Three weeks ago, I took my excellent 1999 Acura with 108,000 miles to the dealer for a new timing belt. According to the owner’s manual, the timing belt should be replaced at 105,000 miles. Cost was $700+.
Two days ago, I experienced my first problems with this car: The TCS light was on; the ABS was on; and there was no air conditioning.
Back to the dealership. They tell me the ABS light signaled that the right rear wheel sensor shorted out AND, coincidentally, the AC fan motor seized.
Cost $600 to fix both.
The dealership told me that these 2 problems are unrelated and it is a coincidence that both occurred simultaneously! I am suspicious about such a coincidence.
Did the dealership fail to locate the cause of both problems?
Did the dealership rig my car to produce these problems so that I would be back with my credit card in hand?
UNRELATED.
You have a 10 year old vehicle and anything can go wrong at any time. $700 is actually pretty reasonable for a timing belt change on a Honda or Acura(glorified Honda) V6.
Coincidence. Nothing more. Neither the rear wheel speed sensor nor the HVAC blower motor are anywhere near where they were working when they replaced the timing belt, and they are not close to each other.
The car is ten years old. Things wear out.
You don’t have to go to an Acura dealer for maintenance and repair. There are lots of independent mechanics who specialize in Honda/Acura vehicles, and they are almost universally less expensive than the dealer.
My '97 Acura CL has only been to the dealer once, and that was for a recall. I take it to an independent mechanic any time it needs something I can’t, or don’t want to, do myself. I’ve never had any significant problems with the car.
You’re paying top dollar to visit the dealer, although $700 is reasonable for a timing belt on a TL. Did the price include a water pump?
Probably a coincidence…HOWEVER…
Same type of thing happened to my In-Laws. Took car in for some routine maintenance…After they noticed that the gas gauge wasn’t working (not sure when it stopped working…he know it was working before he took in because he had to fill up the day before.). I was around at the time so I took a look at it…SOMEONE CUT the wire under the hood. Only people who ever had that hood open were the dealer and my father-in-law.
Not the end of the world, In the future walk out of the dealer and get a 2nd opinion from a good mom & pop mechanic type place. No need to be taking this thing to the dealer. It probably would have cost much less than $600 elsewhere.