Zodiac

iTrader: (1)

No special tools are require, but the job does a need a strong impact wrench to loosen one of big crankshaft nut. Any good mechanic shop should be able to perform the job without any problem in 2-3 hours but they may charge 5-6 hours according the book.

Rezonans

It depends on your luck, also your way of driving, and climate were you live, my belt was snap 2 teeth at 200k and was original, because the tensioner get stuck, and was no tension, the belt was not so bad after 15 years and 200k miles on 96 ls 400.

Kira X

iTrader: (24)

That's good to hear. He's got access to some good tools. He's only charging $200 for the labor.

06bluerex

mine has 119k, looks like ill have to change mine soon!

1WILLY1

iTrader: (9)

I trust my mechanic fully, but im wondering if I want to let the dealer handle this job, they have much more experience with these exact models, and this is a job you want done perfectly right with no hiccups.

Also if something did go wrong, Lexus has very deep pockets and extensive customer service, where as your average independent tech does not

LS430Lexus

Interesting logic. Personally, I would pay to have the timing belt changed before spending money on an extended warranty. You might want to check with the warranty company but I doubt they would cover the collateral damage caused by your not maintaining the car properly. Just a thought.

toddmorr

if you trust your mechanic fully, I'd let him do this work. There is nothing particularly tricky about the tb on the LS430. Yes, its somewhat involved to get to it and repair it correctly, but if your mechanic has done timing belts on other cars, then he'll find the LS version not significantly different. really. Remember, with a timing belt replacement, you're not really paying for sophisticated analysis or diagnosis of a problem, because you've already decided what your problem is. You're paying for labor and parts replacement, tasks for which a decent mechanic can be trusted to perform acceptably. If you want to lower the risk even further, buy the OEM replacement parts kit and insist your mechanic use those.

Lynzoid

Just for stats, i have about 180k miles, last timing belt change was about 80k miles ago.
Now my VVT-i timing tube started leaking oil so i have to replace it and do the timing belt (oil and timing belts are worst enemies).
When my tech took off the cover (one that covers the LH vvt-i tube and cam gear) we saw, that there was oil in there, BUT he said 'did you JUST replace your timing belt? it's completely new!'. I said 'no, 80k miles ago' - 'wow'.
His other comment was '180k? that's nothing for this car and this engine. i saw ones that gone over 600k'.
But better safe than sorry...

As per replacement job (belt replacement). There ARE MAJOR differences how the procedure should be done. I only trust in mechanics, who worked not just on toyotas, but VVT-i engines!
There are literally tens of unsuccessful TB replacements, with aid of 'generic mechanic', on russian clublexus board. Some peeps get lucky afterwards by going to proper toyota place to have the TB reinstalled. Some do damage to the engine.
Just a warning.

407Steve

It's me again, I'm the guy whose timing belt broke. Thanks for all the condolences, support and advice. Update:

Pulled the engine and transmission out of the car and I'm going to just rebuild the thing myself. (I have the skills and tools to do this). Never had such an easy time removing an engine. It comes out the top easier than the old Chevelle's and Mustangs I'm most familiar with removing. After tearing down the engine, I can tell you that my 1969 GTO Ram Air IV engine was not built as stout as the 3UZ-FE. Take confidence in knowing your engine is built like a NASCAR.

I'll keep you all posted on the progress. Plan is to rebuild the engine and bolt-on a transmission from a low-mileage car. My trans had 238,000 on it and never even hiccup'ed, but it takes a bold man to reinstall a transmission with nearly a quarter million miles on it.

Wish me luck.

Steve

407Steve

Oh, and pistons and valves were fine. For some reason, they didn't whack each other. Piston barrels were pristine. I have to tell you that if I knew nothing about this engine, I would believe it to be a 30,000 mile motor based on the visible wear.

rrgone

Hi Steve, that's a bold decision to rebuild an engine on a vehicle with 250k miles. I'm sure you considered all the other systems with that wear. How are you going to repair the broken boss that snapped off the front? I wish you well sir!

Jabberwock

Good luck with the rebuild and repair in getting your LS back on the road. And thanks for sharing your observations on the details of the engine internals with the forum.

1WILLY1

iTrader: (9)

hey steve,

if your pistons and valves were fine, what kind of damage actually happened?

toddmorr

Steve, very interested to hear your observations as you go through the rebuild. What you've shared so far just lends further credence to the assertion that this Ls is truly an exceptional automobile, both in the engineering as well as the assembly.
I would pay good money to spend a couple hours discussing the LS with the lead Toyota engineer on the project--to hear how they dealt with the various tradeoffs in building a car like this, what their specific objectives were, surprises or obstacles they encountered as they worked through it....that would really be interesting. I wonder if such a document exists...suppose its in Japanese and probably Toyota confidential...oh well..

407Steve

Great questions all. (And I'm open to any advice and/or suggestions, especially as it relates to time/life components). I am not by any means able to tell the future, so I'm making decisions on what to replace based on whatever knowledge I can glean from people like you all.

As to what damage actually occurred: Even with the pistons and valves (curiously) undamaged, the boss on the oil pump housing was broken off entirely. This housing obviously could not be repaired, and replacement cannot be accomplished with the engine in the car (according to the Lexus shop manual), which was a major part of my decision to overhaul. I'll post component photos as I tear the thing down. Gives new meaning to the word autopsy.

rrgone: I am wrestling with which systems to replace. The block is pretty stout and this engine (with the exception of the bad repair on the timing belt roller which doomed the motor) has averaged an oil change every 5,000 miles for its entire life. The photos (coming soon) should give you some idea of the benefits of that policy.

Inside the block, the only moving parts I am not going to replace are the crank, rods and pistons. BTW, this motor has 6 bolt mains!!! I never saw this even in the big-block GM V8s in my ancient hot-rodding experience. The block is actually in two pieces. They call it oil-pan #1 and oil-pan #2. Oil pan #1 is what you would think of and recognize as the "real" oil pan: Stamped steel. #2 is a hefty aluminum casting which really is the lower part of the engine block. It has baffles in it to keep oil in the right place during cornering. Amazing.

The one item which I might replace just because its in such a ridiculous position is the starter. You have to remove the entire intake manifold to get to it.

I'll be posting photos soon.