I bought a CRV with a B20Z engine, previous owner says the cambelt was done 25,000miles ago, the motor is very clean and ideally I'd just change the cambelt and waterpump no matter what the previous owner says but I'm low on cash at the moment. I just want some piece of mind to be able to inspect the cambelt for wear and age without removing the valve cover or too much of the engine.

It would seem on a B20 you can access the cambelt by removing 2 bolts on the middle section of cambelt cover that sits below the valve cover and just opposite the engine mount?

 

Unfortunately you will have to at the very least lift the valve cover a little. The timing belt cover will come off with those 2 bolts, but it has a lip that goes up into a groove on the valve cover and snaps into the bottom cover the same way. So you cant just unbolt and take off. You'll unbolt, lift the valve cover, then pull the timing cover up about half and inch and then it will pull away.

 

That's sad, my valve cover is bone dry/no leaks would hate to mess with that
If I removed the engine mount on that side could I slide the cover down and get the lip past the valve cover without removing it?

Or is there perhaps a lower cover I can remove?
I just need to do a visual inspection even if I can just get a glimpse inside though a gap with a bright light that should be fine.

 

^why are you scared of removing your valve cover? Take it off, clean the gasket, RTV over the cam caps and reinstall. Easy. You are not going to create leaks but removing the valve cover.

 

But shouldn't you really be replacing the valve cover gasket each time its removed to be sure of no leaks?
From my past experience with other engines that has often been the case.
Is the gasket paper/cork or rubber?

 

The valve cover gasket is rubber. If it is still soft, you can reuse it. Even if you err on the side of caution, a new one isn't very expensive, so you can change it out while doing your inspection. A valve adjustment isn't a bid idea while you have the engine opened up.

 

Good to hear the gasket is rubber and those are very valid points, I do plan on doing the Cambelt/waterpump/Valve clearance in 6 months time but I would like to have some piece of mind now.
It's a remarkably clean vehicle for it's age, I bought it 2 weeks ago and I've put in many brutal hours since decontaminating it from head to toe. I would cry like a baby if it ends up the previous owner was not honest about the cambelt, it was well past service interval and it snaps, hence me trying to seek a way to assess the cambelt now without disturbing or opening much else up.

 

If you want to take the lower cover off, while it would do what you intend, you're looking for a whole lot more work than just doing what was said above with biting the bullet and removing the valve cover.
To remove the lower cover you'd have to remove the alternator belt, crank pulley, then the lower cover.
If you were to go that route, you have access to everything. Water pump, timing belt and whatnot. You might as well change the water pump and timing belt at that time. But you'd still have to pull the valve cover to change the belt. So like said above you can also do a valve adjustment. You'll get y our piece of mind plus the top end would be freshened up and run better. Just do a whole over tune up.

 

Thanks Hondaracing84, that clarifies it perfectly, valve cover off is the only logical way to do it.

I've also been wondering about the valve clearance, other than taking off the valve cover and checking with a feeler gauge will there be any other indications that the valves are running too tight, like noise or reduced performance in certain circumstances?

 

If valve lash is too loose, it would cause a tapping sound from the top end. I'm not sure if there would be any auditory indication of the lash is too tight. But you can loose performance if the lash is too loose. It would cause the valves to not open as much. If the lash is too tight, it could cause excessive or accelerated wear on the cam and/or rocker pad. So just use a feeler gauge to make sure that it is within factory specs and you'll be good.

 

So it's vital to check the valve clearance if the last check date is unknown because you can be wearing out the valvetrain with little indication of that happening till it's all toast?

 

Its more likely that the valve lash is loose. So it causing extra wear on the cams or rocker pads is less likely. These motors go a ton of miles without any adjustments. The worst that happens is the ticking and lost performance. I doubt you would ever have to worry about the motor being all toast due to lack of valve adjustment.
Id want to do the adjustment to get rid of the ticking and to restore some lost performance. As long as you keep up on the oil change and use good oil, the motor will last forever.

 

CRV's tend to have their valves tighten over time, never be adjusted, and end up burning a valve. It's mostly a women's car, so that's probably why

OP, you can check valve lash for peace of mind, if you wish. Adjust if they're out of tolerance. You'd be rotating the full length of the belt and you can give it a good inspection, clearance the valves at the same time, kill 2 birds with one stone, so to speak.

 

That's what I have also heard, CRV engines the valves tighten with time not loosen, my CRV has a B20Z motor.
Thanks for the help guys, I can see the valve cover off is the best solution no doubt about it.

One of the reasons I bought my CRV is the legendary reliability of the engine and ease of getting spares.

Just on another topic how reliable are the 5sp manual gearboxes from the Gen 1 CRV's, do they have any common issues?
I plan on changing the gearbox oil with Honda MTF as a precaution.

 

Honda MTF will be fine. The key to keeping a transmission working well is fluid changes...