I'd like to think I'm pretty mechanically inclined. I'm 43 and I have been wrenching on cars my whole life. It took me 8 1/2 hrs total the first time I did it, with BASIC hand tools in my driveway. This time it took me 2 1/2 hrs Saturday to tear it back down, but now I have a compressor and air ratchet (sure takes the monotony out of long winded metric bolts), and about the same last night to put it back together, but I didn't have to continue onto the timing chain cover. There are a lot of wires and such you have to move, then pull the solenoids out, and swing the alternator down before you can unbolt it. Thinking back, that would eat the crap out of another 3 hours, so yeah, about 8.5 hrs if you stay at it. There's just a lot of crap in the way that you have to relocate just to get there. Now, from what I've read, you *can* do the timing cover without removing the valve cover, but I would think you would be risking the valve cover gasket leaking if you did it that way, but that's just my opinion. You will also want to change any o-ring/seal you bother along the way.

TL;DR - 8.5 hrs in the driveway with basic hand tools