There is already a retainer plate that keeps one of the seals from popping out installed. Does that mean the timing belt has recently been changed? I'm not sure because I bought the car with 87,000 miles on it and have no idea if it has or hasn't ever been changed. Thanks

 

no, just means that the car could have been taken in by the previous owner and had the recall work done. They don't have to have the timing belt replaced at the same time. It would be in your best interest to replace the timing belt anyway.

when I did mine around 80-85K the retainer was there but I did it anyway even though the belt still looked good. You never can tell what might happen, so I played it safe.

 

oh ok- i just wanted to make sure because the belt looks new (I know the belt could be old and still look new) Thanks

 

no problem

 

Touring Accord is exactly right. If the retainer is there, all that means is that someone had the recall done on the car. Maybe they did have the belts replaced while they were in there, but I wouldn't bet on it. The hard part is already done, throw the new belts on and go.

 

I'm just mainly worried about the little things like inserting the extension/drill bit and turning the sprocket 3 times until the extension goes al the way in. And others like that. Any suggestions/help?

 

u talkin to lock the balance shaft or what?...i got lost on the extension thing

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Schmitey &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">u talkin to lock the balance shaft or what?...i got lost on the extension thing</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yeah, I think thats what he's talking about. I got a little lost but I'm sure thats what he means.

If you have a Helms, just follow the steps exactly how they tell you to and you will do just fine. for the Helms manual.

 

the retainer is designed that one can insert the retainer plate without fully taking off the timing belt cover. It saves Honda some $$ on labor cost on taking out the timing belt cover and insert the retainer. It is an awkward looking plate and would have the notch to fit over the cover ridge and the cover would not seal well with the retainer being in the way - it would show small gap/space. No harm here but it does not look right If you decide to replace timing belt, I would suggest you to get another retainer that you can bolt it on inside the cover without having it interfering the cover. The other retainer can be obtained at a honda dealer for $5 or so. It would have two holes on top where you can fasten it onto water pump/oil pump housing.

 

I know the retainer your talking about, I've seen one picture of it installed. Other than that I have never seen one. When I did my timing belt about a year ago I had bought the retainer new from Honda before starting, later to find that the retainer was already installed. Both the retainer I bought new from Honda and the one that was one the car were the ones that are molded over the ridge for the cover. Mine seal just fine. I didn't replace the retainer that was there, I just left it and kep the one I bought incase something happened to the one on there. I can't remember what the exact price was from Honda but it wasn't more than $5. I guess maybe different Honda dealers carry different retainers. But like said above, either one will work fine.

 

You're saying there's another retainer? The one I got I believe just has two screws holding it around the balance shaft (96 EX) and I can't see it possibly interfering with the cover. Did I lose you there or is there a better one out there? Also is the front main at risk of this as well, that sucker was pretty tightly packed in there?

 

Yea I bought the retainer plate from some store with a 1-800 number. I then realized that I too already have one on there, so I wasted about $10. Oh well.

 

umm...there was only one recall for the balancer shaft seal that I knew of. Heres a picture of the one that I have.

It sounds like you have the other one that is bolted down just above the shaft and doesn't go near the cover seal. I can't find a picture of this one though.

Here's a link, go about 2/3 of the way down and you'll see some more links to recall notices. Select the one that pertains to your year and see the recalls and service bulletins.


Modified by TouringAccord at 11:23 AM 7/8/2004

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by omeara7 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Yea I bought the retainer plate from some store with a 1-800 number. I then realized that I too already have one on there, so I wasted about $10. Oh well.</TD></TR></TABLE>

wow, I want to say I got mine for $2-3 from Honda. I would have to find the receipt to find out for sure.