hoosier58

I have my parts, a usable FSM, and have been reading up and watching videos. I also printed off a couple of other 2JZ DIYs to cross reference.

I have some questions before I start.

I did a lot of my reading up a couple of weeks ago, and was reviewing this morning. I haven't been able to find one of the DIYs I read before (wish I bookmarked it), which I would like to have. It was a write up by a Supra owner who replaced a timing belt on the side of the road. He was a couple hundred miles from home, and had his basic tools with him. He said that he just had to buy a big breaker bar and socket for the crank, some brake parts cleaner and some white out. Has anyone seen that write up, and maybe have a link to it? It gave me a lot of the confidence to do this myself. It seems like I sourced it through a Lexus forum (maybe CL, maybe not) after a google. Someone there provided that link, but there was also some good discussion about pulley removal.

My 94 SC3 has 235K on the clock, so I'm sure the belt's been done before. I plan to break the crank bolt loose using the starter. That leads to my first question. My work area is gravel, not concrete. Because of that, jacking and jackstands are kind of sketchy, so I'd like to drive the front wheels up onto work ramps. I had planned to use the ground to rest my breaker bar on when I crank the starter to loosen the crank bolt. If I do that, then snug it back up a bit, am I safe to start the engine back up long enough to pull the car forward onto ramps? Or do I need to get it on the ramps first, then use some frame part for the breaker bar?

My second question is for reassembly. The starter may break loose the 239 ft/lbs on the crank. How do I immobilize the crank to re-torque it as I complete the job though? I don't think any of the write ups I've read were very clear on that.

Thanks in advance.

I wish my camera hadn't croaked. I'd like to provide a write up with pictures for others.

bmxkeeler

I believe this is the thread you were looking for
http://www.toyota-supra.info/forums/...t-at-home.html

hoosier58

Thanks man! That's the thread I was looking for. This is my first DOHC timing belt, so I'm printing off more than one source to hold my hand through it --- although the printer just ran out of ink!.

BTW, I already broke the crank bolt loose, so don't need an answer to that. I wasn't sure, so got the car up on the ramps first, then put a 24" cheater on my 18" breaker bar. After removing the coil connection it took two turns of the key to break it loose. The first one lifted the car about 1"!

Ali SC3

iTrader: (10)

Glad you are OK, I wouldn't ever put the breaker bar on the ground unless you want to hop like you have hydraulics. always rest it under the frame, that way the car does not move, and it will always brake loose on the first crank then cause with no where to go its either the starter or the bolt that will give, and its always the bolt.

You really don't need to do all that much to do a simple timing job, but you do need an assortment of the usual metric sockets.
as for re-torquing the bolt, I found this thread on it, but the real way is with the tool that holds the crank.
I don;t think you can jam anything in the flywheel since you aren't pulling the trans, maybe someone has another solution.
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls4...181ft-lbs.html

jjffyy

iTrader: (9)

Or you can try using a strap wrench, that's what I used when I changed my HG in my subaru and had to take on/put on the crank.

hoosier58

I'm still on disassembly. As long as I'm doing this, I'm taking more apart than I need to (like fan off of fan clutch) to clean everything well and detail the compartment while I'm at it. I'm numbering my steps and putting each one in plastic grocery bags (the ones they are about to start charging us 5 cents for in Denver --- 25 cents worth so far).

Slow and sure. My confidence level is rising as I tackle it.

Thanks for all the help so far.

EDIT: Oh yeah ... the manual calls for an SST to immobilize the crank. Some of my motorcycle work has called for a similar tool for magneto covers. I've fabricated my own in the past from Chinese C-clamp vice grips ($12) ... just by drilling the opposed sides, then locking a bolt through the holes. I then clamped them in place, and was even able to slide a 2" cheater over the ends as needed. I'm not quite far enough to see if something like that will work on this job.

hoosier58

I do like the Jeff's Garage videos. He says things like, "I found a 14mm socket ...."
I can relate.

SC3coupe

iTrader: (4)

Schley 64300 tool

hoosier58

I've been watching videos on doing this job. The Jeff's Garage ones are helpful, though he does do some things in the wrong order. He doesn't do the water pump either. I also watched an IS 300 video, which is high speed with no verbal instructions --- it made me do things I don't think I needed to ... like move the P/S pump out of the way.

I have a question about always rotating the crank clockwise. I've been very careful to do that, and if I rotated slightly past TDC I then did two full revolutions to get it back there. Jeff seems a lot less worried about exclusively rotating that way. When he shows the difficulty of immobilizing the pulleys to remove bolts, he moves them back and forth a few degrees, with no warnings about clockwise. Is that fine? If I overshoot marks by a degree or two, can I simply rotate backwards?

Ali SC3

iTrader: (10)

If you miss it you only have to go around once on the crank (1 crank revolution = 2 cam revolusions).
you aren't supposed to go counter clockwise but a little bit won't be crazy damaging or anything, I still always try to go clockwise and not overshoot seems to line up better going clockwise.

hoosier58

I've been taking it slow and easy, so didn't get as far as expected yesterday. After Autozone for a puller today to pull the harmonic ballancer, I removed the tensioner tube ----- the darn thing has an 1/8" rivet passed through it! Just the shaft part. Whoever did the job last used that to hold tension instead of an allen wrench ---- and then they FORGOT TO REMOVE IT!

Geeze! What are the odds that the car hasn't jumped time by now?

They must have reused the old one, I guess, or I would have found an allen wrench there, not a rivet.

This gives me a bit of a quandry. I never bothered opening the box of the new "Tensioner & Idler Bearings" that I ordered online until now. It turns out I have a new idler pulley and hinged bracket, but don't have the hydraulic tensioner tube. I have to decide whether to reuse the one that's been in there doing nothing for a couple of years, or try to locate one locally.

hoosier58

I need to immobilize the camshaft pulleys while I break the bolts loose. I don't have the SST shown in the FSM, and the only impact I have is an 18v ryobi that I use as a carpenter --- it won't do it. There is a stud to the left of the exhaust pully on the metal back plate. Is it safe to wedge a pry bar or large screw driver into the teeth and rest it on that stud, or will I bend it?

Ali SC3

iTrader: (10)

Wow, that is quite scary that they forgot to remove that, was everything still lined up before you took the belt off. either way its a good catch on that, the test for the tensioner is to hold it and lean all your weight on it against a solid surface, like concrete ground or something that wont budge or slip on you, you want to push with the little tensioner piston part facing the ground.
If you can move it at all, it is bad. If it will not budge, then its in good shape and can be reused.

you don't even have to put the pin in and pull it out later if its already extended, if you slowly thread both bolts down and tighten each side little by little, the tensioner will seat itself just fine, but make sure the crank is lined up with 0, and the cams are lined up with the marks, with no slack on the drivers side of the belt, leave all the slack on the passenger side, so when you put the tension er in, it won't throw off the marks. basically situate the belt on the crank sprocket, and then work the belt on the cams starting with the drivers and then the passenger side.

probably not a good idea to wedge it there, those bolts are on pretty tight over the years, but maybe you can y I am not positive.
I usually take off the valve cover, there will be a spot on the cam to put a giant pipe wrench on it.
get someone to hold that still and use a breaker on the cam. If you don't hold the wrench still it will make a indent on the soft aluminum head, which is not a huge deal but you don't want to crack anything or mess up the sealing surface where the valve cover sits.
Its not as bad as it sounds, and the pipe wrench makes things easier.

hoosier58

Using the hydraulic tensioner that way sounds reasonable, but I probably will put an allen wrench in after I clean and test it. I had to run and look at a job at 1 PM, then ran by IPW (import parts warehouse ... not to be confused with IPA, india pale ale). They wanted $92 for the hydraulic tube ---- I didn't pay that much for the timing belt, idler pulley, seals, AND water pump combined! I'm hoping the old one will work --- it has been resting for quite a while.

I was trying not to pull the valve covers, though the Jeff''s Garage videos show how to hold the cams with them off. I wanted to do this first, then do spark plugs, mostly because I'm working outside, in my back yard. I didn't want to have to keep track of intake parts at the same time I'm keeping track of front assembly parts. I called a mechanic friend, and he says that he usually puts the old belt on, then grips the pulleys with a really big pair of water pump pliers (Channel-Lock). I just played around trying to do that, but without a second pair of hands it wasn't working.
I might have to bite the bullet, pull all of the intake parts off the top of the valve covers, then make new plugs part of this job.

Ali SC3

iTrader: (10)

I don't know if you have tried to compress that tensioner, but if the tensioner is good it will not compress much after it extends (per the test I paraphrased straight from the manual). so unless you have a very large press around, it will be difficult to compress that guy to put the pin back in, so if its compressed still and there is a pin in there, do not pull it out until its in, lol. It should be very difficult to put back into the short position and get an allen key in there, and if its too easy then the tensioner is shot. I cam across the same problem thats why I was telling you don't worry about compressing it if you can't just let the bolts do the work, and it will push on the roller and take out all the slack.

yeah its a pain to take the valve covers off, but it has to be done every once in a while. the least favorite thing anyone does on a ge motor really, and you will have to take off the "Y" part to get to the drivers side.