Hello guys!
im looking at buying a 1978 Honda Civic 1200 in clean original condition with 80,000 miles on it. Needs a general refurbish, but runs great and everything works. Still has original books and sales paperwork.
I understand these have a timing belt and possibly an interference engine?
should the timing belt and tensioner be changed right away? And how big of a job is it? How often should it be changed in these engines?
Any help or info on these cars is greatly appreciated!
thank you!


tim

Welcome to the forum!
I bet this info is in the owners manual
Also, if you know nothing about the service history of the car, just assume it needs replaced right now.

Yes, and you should treat it as an interference engine.
Tensioner is just a simple pulley, inspect and decide if it needs replaced.

Note that many parts are no longer available through Honda.

Difficulty is relative.