204k mi on my 2004 civic which means its time for a timing belt and water pump.

I bought a gates timing belt component kit which includes a warning that says premature water pump failure can be prevented by having a coolant flush done before.

Just wondering if anyone recommends a chemical flush or just a drain and fill.

 

Drain and fill.

 

Thanks.

 

Otta curiosity, when filling radiator with coolant is it necessary that the fans turn on twice? It takes an hour or more for them to turn on.

Also, assuming the car is at operating temperature, is it necessary to hold the accelerator at 2000 rpm to fill burp the system? I didn't and the heater was;t working. I then held the rpm at 2000 and the heater started working. Topped it off again and after that it worked fine.

 

generally I raise the front end up a tad, install my spill free funnel. add coolant, turn heat to full hot without the blower on and use a pedal depressor set at ~1500 rpms. works every time and usually takes 15min or so to cycle fans twice.