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If it goes wrong, its not the fault of the customer, nor can they transfer their responsibility if they are incompetent. Take it away from them. Unless of course they have already fouled up. A search of Google gives the issue some air, and as the previous poster has commented, there is a known way to do the job without blaming the victim!
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Regardless of the book view on this.
These Honda engine bolts can be absoloute nightmares, and I do know of 1 case where the bolt was broken in attempted removal.
Serious heat on the bolt is sometimes needed (and I mean serious) and powerful impact gun with it.
If it came to me and wouldnt undo under reasonable force i too would advise customer and say "if you want it to be my responsibility then i have to decline the job".
From experience they can cause serious problems !
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If it goes wrong its not the fault of the customer nor can they transfer their responsibility if they are incompetent. Take it away from them. Unless of course they have already fouled up. A search of Google gives the issue some air and as the previous poster has commented there is a known way to do the job without blaming the victim!
The guy at the garage did advice me that if I give him the go ahead then it would be my responsibility. They specialise in vans and I think they did have "air guns". From their experience the bolt can break and he did not want to take up the responsibility. So I did not want to go ahead and decided to sleep on this issue and not drive my car for the time being (I don't want to put me and other drivers in any unknown risk).
He did suggest that heat could be an option although this could cause damage to other parts made of rubber in the engine- things I am unfamiliar with, which could cause things like engine oil leak. So that was out the window.
I have tried to contact the independent garages in the service book and it seems that they don't really deal with cambelt in a full service unless otherwise asked to. But surely they should open up and check that the belt is in good condition right? Or advice my friend back then about the need to change the cambelt after a certain time or mileage. Unfortunately I don't have much to go on in terms of receipt left by my friend (who can't remember much about the car history as he does not really have a good car sense). But I do hope to get something on Monday when the garage receptionist is back from holiday to access the history on the computer.
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Honda have a special tool which is a "Z" shaped bar that locks the crankshaft pulley against the chassis and allows the centre bolt to be undone.hth
Can I assume this "Z" shaped bar protects the surrounding just in case things slip up?
I presume an independent garage may not have this tool.
Maybe its worth taking it to a Honda dealer and ask them to loosen the bolt and then take it elsewhere to do the belt change (just to avoid a great bill)? My only worry is that they probably don't want to have anything to do with me.
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Take the car straight out of the garage and find a competent one never heard such tosh for a long time.
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hi
honda dealers have a fixed price repair scheme.
don't know what the garage you have been dealing with quoted but honda say £200, fixed.
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"Take the car straight out of the garage and find a competent one never heard such tosh for a long time."
Not done many honda timing belts then ?
"honda dealers have a fixed price repair scheme.
don't know what the garage you have been dealing with quoted but honda say £200, fixed."
Sounds remarkably cheap ( 2.5 hours) + parts. But if they do it for that then it sounds a good idea. See what they make of the bolt ?
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I concluded that I needed a cambelt change for sure so I didn't need to wait till Monday. But I took the car to a different garage which was recommended by a friend who has been using them for 20 years. I explained my situation and when they did it they found no problem with it what so ever. In fact it was cheaper than the first garage that I tried! I even get to take the cambelt and tensioner back with me as a gesture that I have gotten over my first car stress (new driver here). The cost was £194. I also checked over the phone with a Honda garage and they said that they don't usually have a problem with the bolt. And they quoted me the price of £200 (parts and VAT inclusive) to change the cambelt. So lesson learnt: Call the Dealer first then independent garage.
Thanks everyone for the contribution! I shall go and learn how to service my car now!
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