Rep Power: 0

Hi all -

Own 2003 Civic Coupe. Purchased new. Now 49,670 miles. (owned by retiree, reason for low mileage). Driven regularly, live in Florida. Excellent condition, both mechanical and cosmetic. Perfect maintenance per manual, have all records. All maintenance is done per time, not miles, at the dealership. Timing belt, water pump replaced at 7 years. It is now time for the second timing belt, water pump replacement.

Question: Would you recommend this car have tensioner, pulleys replaced in addition to timing belt and water pump as this car is now 14 years old? I don't anticipate driving it more than I have been, about 3500 miles per year. Ideally, I'd like to get another 4-5 years out of this car, if that is possible, without major issues.

Thanks for any help you can give this lady retiree who knows little about cars, but appreciates the knowledge that others have.

 
Rep Power: 517

Timing belt, sure, it's made of rubber and rubber slowly deteriorates with mileage and time (and thermal cycling).

I would include the two accessory belts in the job since they have to be removed anyway. Time is again a factor on wear of the rubber.

Tensioner pulley/spring kit, no.....I figure those are good for 150k-200k and you indicate you won't be anywhere near that mileage before the next service interval at this rate.
Time is not a factor on wear of this part IMO.
If you still own the car at the next timing belt service interval and it concerns you, you could replace it at that time if you plan to keep the car even longer.

Water pump, not expected to be an issue since it probably only has about 20k miles on it, but inspect first for evidence of leakage (probably OK as is, so I would skip it if it's not showing any evidence of leakage).

Antifreeze replacement, yes, to help keep the current water pump in good condition. Time is a factor on antifreeze as well, the jugs of genuine Honda Type2 coolant says service it every 5 years.



Have your dealership make sure the car is up to date on its recalls!



HTH

 
Rep Power: 0

Thanks so much for the info!

You've saved me some money by not having to replace the tensioner/pulley; this is an expensive enough job as it is!

At first I couldn't understand what you meant by "antifreeze" replacement as I live in Florida. Oh, then I realized that the Honda manual refers to it as "coolant." Okay, yes, of course.

The recalls - I was among the first batch of Honda owners in my area to get the replacement airbags. I was on the phone with the dealership the moment the news came out about the recall of the airbags. Took awhile to get them; apparently there was a shortage.

Thanks again!

 
Rep Power: 517

Ah I see. The words 'coolant' and 'antifreeze' (and sometimes 'water') are used interchangeably by most of the people in the repair trade when discussing the engine cooling system, radiator, and related parts.

It refers to (typically) Ethylene Glycol (or a derivative of such) mixed with water, which serves to not only lower the freeze point well below that of plain water, but raise the boiling point higher than that of plain water as well.

Plus it contains corrosion inhibitors to protect the various metals in the engine cooling system, lubricant for the water pump, and seal conditioners for the rubber gaskets. These important additives become depleted over time.



Don't confuse those terms with 'refrigerant', 'freon', 'R134a', and similar, these refer to the stuff that goes into the air conditioner.
There have been many revisions to those recalls since they first came out. Some cars have received multiple replacements of the same units.
Make sure your car is up to date.