nthach

I recently did a valve adjustment to help alleviate some of the ticking that is a known issue in our motors and I just got done with the hard work on Monday. I used the Planet Soarer tutorial and lexusbiz's thread on the subject. This job is doable for the above average DIYer - and if you worked on shim over bucket valvetrains like on other Toyotas and most bikes save for Hondas and Yahamas with jam nut mechanisms is a definite plus, but it's not for the faint of heart.

I recommend getting the official Toyota/SPX lifter pliers and wedge tool - but a aftermarket tool like Blue-Point's YA8825 which can be obtained from the Snap-On man works decently but both tools are cumbersome and you'll nick the lifter surfaces surrounding the shim in the process - no biggie.

I had pretty much all the exhaust valves at borderline and I reshimmed them. The easiest way to take them out was to pull the exhaust cams out - to do this get the #1 cylinder at TDC, ENSURE THE TIMING MARKS on the cam pulleys and the backing plates line up - use a paint marker to mark the timing belt as well. Use a M6X20 bolt with a 1.0mm thread pitch to lock the thrust gears in place - make matchmarks on the gears and make sure the small "sesame seed" marks on the backsides of the exhaust cam and intake cam gears line up. Then working from the outer bearing caps in, slowly loosen the bolts and then the cam can be pulled out - keep the bearing caps in order. There is a oiler pipe that needs to be swung out of the way. To reinstall the cams, replace the cam bearing caps in order and slowly tighten them in steps working from the inside out in a criss-cross fashion. Then remove the 6mm bolt locking the gears in position.

If you have just a few valves out of spec, the pliers work OK - but use the 9mm wedge for clearance between the cam and lifter. To pluck the shims out, I found a long, skinny 45 degree Snap-On pick or the Sears equivalent and a magnet to be helpful. Also, when you install a new shim and just before buttoning things back up, I squirted some oil on the valvetrain to minimize a dry start-up.

It's a doable job, it just takes a while since dealers don't stock shims and the teardown can be a PITA - but I was able to get the valvecovers off in 1 hour - but putting the oil dipstick back in was a royal pain in the butt. And my ticking has quieted down a bit - and there's a bit more response in the motor.

LiCelsior

iTrader: (32)

very nice job man, good to see people putting in effort to do valve adjustments on the LS.

avalon42

iTrader: (1)

What? No walkthrough writeup or photos?

Jk...sounds good bud. How much of a better response...very noticeable?

nthach

A bit more fluid - and I notice less of a clatter. My goal was to get most of the valves within spec - some were a hair tight since I didn't have metric feelers + the TSRM equation of N=T(A-.30[or .20 for intake]) where A was the clearance in mm gives you an absolute reading and you need to get the closest shim thickness - I wanted the valves to be a bit loose but within spec. Unlike a Honda valve adjustment, Toyota ones require a bit of math on your part - but the nice part is that you could put off checking your valves until it's timing belt time.

Also since everything is torn apart, it would be a good time for a "tune-up" - spark plugs, wires, caps and rotors. I'm still running OEM Sumitomo wires - they're still in great shape. Now would be a good time to replace the cracked PCV hoses and clean up the throttle body.

And no pics, I didn't want to deal with a greasy camera and multiple trips to Costco for gloves. Driving to Pleasanton for shims was a painful task already.

Next task - change the rear engine mount - luckily I have access to a lift.

UCF11

Nice work mate, least someone is addressing this embassing issue. I hate the ticking sound from my Celsior I will get around to getting new shims for it one day, Im thinking of just over powering the noise with less mufflers time being hahaha.

nthach

Thanks!

Also I will note that some ticking is normal - and one master Honda tech at work told me some ticking is normal from SOB/SUB motors - it's only if it gets distinctively loud that you should be worried.

v8motors

Hey guys, how are you? I would like to know if someone can help me know the original height of the plates or valve inserts for my Lexus Ls400 1992 model, the diameter is 27mm if I'm not mistaken, I want to know the height so that when I disassemble replaces them by a higher, greetings!

VortecCPI

Very interesting... I had 269,000 miles on my 1995 and the valvetrain was still very quiet. Can't say the same for the injectors though...