Roughly how much should it cost?
This will give you a price range for your zip code:
Remember that the water pump is also typically replaced at the same time as the timing belt.
Depends where you are, as labor rates at independent “corner garage” shops can range from $70-$120/hr. But for me, “bare-bones” t-belt replacement about $300. “Complete” with new timing belt tensioner, water pump, coolant, valve cover gasket, replacement of oil seals and all other belts, $550-$600.
$600 assumes the belt has not broken while the engine is running…
$600 would be a pretty good price for a complete job. It’s expensive because it’s time consuming to do this bit of preventive maintenance. Multiply that by four if the belt failed while the engine was running. Hondas pretty much always trash their valves when the timing belt fails, leading to lots of expensive engine repairs or replacements, which is why it’s important to do this on a regular basis if you want the car to last.
Or if you have tools and are mechanically inclined you could buy a repair manual and do timing belt, tensioner, and water pump all for probably under $100. If you take this route don’t make an error when aligning the timing marks or you’re likely to do hundreds or thousands of dollars damage to your engine. In the last year I’ve done timing belt/water pump on two of my cars for about $75. each.
Timing belt about $30. Associated parts and labor $600-$800
Along with a timing belt you should get new coolant, a new serpentine belt, a water pump, and a belt tensioner. The whole job is $550-700 and depends on your location. NYC, Long Island, San Francisco will he on the higher side. Rural PA is about $580, what I paid for the job on an '03 Civic.