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05 ES330 w/ 233k. I recently started hearing this inconsistent rattle noise coming from the intake area of the engine. I've gone ahead and attached a video to this post.
What could be causing this?
[Edit]
The timing belt, water pump, pulleys, cam seals, and spark plugs were replaced at 223k.
Could be a chance that a valve for an ACIS system (variable intake length essentially) is damaged and rattling inside of the Intake Plenum, that's the best I can think of for the intake noise of this kind.
Before tearing into the intake, maybe get a stethoscope to listen closer, you can also try to take the Vacuum Line off of its Actuator, it should be somewhere near the Radiator Cap with a link going to the Intake. If nothing else, take the cap on the Passenger side of the intake off and see what's going on, all you are loosing is the gasket there.
Thank you! I ended up taking it to a nearby auto shop to get it diagnosed and they said it was a bad water pump.
I've looked up what a bad water pump sounds like and found this video. Makes pretty much the same exact noise:
The only question mark is how could the water pump go bad that quick when I just replaced it 10k miles ago? And this is Aisin, or at least I told my independent mechanic to use Aisin parts for it. One of my co worker who is a mechanic said it's odd for those pumps to go bad after 10k miles.
They also told me I'll need to replace the timing belt, pulley, and cam seals along with the water pump, even tho it's still new. Does that sound right?
No, it actually doesn't, sounds like a cop-out unless he has a good reason to suspect it, Aisin pumps rarely go bad THAT quickly, and even then they usually just leak. Either way, I am not sure what could be causing such a random, nonrhythmic sound inside of the pump. A simple way to test it would be to use a Stethoscope and feel around, see if you can spot where the sound is coming from, may as well take the Upper Timing Cover off, but it may be a little bit of an involved process.
By the way, did you actually get your old parts with the boxes that new ones came in? Try turning the wheels all the way to the Left, then go on the Passenger side, behind the Front wheel. Just below the Power Steering Pump, you should see a Cylindrical Aluminum piece, it should stand out quite a bit from the rest, that is a Belt Tensioner, and if it was replaced, you will be able to spot it right away, or take a picture and post it here. If you won't see anything, I would have some questions to the previous mechanic.
Okay I've gone ahead and ordered a stethoscope and took off the timing cover. I placed it on the upper surface of the water pump and I could hear that rattle sound. I tried to feel around other areas but I couldn't hear anything odd. The only other area where I could hear the rattle was when I placed it on the alternator but it was faint.
Also, I noticed the bearing (pulley?) moving side to side a bit, is that normal, or could that be the culprit? Here's a video recording. IMG_3300.MOV
Also here's a picture of where I think is the tensioner. Kinda oily too, was told I have a valve gasket leak even tho that was supposed to have been fixed last November :/ (from a different mechanic)
Huh, I take it back about the mechanic suspecting an issue with the timing belt.
Did you manage to see what manufacturer belt you have? It is supposed to be Mitsuboshi in the Aisin kit, if it's anything other than that, the kit you got is not from Aisin, and the possibilities are endless. Also, it seems like you need to go from the other side of the Front Wheel to see the tensioner mentioned, below is the video showing the part, there isn't much to tell from it, but it's easy enough to check anyway.
Either way, it is now pretty clear that there is some issue with the Timing Belt, could be something to talk about with the mechanic that did the job, depending on who that was. I wouldn't rush to get the new kit right away, it could end up being installed incorrectly, but in the future, if it is a relatively small shop, I would either bring my own parts, or ask for the boxes with old parts in them, at least some verification of the parts that were purchased, an unfortunate part of dealing with mechanics sometimes.
Welp looks like I was duped! Your suspicion was spot on the timing belt isn’t Mitsuboshi and the rest of the components are most likely not Aisin..
Im gonna have a word with the mechanic.. he’s not a shop guy but an independent one that works from his garage. Kept repeatedly messaging me after the timing belt job saying “hey how’s the Lexus?”.. well now I know why..
Now I’m concern about the safety of driving it. Gonna order the Aisin kit myself and take it to the mechanic shop that diagnosed this. They quoted me $800 for labor which doesn’t seem too bad considering others were around $950-1100 for parts n labor.
05-06-24, 08:12 AM
Rattling Noise From Engine
