ooh boy! that was a good 5 hours. dunno how many people are gonna change their belts themselves, but here's a few heads up(not the acual procedures).

i changed the PS/AC belt, alternator belt, water pump, and timing belt. the two smaller belts are really easy. they shouldn't be a problem at all.

when removing the engine mount(to get to the timing belt), you'll need to disconnect a power steering hard line. make sure to refill the reservoir back up. you'll hear a rhythmic grinding sound when you start the car cuz your PS fluid is low. it'll eventually go away. it scared the **** out of me cuz it's the first time i've ever heard it.

also, don't break the bottom timing belt cover. the crank sensor wire is integrated into it so if you break a certain part of it, expect to pay a bit for a new one. the actual sensor isn't part of it, just the wires.

since i had a lift at skool to use, i used one hand to hold the flywheel with a crowbar(through a little panel at the bottom of the flywheel housing held by two 10mm bolts) and the other hand with the torque wrench on the crank pulley bolt. that was pretty easy. you could probably do it on your back though. when the belt is on and the tensioner tightened up the slack, make sure you turn the crank clockwise twice(with the crank pulley bolt, no pulley) and make sure your timing marks are still aligned.

the water pump is pretty much bolt-on. there's no gasket so you have to use permatex or loctite ultra grey gasket maker. it's the equivalent to the mitsu oem stuff. let cure for an hour before putting in new coolant.

besides making sure your timing marks on your cam/crank are lined up and never turn them independently, you should be okay.

 

Damn, Sounds like a long *** process. How much did you save doing it your self?

 

i pretty much only saved in labor. if a mechanic can do it in 4 hours at maybe $80/hr (i can't remember what a mechanics rate is) so i supposed that would be $320. parts alone is close to $200. that's timing belt, alternator belt, PS belt, and water pump.

 

That total job on a 4-banger is usually in the range of $500-$700 depending on the rates for labor. In upstate NY the rates are $66 an hour. For my Civic I had the water pump and timing belt done, and it came to $340, so add the other two/three belts and it would have been up over $500.

Did you have a factory service manual to help you, or did you just fly by the seat of your pants?

 

i had a service manual and an extra set of hands at the time. i really only used it for torque specs and the pictures in case i ran into any trouble like a bolt i couldn't see. you could probably do one without a manual cuz it's pretty much the same as any other car.

 

Can you list the part numbers for all the belts. Its about time I changed mines too.

 

Water pump - MD309756
Alternator belt - MD373620
P/S belt - MD373622

Water pump gasket - Permatex Ultra Grey gasket maker 599BR

 

So is there a DIY on this yet? I just bought all my belts and the fluid and a funnel, and am getting torque wrench. What else should i need?

 

ok sis anyone change there alternator belts i need some tips

 

i thought you did this last nite?

 

lol i tried too... but ill try agen today...well uhhh we took out the parts that circled in blue... but we still cant get the alternator or whatever thats soopose to pivot....
any way heres pics what i just did last night be4 it got to dark..

 

Ryzin...what was the condition of the belts you removed? Pretty thrashed or could they go a few more miles?

 

they were all still pretty good. just changed them for good measure. no cracks or anything. teeth still looked good, just kinda shiny and worn on the outside.

 

how many miles do you have on your car rhyzin?

 

as of today, ~90.4k. changing oil later today.