Hi,

These forums have been of great help and are a wealth of knowledge. I wanted to add to that knowledge base.

1999 Honda accord EX 4cyl purchased new off the lot (made in Japan if i remember right) in 1999.
I live in Texas, with hot weather in the summer, cold weather in the winter and plenty of stop and go driving. So, the car technically falls into the severe service category.
It has never been used to tow. Car still runs great, shifts smoothly and has plenty of pep.

For the most part, my honda has had 7.5K oil changes with Walmart Supertech conventional 5W30 oil and supertech oil filter. ATF fluid changes with supertech ATF.
Replaced the coolant at 90K with supertech extended life coolant and still running on that albeit i need to get around to another replacement.
Also, did the timing belt and pump at 90k. Both timing belt and pump were aftermarket. The shop i took the car to for the service would only use their own supplier(s).
See below for power steering fluid.
Still on the original set of spark plug wires and resistance is well within honda specifications. Replaced spark plugs at 90K and 180K with OE specified NGK 2262.

Only issues have been, that the A/C evaporator got clogged twice and that cost a bit to replace both times. The first one was done at pepboys and the problem came back a couple of years later.
The second time, i went to someone better and so far its been holding for at least 4 years.

In the last 10K, i have also got the dreaded oil leak from the distributor which was fixed with an o-ring replacement, same for the valve cover gasket and PS pump high side hose o-ring.
When replacing the PS pump high pressure hose o-ring, the ps fluid in the reservoir was replaced with Prestone power steering fluid specified for Honda.

All in all, its is a great car. Just wanted to add one data point that you may not need synthetic oil, 3K oil changes or only OE fluid to get to high mileage on this vehicle.


Thanks,
Mot

 

Hey man, your car and mine sound like twins. My 2002 Accord also has 180K miles and a valve cover leak. *Which seems to have stopped on its own now.

My mother bought it new and traded it for my 2005 Civic which she then gave to my niece (who totaled it within 6 months).

I've had her for nine years now and she's a great car, I just wish she was a manual shift.

Things I have replaced:

1). Driver's side mirror (motor went out).
2). Driver's door interior door **** (chrome was peeling).
3). Installed Honda Fog lights (2010).
4). New timing belt, valve adjustment, water pump, etc.
5). Front bumper cover twice (hit dog and later hit bear).
6). Passenger side headlight (bear hit).
7). Passenger side fog light (bear hit).
8). Rack and pinion gear.

This month getting dog leg of fender cut out and replaced (rust).

Also having OEM spoiler installed.

 

Don't wait on the valve cover gasket otherwise it becomes a mess in the engine bay and on the garage floor.
You also run the risk of the oil running too low.

I think it took me all of an hour to do it myself. Its about the age for several of the gaskets and o-rings to give out.

PS - did you switch to high mileage oil ? I am curious as to why and what stopped your valve cover gasket leak.

Mot

 

I change oil and filter every 3,000 miles, which is what has been done to the car since it was new. Valvoline conventional and Purolator filters.

I check the oil level once a week, I think the leaking oil sealed itself over time but yeah, I need to fix that. *I assume dirt in the oil/burned oil at the gasket ring sealed the leak. I know that happens with water pipes and old radiators: leaks seal themselves.

At 180K, what gaskets and O-rings need to be replaced?

 

On my car, somewhere around the 160 to 180k mark, i've had to replace
a) valve cover gasket, including the spark plug tube seals and grommets. It comes as a kit.
b) Distributor o-ring and seal. I just replaced the entire distributor with an aftermarket one from ebay, since it was time for a rotor replacement anyway.
c) Power steering pump high side and low side o-rings.

Thats all i can remember right now.

Mot.

 

I bought my 1994 Accord LX 5spd with 99,000 miles on it. It has 254,000 miles now.

I used to change oil every 5k miles but recently I do every 3k since I do it myself now. I've been adding a 1/3 bottle of STP oil treatment blue bottle every oil change since I've had it, not sure if it's helped but it only consumes 1/2 quart per 3,000 miles.

I've done all oil seals recently except the main seal between the transmission and the oil pan gasket (it's been weeping slightly for 10 years but not gotten worse). They were all leaking slightly and all fairly easy to do, including the seals under the timing belt cover when I did the belt, with no prior experience working on cars.

Things that I've replaced:
- clutch, wore it out learning to drive 5 speed, been on same clutch since 110,000 miles now
- main window switch
- fuel pump relay (went out twice)
- blower motor
- front turn signal housings, plastic cracked
- cleaned EGR system, was completely clogged
- cleaned PCV valve, was clogged
- ignition module in distributor was starting to go out (tach went out)
- changed O2 sensor twice
- changed spark plug wires twice, cap and rotor once (preventative they were still OK)
- radiator (cracked, I recommend putting in a 100% aluminum one)
- upper control arms, one outer tie rod, one lower ball joint (change the boots on these when they go bad and you won't have to replace the part), did the rest of all suspension boots and re-greased joints
- inner and outer axle boots
- window seals need to be changed
- fixed some minor electrical issues, the turn signal switch had to be cleaned and re-lubed, some loose screws in the speedometer that are also electrical connections, changed some bulbs in the dash
- changed front brake pads twice, rear pads on drums once
- front bearings and rotors
- clutch and brake master cylinder
- clutch hose burst recently
- A/C refrigerant was leaking from dry o-rings, I bought a cheap gauge, added some A/C pro, and its been fine for the last 3 years
- been parked outside for at least 17 years, clear coat just starting to go in a couple spots

Not bad considering its 24 years old now with 1/4 million miles.

I'm currently working on changing out brake hoses after having a clutch hose burst. It's the 1st time I've had to ask any questions on here, everything else I've been able to figure out with search, including big jobs like the timing belt, with no experience. I also got the service manual. Thanks for all the help everyone!

 

Wow man, that seems like a lot!

A couple things I forgot to mention.

9). Front passenger wheel bearing
10). Map light assembly (left side light button broke).
11). Charcoal canister (catches fuel fumes from gasoline tank).

I have a rattle in my exhaust, the shop thinks it's the flex pipe. I think that's it along with a hole in the muffler. She sounds different all of a sudden, so I think the exhaust is leaking.

16 years of driving in the rust belt with 9 years being a daily driver and racking up about 10K miles per year, I guess it's time for a new exhausts system.

 

Good to read this - a month ago I bought a 1999 Accord EX, 5MT. It' got 169+k miles. At the moment everything works. I have a company van and my own truck, so the high miles aren't a concern. Reading some other posts like this it sounds like it's good for quite a bit more miles. I certainly expect to be investing some money into it for repairs, since it's almost 20 years old I expect some deterioration just due to age. What's very impressive though - is the way it drives for it's age/mileage. It feels more like it has about 60k miles on it.

I've had Subarus for years - they were generally reliable for me but an older one can't be expected to make 200k miles without the head gaskets being replaced. Due to the oil filter placement and slightly higher height I was always able to change the oil and filter without jacking up the car. From what I've seen with the '99 Accord that won't be the case. Somehow I did it though years ago when I had an '86 Accord.

I also agree these forums are of great help and are a wealth of knowledge.

 

The Honda head gaskets usually hold up until the engine overheats. Another reason to get rid of the ticking time bomb plastic stock radiator. I also recommend learning how to check and repair dry solder joints in the fuel pump main relay, its easy and may save you from breaking down.

 

I never heard of Hondas being prone to head gasket failures. Will keep the radiator situation in mind. Been soldering for over almost 50 years, so got that down! Will need to locate the fuel pump main relay and get familiar with the car in general.

Hopefully parts for this generation Accord aren't going to be too hard to find. Seems like there's still a decent amount of these on the road,

Thanks for the tips.

 

In mine the main relay is above the gas/brake pedal. It's also possible to run into dry solder joints in the dash, if you have any gauge issues check that first, there are also screws in there that serve as electrical connections to the gauges, they can get loose/oxidized. And if you do any coolant system work change the mechanical thermostat with a Honda OEM one. Also A good idea to replace the radiator cap as these have a valve that can fail and cause issues.

 

Will add this post to my notes, thanks. When you change the oil do you use ramps or jacks?

 

I use a jack and stands but a ramp would be faster. I only use the Honda A01 model filters still available online.

Oh and if you replace the radiator cap don't buy a Honda OEM from Amazon, I got a counterfeit from there. I ended up getting a Futaba, a Japanese company.

 

A couple other notes, these cars can be picky about ignition components and O2 sensors. I only use OEM, on my car Denso plugs, part # from the sticker on the underside of the hood. Some Honda's don't like platinum plugs. I also had an issue with a Bosch O2 sensor and switched to Denso. OEM spark wires on mine are NGK.

Also bought an Airtex ignition control module that went bad after a week. Replaced with a Standard Motor brand and its still running.

 

Stelcom66,

I envy you! I so wish my Accord was a manual. In fact I plan to find a 1998 to 2002 Accord manual and buy it, perhaps selling mine then or keeping them both.

The local Honda shop told me that "as long as it's a quality filter and the oil is 5W-20, it's fine for the car." So far (80K miles or more) that seems true.

My father made his own oil change ramps from 2x12 boards, those are very sturdy since the stamped metal ones can fail. It's a bit of a pain to get those out as weight is an issue but well, STURDY. At some point I want to buy a pneumatic lift, one of the small ones, not floor-mounted as my garage doesn't have the ceiling height.