what it said:
Obviously they hadn't done any further work on checking out the problem ("Believe"?). I called another garage and they told me they can replace the valves for $1500 - $1800 or the engine for $2300. Another mechanic told me if it has no compression then the valves definitely ARE bent and it'd be best to replace the engine. Is this true?

Is $2300 a normal cost for engine replacement? Do you think that's probably what it needs? Is just replacing the valves a good idea? My problem is I can't keep spending $70 to tow it around to places just to get estimates. I don't have a lot of money and need to save for the repair, if it's even reasonable to do so. What do you guys think?

I LOVE this car, it only has 143k miles on it and is in excellent condition (spent the first 18 years of its life in CA and has absolutely no rust). Thanks for any advice you can give.

 

To have a professional shop replace the motor, yes. They will charge you an arm and a leg to do a motor swap. I would suggest that if you plan on keeping the car, swap the motor with something you want. Choose the motor that best suits your needs (ie. want to go fast, just be reliable, or race car status). Honestly, it would be pointless to swap the same motor back into the car when there are way better options out there.

As far as swapping it goes, I would look around your area for some Honda motorheads that wouldn't mind helping you out instead of having a dealer do it. Hope this helps.

 

If that's the truth pertaining to the actual damage, you can have the head rebuilt by itself for a couple hundred give or take at a machine shop. Or you can get a used head for like $50 and take your chance. That cost of $2300 is probably for a new crate engine, because even at an engine depot they should be less than a $1k complete. The same engine can be found second hand for $300 or so depending on specific engine (trim level to the car itself). I've been offered a 1.5 DX engine for $100 at the local junkyard with 30day warranty just as an example. Don't know where you are but if it you are still in CA then you should be able to find a good condition used head fairly easily.

 

It is not true to say the valves are definitely bent when the compression is low.
If the belt jumped, then the vavles are wide open when compression is being built up.
To explain differently, if you blew into a straw with the other end open you get zero compression.
If you plug the end of the straw with your finger then you get compression.
In your case, the valves are your finger and in a skipped belt situation they aren't closing off at the right time = low or zero compression.

Replacing the timing belt and belt tensioner (and water pump since it's easy to replace with the timing belt - shouldn't add much to the labor cost) will tell you if your engine is ok.
Alternatively, you could tear the engine apart and inspect it. That is very expensive compared to a timing belt. also, if they tear it all apart and everything is ok, then you are still going to need a belt.

My thoughts - since you were driving so slow then it's more than likely that your engine is perfectly fine.

 

I agree. If you are getting some compression (50-80psi) I would at least have someone set the engine timing (even using the old belt) and then check the valve clearance. It will be obvious if there are bent valves. Actually, you could just check the valve clearance using the normal procedure to see if the valves are actually bent(set the cam position for each cylinder). This would be a quick and inexpensive way to assess the damage...

 

Thanks guys for your replies. This really gives me some hope.

@24TEN: the cost of 2300 was for the engine AND installation. They said 800 was the cost of the engine and 1500 for labor.

I live in Portland, Maine. I don't know of any "honda motorheads" around here but I will post on craigslist maybe. There must be someone......!

 

OMG is that what labor is at a legit shop now?!

 

Yeah, well.. I guess their rate is $100/hour.

Strange thing is, the other garage that also quoted me $2300 has a rate of $65/hour.

These fools are just tryna get over!!

 

Well.. new development -- I spoke with a honda guy I found on craigslist and he said my engine is a "no-interference" engine, and even if it jumped timing, then I would not have bent valves. Is this true??

 

No it is an interference engine, but considering your low rpms at the time and moving so slow your valves should be fine, belt just jumped teeth. I snapped my timing belt at 65 mph and didnt bend a thing. Good Luck

 

Do you, or do you know, anyone that has a decent set of tools and is comfortable jacking a car up off the ground to change tires or brakes? No flimsy "I found this in the trunk" car jack either... somebody with a real car jack.
It's not hard to check if the belt jumped a few teeth and I'm sure we could walk you through the process.

 

Really appreciate this offer. I already scheduled to have my car towed to this craigslist mechanic's place at 9am tomorrow because he gave me the name of his shop, and I looked it up and they are Honda specialists, and it has a lot of 5 star reviews. I called, and they told me they would determine the problem with my car for free.. so I took them up on it. If it doesn't work out with them, though, I will surely be back here.

Really do appreciate all the help, you guys have given me the strength to go on when all hope seemed lost!

 

Oh man!
I had to take a moment there.
totally lost it and broke down in tears of joy and pure happiness for the poster's new found will to live!
VIVA!!!!!

 

Just be sure the craigslist mechanic doesn't pack your dash full of dope or anything like that lol, there are shady mechanics out there. But like someone said before, almost anyone with a decent set of tools should be able to take care of it with all of the information and write ups on the internet.

 

Haha!! :D

 

Yep, he actually turned out to work at a legit father/son owned honda specialist shop (he is the son), so I am feeling pretty confident. I just hope it's going to be affordable!

 

good luck with you hatchy hopefully everything turns out right and yeah if your belt skiped a bit specially since your car was at low rpms and sleep i doubt that anything got damaged

 

WELL, well, well. Just heard from the place I took it to and they got it running for FIFTY DOLLARS ($50). There was nothing wrong with the timing belt at all, the issue was 100% unrelated to the timing belt.

I have been stressed out and carless for the past 3 weeks due to the jerks at Berlin City Honda at the Maine Mall.

Thanks to Pip Pro Auto in Windham, Maine, who fixed it this morning. I told them they are a godsend.

Just wanted to update you guys, call out Berlin City, and give a big up to Pip Pro in case anyone from Maine is on these boards.

Thanks again for all your guys help. I probably would not be in this awesome position right now if it wasn't for your encouragement.

GOOD:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Pip-Pr...04008362952927
http://www.merchantcircle.com/busine...2.207-893-2103

BAD!!!! :
http://www.berlincityhondame.com/service/index.htm

 

... but what was the problem?

 

Hmmm, well he started getting kind of technical with me when he was explaining it, and I'm a ashamed to admit it was a bit over my head. Basically, though, he said it was because the last time I drove it, it was a quick trip and I didn't wait for it to warm up all the way before I came home and turned it off?

 

....


Can you look at the receipt and see what parts were replaced or what the labor was for?
Now I'm curious.

 

I'm curious too

 

I will definitely post back and let you know when I go get the car later today or tomorrow.

He suggested we tune-up a few other things while its in there, and i said yes please, so they are working on that now.

Also here is a picture of my car in case you're curious! This was in the Grand Tetons on the road trip when we moved from CA to Maine.

 

You are a dog...

In my God sent opinion - that shop is no Honda specialist automotive shop. They say they are "import" people so they can upcharge and ream people as they come in disgusted with the "stealerships" quotes... You probably only got off easy because you are a decent looking woman and the son took interest. Be upset all you want - ask around, I call it like I see it.

 

Wow that's a clean hatch and it made it from cali to maine that's amazing for a 21 year old car uh? And that's good that the car is well now