Originally posted by CityofAngels:
The factory revised the spec to 90k and the belt looked fine after 92k and 10 years when I replaced mine.
Mark Basch has worked on more NSXs than any other tech in the country. According to him, you cannot tell from looking at a timing belt whether it's going to last a lot longer or not. The internal construction (I think he may have mentioned fiberglass belting inside the belt) can be deteriorating with no indication in the outside appearance.
Originally posted by CityofAngels:
The 6 year spec is only for harsh environments.
Not true. The six years is specified by Honda and is applicable for
all '91-96 NSXs, regardless of what environment they are used in. (The spec was increased to seven years for '97 and later NSXs.)
If you are using the NSX in "harsh environments", then you ought to consider performing scheduled maintenance
more frequently than Honda's recommendations.
Don't believe me? You don't have to. All you need to do is
LOOK IN YOUR OWNER'S MANUAL and see the advice given by the company that designed and built your car. See if your owner's manual says that you only need to follow those recommendations if you live in "harsh environments".
(It doesn't.) See if your owner's manual tells you to service your car
more frequently than their recommendations if you drive your car in "severe driving conditions". (It does.) See for yourself what Honda recommends, and then decide whose advice you want to follow.
Originally posted by CityofAngels:
Take a peek at the belt as I did with mine and note the condition of the belt. Any cracks, no matter how small, are grounds to replace the belt.
If your timing belt has even small cracks, it should have been replaced long ago. Again, as Mark Basch notes, you cannot tell the condition of a belt or how long it is going to last from looking at it.
Ask your mechanic how often he sees customers facing expensive repairs who could have avoided them simply by following the maintenance schedule in the owner's manual.
If you have an eleven-year-old timing belt, it is five years
past the time when its replacement is recommended by the manufacturer of the car. You can replace it now for $1000 to $1500, or risk letting it destroy your $18,000 engine in order to save a thousand bucks or so. Your choice.
[This message has been edited by nsxtasy (edited 26 January 2003).]