PaulDaisy

Well, I think I need a bit more playing with my RX300.
When I bought it two weeks ago I knew I hear the squeal of the timing belt idler. I thought, oh well, pull the upper cover, replace the $20 idler. Turns out - correct me if I'm wrong - the upper cover won't come off until the lower cover is removed because one bolt is covered by the lower. And of course the lower won't come off until the balancer is removed.
Well, at that point I will have the entire timing path opened up, might as well replace the belt, which I was told is 40k miles old but who really knows. And once there, might as well replace the water pump, I bet nobody has ever done this on this poor Lex in its 167,000 miles.
And of course I need now to make a tool to hold the pulley when tightening the bolt.
<whine> Everything is a project, isn't it? Seems like all I do now is service timing belts. This would be the fourth one this year I think </whine>

carguy07

Yea, I think you got it right. But i would put on new OE accessory drive belts first and see if it goes away (unless of course you want to do the timing belt right now). The accessory belts make all kinds of dried up bearing sounds when they are slipping and only an OE belt seems to do the trick (they are cheaper than aftermarket anyway).

code58

CG is absolutely correct. NOTHING but OEM parts, they are far superior to aftermarket. And trust me that's the voice of experience. There are places online where you can buy OEM for the same or less than aftermarket. One other thing (voice of experience again), IF the replacement of the acc. belts doesn't get rid of the squeal, my bet is it's the lower tensioner pulley. The WP and the upper idler pulley both have a double row of bearings and by nature of the way it's made, the tensioner only has a single row of bearings. It is much harder on the grease in it and dries it up. ALL of the bearings are the same size *****, about 1/4 in.

PaulDaisy

Unfortunately, I am positive it is not the external belt. In fact it looks completely new. I can hear the squeal coming out from under the timing cover but would not bet if it is the top or bottom idler. The thing is, I don't want to wait for it to seize because that would nearly immediately cause the timing belt to overheat and break, with all the proper consequences.
I was intending to call the dealer for the timing kit, actually. While aftermarket idlers are IMO ok, the last time I bought an aftermarket timing belt it looked so cheesy, I couldn't install it (Honda). The one for my Kia (Dayco) was great, nice and shiny, with great looking armor fibers. The one for the Honda looked like it was home made. It is also possible that the quality simply has gone down with the recession.
Nonetheless, I will be calling around. Last time I did the timing belt for my RAV-4 and decided to replace the front seals, aftermarket cam seals would not fit. Tried 8 of them, from $5 to $18 and none fit - too small, too large, too soft. Finally called the dealer and got an OEM for $3.45 and of course it fit perfectly. It was an eye opener, I have never before had a dealer part cheaper than Advance Auto. So I am not at all opposed to OEM, if my antifreeze post made people think so

PaulDaisy

Well, the friendly dealer wants $489 just in parts. I think I will pass.
BTW, they told me that I can go with either "the old-style red antifreeze", or with new long life. I am guessing, Toyota is doing away with red antifreeze.

PaulDaisy

Looked at a Gates timing kit today at O'Reileys while picking up CV axles and AT filter for RAV-4. The belt is made in the USA, appears to be high quality and has the Toyota-like timing marks. Both idlers are made in Japan. I don't think I have a problem with these parts, cost $90.

code58

Enjoy your aftermarket parts. You can actually buy all OEM parts online for what you can buy the unknown quality at your local parts store. "They have the "Toyota like" timing marks"?? Is that your determining factor in choosing parts? If you are looking at GMB idler pullies and think they must be as good as OEM just because they are made in Japan, think again. After having 2 water pumps (GMB with Lifetime warranty) fail within a year, I definitely struck them from ever again being on my buy list. Yes, indeed they were made in Japan. As stated, enjoy your AM parts.

artbuc

Who makes the bearings? Koyo? I was not happy with my Gates belt. The Gates belts which come out of the Gates-Unitta JV factory in Japan are great but the Gates USA belts looked a little squirrely to me. The marks were blurry and it just didn't feel/look right compared to OEM.

hypervish

If you buy from Sewell, you can get the whole 90k service kit for only $113, that price is with the CL discount. That includes: (I'm copying this part from the website)
-Oil Filter and Drain Plug Gasket
-Air Filter
-In-Cabin Microfilter
-Brake Fluid
-Timing Belt
-Coolant

I'd say that's a great deal!

Also, please, please stick with OEM parts. Toyota knows what they are doing. Stay away from aftermarket. But, in the end it's your money, so buy whatever you please.

PaulDaisy

Thanks for the hint to Sewell, hypervish. All the parts I need are $100 less there than at my local dealer.
To 58, I take no offence since even your handle means "Heater Control Circuit High", so I guess excess heat is explainable.

code58

As usual, very much wrong again. Has nothing whatsoever to do with a car.