Is there a reputable shop I might be able to get a deal on some repairs from?

[Delicieuxz]

My 1999 Civic has been under a tarp for a long time, needing some maintenance work. I planned to do most of it myself, but have been unable to.

I wanted to do it for the fun and experience of it, and also because I'm on disability income assistance and would have a hard time finding a way to afford it. But it's clear to me that I'm not going to be able to handle the work myself, for the same reason why I'm on disability.

I don't think I'm entitled to any big freebie, but my situation is such I want to ask if someone would offer a discount. I'm in the Tri-Cities but could get the car where it's needed.


The main job that needs doing is this:

- timing belt, water pump, tensioner pulley, alternator belt
- replace all of the rubber seals within the engine except the rear main seal

Those were the things I was planning to do myself, and I've bought all the parts for the job. They've been sitting in a bag for 2 years while I hoped to be able to do the work.



There are some other things that need addressing, which could be done now or at another time, but probably are important to have taken care of before I start driving the car again:


- the passenger-side door doesn't lock when I use the remote button for the locks. The passenger-side door locks make a sound when the button is pressed, but don't end up locking, for whatever reason. I've removed the door panel and looked at it. When the lock is set to locked, it unlocks properly with the remote every time. But when it's already unlocked and I try to lock it with the remote, the metal lock bars sometimes nudge a bit, but they don't switch to the lock position (or they do, but only like 1 out of 20 tries or so).

Here's an example video:

YouTube (Short URL)

- there's a leak somewhere in the rear driver-side quarterpanel area. I've narrowed-down the area that water is getting in from, and I've detailed the issue here, with some videos showing the area water comes in from and the seam it's coming through in the trunk:

https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-...ction-3356901/

I don't want the interior trunk seam to be sealed, as that would let water keep coming in from the outside and sitting between panels, leading to rust. I want to stop the water from entering into the panels from the outside.


- multiple times, the spoiler has become loose enough that water starts seeping into the trunk through the spoiler bolt holes. And the rubber seals between the spoiler and the trunk are very worn. I wonder if they can be replaced to make a tighter seal.

[68style]

Door lock just seems like a weak motor.

This gen and the gen after Civics... honestly I've never seen one that doesn't leak nowadays... they're horrible... so is every Honda/Acura product of that era as far as I can tell. Good luck with that, people usually start with unclogging drain tubes and replacing tail-light seals, but seems like you've got a bad weld on yours.

Maintenance for the motor, timing belt job on a Civic of that era shouldn't be that much in labour it's pretty easy. I know a place in Richmond that the guy works for pretty cheap... I don't use him for complicated jobs, but he's very competent and good for stuff like this. He's behind Home Depot, if you want his contact let me know.

I will hasten to say that if you're trying to make it perfect, it's a diminishing return... I don't know the general state of your vehicle or mileage, but you're very much coming up on the "is it worth it?" point price-wise with all this maintenance... I think these cars are at the point that you just drive it into the ground and don't bother with a lot of it unless you're super OCD or the car means something special to you somehow.

[fliptuner]

Originally Posted by 68style

I will hasten to say that if you're trying to make it perfect, it's a diminishing return... I don't know the general state of your vehicle or mileage, but you're very much coming up on the "is it worth it?" point price-wise with all this maintenance... I think these cars are at the point that you just drive it into the ground and don't bother with a lot of it unless you're super OCD or the car means something special to you somehow.

When you consider the average cost to maintain a car is about $1400/yr, maintenance on an old Civic is pretty damn cheap lol. Granted, no bells and whistles but also cheap insurance, parts and labour.

[fliptuner]

https://www.revscene.net/forums/7129...-anything.html

Damn dude. It's been 4 years. Lol.

I'd do the oil and coolant while I'm at it.

[Delicieuxz]

Originally Posted by 68style

Door lock just seems like a weak motor.

This gen and the gen after Civics... honestly I've never seen one that doesn't leak nowadays... they're horrible... so is every Honda/Acura product of that era as far as I can tell. Good luck with that, people usually start with unclogging drain tubes and replacing tail-light seals, but seems like you've got a bad weld on yours.

Yeah, a bad / broken weld is what I've had suggested.

I think that every seal in the trunk has leaked previously, and I've replaced them all, but not the tail lights, which haven't leaked on me yet.

I've fixed so many leaks on my car that I think I should make a guide on what to look for. Some places that leaked are:

trunk vent
gas cover release cable seal
trunk weatherstrip
sunroof drain valves
bumper cover clips
the seams in the sunroof run channel and around the trunk's drain channel needed sealing

Maintenance for the motor, timing belt job on a Civic of that era shouldn't be that much in labour it's pretty easy. I know a place in Richmond that the guy works for pretty cheap... I don't use him for complicated jobs, but he's very competent and good for stuff like this. He's behind Home Depot, if you want his contact let me know.

Thanks, 68style. Someone I know from way back and who has worked in their dad's auto shop for years has offered to do the work for me. Hopefully, it's taken care of now. But if it comes to it, I'll ask you about it.

I will hasten to say that if you're trying to make it perfect, it's a diminishing return... I don't know the general state of your vehicle or mileage, but you're very much coming up on the "is it worth it?" point price-wise with all this maintenance... I think these cars are at the point that you just drive it into the ground and don't bother with a lot of it unless you're super OCD or the car means something special to you somehow.

Not perfect, but set to be road-worthy and worry-free for years to come. Judging from the post fliptuner found, the timing belt is at 14 years now (but only 68,000 KMs), and the car itself has low KMs. I hope it will run for at least another 5 years without issue. It's still a solid car that doesn't cost much to insure or drive, and that's fun to drive, and that I can do a lot of the basic work on (but obviously not this stuff).

Originally Posted by fliptuner

https://www.revscene.net/forums/7129...-anything.html

Damn dude. It's been 4 years. Lol.

I'd do the oil and coolant while I'm at it.

Haha. But it's just the more involved stuff I haven't got done... if not counting replacing the power steering and clutch fluid, which are definitely long overdue. From that old list you found, I actually did the vtec solenoid and rebuilt the distributor (which, in hindsight, was kinda silly - it woulda been about the same cost and better to buy a new one, and the rebuilt one will still go a lot sooner than a new one would). I though it'd been only a couple of years since I planned to do the rest of the work myself. I guess it's been longer.

I think I'll get a new timing belt rather than use one that's been sitting around here for 4 years, and who knows how long before that. This should be the last timing belt change this car has. Might as well make sure it'll be good for as long as possible.

[SumAznGuy]

Originally Posted by Delicieuxz

Yeah, a bad / broken weld is what I've had suggested.

I think that every seal in the trunk has leaked previously, and I've replaced them all, but not the tail lights, which haven't leaked on me yet.

I've fixed so many leaks on my car that I think I should make a guide on what to look for. Some places that leaked are:

trunk vent
gas cover release cable seal
trunk weatherstrip
sunroof drain valves
bumper cover clips
the seams in the sunroof run channel and around the trunk's drain channel needed sealing




Thanks, 68style. Someone I know from way back and who has worked in their dad's auto shop for years has offered to do the work for me. Hopefully, it's taken care of now. But if it comes to it, I'll ask you about it.




Not perfect, but set to be road-worthy and worry-free for years to come. Judging from the post fliptuner found, the timing belt is at 14 years now (but only 68,000 KMs), and the car itself has low KMs. I hope it will run for at least another 5 years without issue. It's still a solid car that doesn't cost much to insure or drive, and that's fun to drive, and that I can do a lot of the basic work on (but obviously not this stuff).




Haha. But it's just the more involved stuff I haven't got done... if not counting replacing the power steering and clutch fluid, which are definitely long overdue. From that old list you found, I actually did the vtec solenoid and rebuilt the distributor (which, in hindsight, was kinda silly - it woulda been about the same cost and better to buy a new one, and the rebuilt one will still go a lot sooner than a new one would). I though it'd been only a couple of years since I planned to do the rest of the work myself. I guess it's been longer.

I think I'll get a new timing belt rather than use one that's been sitting around here for 4 years, and who knows how long before that. This should be the last timing belt change this car has. Might as well make sure it'll be good for as long as possible.

I think OEM distributors are discontinued. Not positive but I know ITR ones are.

Wait a sec, your car is a red SIR?
Is it Cdn spec or imported from the US?

[Delicieuxz]

Originally Posted by SumAznGuy

I think OEM distributors are discontinued. Not positive but I know ITR ones are.

Wait a sec, your car is a red SIR?
Is it Cdn spec or imported from the US?

The timing belt I have is by Continental. It's had a Gator belt in it for the past 14 years (the last 2 of which it hasn't been driven).

Edit: Oh, the distributor. Yeah. They've been gone for a long time, I think. But there are lots of aftermarket ones available.


It's the Canadian SiR with ABS, a larger windshield washer fluid tank, and heated side mirrors. The stuff Canadian dreams are made of.

I got it in 2007 with 98k on it. I think it's at 168k now. It's had some bangs along the way, was stolen once, almost twice (but I chased the would-be second thief off with a knife), but it's holding together and has mostly shown no real issues other than the ones I caused it and fixed or had fixed over time.

[fliptuner]

168k EM1. If it's got good bodywork, worth hanging on to.