Rep Power: 0

Hello!

I have a great little 97 Honda Civic DX. It needs some maintenance repairs, the main one being that I have an oil leak. I have been given several opinions by different mechanics and don't know who to believe. One told me I have a front main seal leak and when fixing that I should also replace the Timing Belt, etc. Another opinion is that main seals don't leak in Hondas and that the leak is in the Timing Belt unit and that I should also replace the water pump, all that for about $700 +. I am also told that I have to replace the whole Timing Belt kit and cannot replace just the belt and tensioners. How do I know what is right? Any suggestions out there, please?

 
Rep Power: 517

Find someone you can trust and stick with that person.
Um, it's not that guy.
EDIT: Unless the person is not the one working on the car. The person on the phone may have no technical knowledge at all, so if you want a tech explanation you need to hear it from the tech.
Many "first" timing belt jobs are ONLY a belt set, maybe a water pump at the same time.......depending on who is doing the work, some may do all the seals on every interval.
IMO most of those I saw weren't leaking at the first interval of 60k or 90k but it's anyones guess if it would be leaking before the next interval, so it may be done as cheap insurance.

"Second" timing belt interval may get more parts, like the front seal set and tensioner pulley plus everything done on the first interval job.

You can do a job however you want, but it may not be prudent to do it one piece at a time on a labor intensive job on a car with a bunch of miles on it.
Honda doesn't sell a "kit", they sell individual pieces.
Get whatever is needed or cover all the bases on the first try.
Maybe that person is pricing a "kit" from a parts store or something I'm not familiar with.
If there is a leak from the timing cover area, the covers need to be removed to inspect further. It's real hard to pinpoint anything without disassembly....


On the other hand, it's also customary to estimate an oil leak in the area as a timing belt job WITH replacement of the common leak items--the front seal set: Front cam seal and front crank seal (may also be called oil pump seal, not to be confused with other oil pump gaskets), along with the customary water pump and coolant, and maybe the adjuster pulley for the timing belt depending on mileage and condition, and a valve cover gasket..

Or it could be an oil pan needing resealed instead?

Damn, I don't know if that explained anything or not.

 
Rep Power: 210

OP: you are leaving out some pertinent information.
1) Current mileage on odometer?
2) Service record history?
3) Your length of ownership?
4) Automatic or manual transmission?

Timing belt, waterpump, tensioner, accesory belts (ALT, PS, A/C) are to be done roughly every 75k to 100k miles depending on which part of the country (climate) you live in and as Ezone stated depending wether it's the first time the belt is changed. The tensioner can be used again per FSM if there's no issues with it. Most people usually change TB's around 75k miles to avoid the TB from snapping (interference engine) and possibly causing bent valves. Do you have any service records that show a Timing Belt replacement? If, you do the reciept should list the mileage at which it was done. It's possible the previous owner changed the TB himself and if that's the case you might want to contact him (if possible) to find out at what mileage it was done.

One way to "try" and pin-point leaks is to clean as much grease and grime off the engine and transmission from top to bottom. After it's cleaned put a piece of cardboard under the engine that spans from tire to tire. While in park or Neutral run the engine for 15 minutes revving it a few times between idle. Turn engine off and wait for 15 minutes then check the cardboard for oil drops. Also, inspect the engine from top to bottom for any oil and transmission leaks. Post pictures here of any oil leaks you find on the engine and drops on cardboard (if any).