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Jim Grant's Tech Tips
84
Honda Accord, Timing Belt Failure
Q: I have a friend that lost his timing
belt. I know that’s really bad for a Honda. I did a compression check
and it came out as follows, 125, 115, 110, 75. The only thing that makes
me wonder is that the car will not start at all and he has gone through
2 distributors because as soon as he cranks it over, it instantly jams
up and you cant turn it. Any help would be appreciated. He wants to junk
it but I’m just not sure that there isn’t another problem.....Lisa (not
a stupid girl)
A: The
engine cranks over fine without a distributor, but jams up with the distributor
installed? If so then there are other problems to be addressed. But, the
timing belt did fail correct? It’s a rare event when a Honda engine does
not receive internal damage when a timing belt fails. Before spending
too much time or money on a vehicle this old I would recommend confirming
internal engine damage. The compression test you performed shows that
cylinder pressure is down and the last cylinder tested is too low. But
the compression test is not a valid test if the damaged timing belt hasn’t
been replaced. I would recommend a leak down test to confirm valve damage
or a close inspection of the valve stem clearance. A high amount of clearance
is a good indicator that the valves are bent and cannot close correctly.
Lisa, stop by the shop, there might be a job for you.
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