Don't Skimp on Timing Belt Job

[Dagwood]

Tosh,
I would have taken it back to the orignal mechanic that did the work, but I have since switched companies and he is 30 miles away. They were very good with GM vehicles and general fleet vehicles. They just don't see alot of Toyotas. I should have stayed with the local mechanic that has served us well over the years. I might take it up with them and describe what happened, but I doubt it will do much good at this point. That was 6 months and 11,000 miles ago. I am just happy to have it repaired properly.

 

[kd5byb]

I heartily agree not to skimp on a timing belt job. So much of a timing belt job is labor, so the cost savings in going with el-cheapo parts is pretty small. Even if you do it yourself, name brand parts aren't that much more than the el-cheapo parts.

Recently I did my wife's Lancer. Got a new belt, new water pump (got to remove timing belt to get at the pump, so why not), and new tensioner. I bought a Dayco belt and tensioner and was pleased with the quality. The water pump was a Japanese brand that I don't recall. In every way it was equal to the OEM. Might even have been the same manufactured as the OEM Mitsu pump as I couldn't tell any differences in the construction method.

All the old parts, including the timing belt, were in great shape, especially since I was about 10k miles late in getting to it. Tiny bit of corrosion on the water pump.

later,
b

 

[The Critic]

Originally Posted By: kd5byb
I heartily agree not to skimp on a timing belt job. So much of a timing belt job is labor, so the cost savings in going with el-cheapo parts is pretty small. Even if you do it yourself, name brand parts aren't that much more than the el-cheapo parts.

Recently I did my wife's Lancer. Got a new belt, new water pump (got to remove timing belt to get at the pump, so why not), and new tensioner. I bought a Dayco belt and tensioner and was pleased with the quality. The water pump was a Japanese brand that I don't recall. In every way it was equal to the OEM. Might even have been the same manufactured as the OEM Mitsu pump as I couldn't tell any differences in the construction method.

All the old parts, including the timing belt, were in great shape, especially since I was about 10k miles late in getting to it. Tiny bit of corrosion on the water pump.

later,
b

You didn't replace the drive belts?

 

[Steve S]

Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: kd5byb
I heartily agree not to skimp on a timing belt job. So much of a timing belt job is labor, so the cost savings in going with el-cheapo parts is pretty small. Even if you do it yourself, name brand parts aren't that much more than the el-cheapo parts.

Recently I did my wife's Lancer. Got a new belt, new water pump (got to remove timing belt to get at the pump, so why not), and new tensioner. I bought a Dayco belt and tensioner and was pleased with the quality. The water pump was a Japanese brand that I don't recall. In every way it was equal to the OEM. Might even have been the same manufactured as the OEM Mitsu pump as I couldn't tell any differences in the construction method.

All the old parts, including the timing belt, were in great shape, especially since I was about 10k miles late in getting to it. Tiny bit of corrosion on the water pump.

later,
b

You didn't replace the drive belts?
They are on the outside.

 

[The Critic]

Originally Posted By: Steve S
They are on the outside.

Still no reason to skip replacement if you have to remove them in order to access the cover.

 

[bdcardinal]

at my work, on a timing belt job we usually use a belt kit, replace all timing cover gaskets, valve cover gasket, water pump and gasket and drive belts. we also recommend spark plugs, hoses and general tuneup items as they are usually needed when we do the belt. sometimes my techs get upset that i refuse to use aftermarket parts and make them wait for the OEM ones even if i have to order them. it makes warrantying the parts a lot easier if anything ever comes up. also if i were to take my car to a dealer i would expect only oem parts to be used.

 

[wavinwayne]

I'm glad I used wavinwayne's garage for my VW's timing belt job. I take all my work to him. He does good work, at a fair price, even if he ain't the friendliest guy at times.

 

[2000ltdken]

Originally Posted By: Dagwood
From what I understand, the gasket that was used was incorrect or a step was missing. The mechanic said something about "RTV". I am not sure if he meant in addition to the gasket or instead of. Hopefully he will have it buttoned up and ready to go today.
No call yet.


Dagwood,

I have the same motor in my Tundra. There is a FIPG (form in place gasket) between the water pump and the water inlet housing. If you botch this you'll have a leak. You are lucky it was able to be fixed.

Ken

 

[hi-miler]

Something that wasn't mentioned is cleaning. Whenever we have to use a gasket or some other sealant on mating surfaces, we clean it to where a rag dipped in solvent won't come back with any dirt or discoloration after wiping. Seems anal to some, but we don't have problems.
Steve

 

[moribundman]

Originally Posted By: hi-miler
Something that wasn't mentioned is cleaning. Whenever we have to use a gasket or some other sealant on mating surfaces, we clean it to where a rag dipped in solvent won't come back with any dirt or discoloration after wiping. Seems anal to some, but we don't have problems.
Steve


Are you telling me that proper cleaning isn't common procedure at professional repair shops? That just figures. I know why I won't let anybody else work on my car as long as I can do the job myself.

 

[Cutehumor]

I'm glad neither of my vehicles have a timing belt. I owned two of them that had a timing belt. One for three years and one for 8 years. I didn't change them, I dumped them.

 

[Tosh]

Originally Posted By: Cutehumor
I didn't change them, I dumped them.

That's pretty accurate in general: If a TB breaks on an interference engine, it's not worth repairing...

 

[kd5byb]

Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: kd5byb

You didn't replace the drive belts?


Absolutely I did! Had to get them off to get to the timing belt. Should have mentioned them as well...

thanks,
ben

 

[Drew99GT]

One important thing I think people skip out on when doing these timing belts is, once you get the new belt slipped on and you release the tensioner, you should turn the engine over a couple times so the belt get fully seated in the grooves of the pulleys and the tension equals out across the entire belt, get it back to TDC, recheck the marks, THEN carefully tighten the tensioner in place making sure it doesn't move in the process. Many people slip the belt on, release the tensioner to tension it and then lock the tensioner in place. :no-no:

PERHAPS that's what the guy did and the tension was a bit whacked. Usually ends up too loose if you don't spin the motor over a couple times to really seat the belt.

But then again, I'm super anal when doing things like that!

 

[Dagwood]

I picked my up my car this afternoon. All is well. They did a great job. Used the correct type of Anti-Freeze and replaced all the extras that should have been taken care of. They even installed a new serpentine belt that was overlooked by the last shop. I was VERY LUCKY it did not cause any internal Damage. They also compression tested all cylinders just to confirm.

 

[kd5byb]

Originally Posted By: Drew99GT
One important thing I think people skip out on when doing these timing belts is, once you get the new belt slipped on and you release the tensioner, you should turn the engine over a couple times so the belt get fully seated in the grooves of the pulleys and the tension equals out across the entire belt, get it back to TDC, recheck the marks, THEN carefully tighten the tensioner


I did this when I did my wife's Lancer. I want to say that the factory service manual requires it as part of the procedure. At any rate, it is a good thing to do!

As an example, when I did my '94 Probe timing belt years ago, turning it over showed that I didn't have the cams lined up properly once the tensioner did it's thing. Took a lot of fiddling to get that belt right - you needed three hands if you didn't have the Ford tool to hold the cams and you were always fighting the tensioner as it was a pure spring tensioner (like a serpentine belt).

Strangely, got it perfect the first time with the Lancer. Maybe its the difference between a DOHC engine (Probe) and the SOHC engine (Lancer)? I don't know. For sure, the tensioner on the Lancer was like you describe - there is a spring and a bolt. Mitsu manual says to roll it over the torque the bolt, effectively removing spring pressure from the tensioner.

later,
b

 

[Tornado Red]

Originally Posted By: Tosh
Originally Posted By: Cutehumor
I didn't change them, I dumped them.

That's pretty accurate in general: If a TB breaks on an interference engine, it's not worth repairing...

That's a generalization with many exceptions. In most cases there will be some lifter or valve damage, maybe damage to the cam. But the rest of the engine should be unaffected.

 

[Curious Kid]

FWIW - When a tensioner can cause alignment/timing changes I think it's due to there having been slack on the length of belt from the crank pulley to the cam pulley that isn't to be laterally influenced by the tensioner pulley. I think I've gotten that idea from some install procedures on a volvo, not certain.

Nice to here things turned out just fine Dagwood.

Take care.

 

[PT1]

Is there any way to really know what condition your timing belt is in (besides opening it up)other than just replace at suggested interval? My indy mechanic did the belt on my Lexus v6 interference engine at 90k and replaced all the gaskets & water pump & coolant flush with the belt. Should he have done anything else? He said there is a main seal in there that they replace at 180k plus all the other parts as well. FWIW he used a new water pump and not a re-man.

 

[The Critic]

Originally Posted By: PT1
Is there any way to really know what condition your timing belt is in (besides opening it up)other than just replace at suggested interval? My indy mechanic did the belt on my Lexus v6 interference engine at 90k and replaced all the gaskets & water pump & coolant flush with the belt. Should he have done anything else? He said there is a main seal in there that they replace at 180k plus all the other parts as well. FWIW he used a new water pump and not a re-man.

The Spark Plugs should have also been replaced.

The 3MZ-FE isn't an interference design. I would have just replaced the timing belt and the drive belts. If the water pump was not driven by the timing belt, I wouldn't have replace that.