Ah maaaan. I just got a quote for the 60,000 mile service on my 1999 Honda Civic, and Dizamn. $435. I wasn't expecting it to be that much... so much for my tech budget for the summer.

So... does that seem like an average price to ya'll? Any recommendations for shops in Marin (SF, Bay Area) would be greatly appreciated as well.

For a price like that, I'd expect them to be changing the timing belt.

Only thing is, I thought that Hondas didn't need their timing belt changed until 90k.

they don't. Which is why i was surprised. They ran down the list of services and it included way more than just a checkup. They change almost all the fluids and do timing checks, new gaskets all over the place. I should have written it all down. It was quite the list. So i guess the question is... is all of that needed? I know the Si's don't need a lot of stuff changed over that the other models do at the same mileage. Spark plugs for example. I have the Helm Shop manual at home, i'll have to give it a good once over tonight. I'm so not in the mood to call 10 shops and get a cheap price only to end up with shitty service. Argh.

Mine have been pretty high, too recently. Last one (22500) was $300-something. Like a couple hundred to change an air filter.

OH man... you just reminded me i didn't tell them i have all modded up intake stuff. Crap... they'll probably charge me more for all that.

Get a list of the things they check/replace/adjust then take that to an independant shop. I think you'll find you can save some coin.

-Zeke

A couple hundred to change an air filter? please tell me your kidding. buy a K&N and do it yourself. That save you a lot of money

Are you not capable of doing everything yourself? Its not that hard. Umm you shouldnt have to pay more for the modded intake since it should have a reuseable filter just clean it.

Hehe, kidding

I'm totally capable of doing it myself... well mostly. I probably don't have a few needed tools... but that's not the problem. What i don't have is 1. the time to do it, 2. the place to do it. Living in downtown SF has it's disadvantages when it comes to cars. That and i'll be out of town for the next two weekends, the only time i could possibly do any car work, pretty much eliminates me being able to do the work myself.

That's exactly why one of my goals in life right now is just to own a garage.

and you're right about the intake... it just needs to be cleaned, but i was thinking more along the lines of them charging more for the labor for a non-standard part... 'specially since you have to take the freakin' bumper off to reach the thing =].

this is an indy shop, i refuse to go to the dealerships. To many nightmare stories from friends.

Well in that case I'd get a competetive quote because that's a lot of cash. At lease independants are responsive if you're getting a lower price down the road.
Otherwise you could probably just ignore the service interval for a few 1000 miles. Just keep changing the oil & the tranny fluids every so often until your cash situation improves.
-Zeke

I had my '95 accord in a few months ago for my 60,000 tune-up. it was 10,000 miles overdue so you can go awhile before you need to take it in. In the end it ran me $429, so your figure seems right.

remember that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure

$435 is about what I paid for my 60k on my Corolla at the dealership last summer - but that did include a full set of belts. Which are good till I hit 120k next summer.

Sometimes living in "lotech" Indiana has its advantages....never a shortage of garage space!

That does sound about right to me. The 90,000 is even higher since they do the timing chain then. I used to have a Honda Accord before a [ahem] friend [/ahem] totaled it. I took it once to a non-dealer to have the brakes replaced and they grinded and squealed until I went to the dealership and had them replaced again. The only problem I had with it was I killed the tranny and had it replaced about a year before the car was smashed. I tend to be hard on tranny's, the Honda wasn't the only one I had to replace it on. The Nova has a heavier racing tranny that will hold up to my driving.

I wonder when the tranny in my van will go.

Yeah, i'm waiting for my clutch to give out any day... driving in SF a LOT, having to spin it up the hills has got to be harsh on my transmission.

hey loren, my dads in the car biz. let me ask him, he can probably get a better price for you.

he just called a friend, hes gunna get back to him, but he said most of the stuff they do on the 60k mile is pretty much a joke, he said u can call him, and he will walk u thru all the stuff u really need or get a deal on it for you.

cool beans PM me the number and info... i still owe you a ranch lunch! Thanks a ton guys.

o i remember the ranch lunch ill drop my resume off while im there too