Vincenza V

"I tried this part number in Carson's and Sewell's,
Crank seal - 90311-A0001 - $7. I got nothing. I couldn't even see it offered by searching for the crankshaft and parts. Anyone know why it's not coming up?"

Scratch that-I called Carson and talked to Gordan. I told him I found out about them through this forum-he cut me a great deal on parts! $276.xx shipped for the parts I needed! Online, it would have been closer to $320.00 without talking to him.

Gordan is awesome!

Vincenza V

I should be doing by timing belt and waterpump this weekend. I'll post a pic of my old belt since one never got posted yet. Any other pic's that weren't already covered needed guys?

Vincenza V

There is a quote from SALIMSHAH thats awesome!

"Use the markings on the gears of the valve train, but they can be deceiving. Mark with sharpie or paint for yourself before removing the tensioner."

Won't this solve the whole "set the cam gear to "I" vs the "T" mark" dispute that someone had? It seems to me if I take it off exactly the same spot (via a paint pen marking) it's hard for you to be wrong.

Vincenza V

I finally did it on my 99' GS400. I ended up having to buy another waterpump locally (Carson Lexus in CA, where I bought the first one-doesn't sell their waterpumps with gaskets, unlike the local dealers in FL. I opened the box for it when I was already halfway through the repair, and of course, dealers don't just stock the gaskets only ($15.00) so I HAD to buy the whole kit) $150, just for the $15 gasket, ouch!!!

I have a brand new in box Toyota pump, never mounted (The Lexus dealers ship them stamped and boxed Toyota for obvious reasons) $70.00 plus shipping. All you have to do is buy the gasket yourself.

All in all, a pretty satisfying service that was hard, but went well.

vwynn

iTrader: (4)

did the timing belt with my uncle a few days ago... took like 3 hours.

overall not really that hard.. just really messy with all the fluid commin out of the car. gotta go open up the car again to clean it since he didnt give me time to clean it =/

vaughn37

[QUOTE=Vincenza V;4834002]I finally did it on my 99' GS400. I ended up having to buy another waterpump locally (Carson Lexus in CA, where I bought the first one-doesn't sell their waterpumps with gaskets, unlike the local dealers in FL. I opened the box for it when I was already halfway through the repair, and of course, dealers don't just stock the gaskets only ($15.00) so I HAD to buy the whole kit) $150, just for the $15 gasket, ouch!!!

i thought i read somewhere.the newest water pump doesnt have a gasket.and you use sealant? i could be wrong though

vwynn

iTrader: (4)

the waterpump is supposed to have a metal/rubber gastet.

the older 1uz Non-vvti waterpump had grooves where u put high-temp gasket sealant.. the newer VVTI engine has no grooves what so ever.. but we just added sealant around the rubber gasket like thing just in case.

ElitistK

iTrader: (4)

The reason why there's the 50* mark on the crank and then the two T marks on the cams is because if you set it at tdc all around, the left camshaft will shoot back 45* due to the nature of a 4-cylinder bank (one of the valve is fully open with the cam lobe pushing down). You don't have to use the T marks to take the timing belt off, but just make sure you move the left cam back to tdc before you set timing. The T mark is there for convenience, but could be confusing to people who have never dealt with such a design.

So in a sense, both JPI and OP are correct with their statements. Just make sure you hand turn the crank pulley a couple of times to fully check the timing.

Last but not least, use common sense. If you're moving the crank and none of the cams are turning, chances are you are off on timing. If it won't turn anymore, don't force it because you will bend a valve.

EN_VY

This is seriously going to sound stupid to some, but how do you know when it's time to replace the water pump? I know you have to perform maintenance on a vehicle, but I replace when something is broken.. Don't flame!

FrankT

Most people replace the water pump as preventive maintenance.
But you replace the water pump when it starts leaking or making bearing noise.

...doing the 2nd T belt and water pump on the 400 tomorrow. I would like to finish in about 4 hours.

vwynn

iTrader: (4)

how different is hte 3uz vs the 1uzvvti in terms of T Belt replacement? it perdy much looks the same to me but i am no expert.

dcz

Did my second timing belt job today... works great... only pain is that I have a leak around the gasket at the top of the waterpump... Is there anywhere to buy that seal instead of having to make it out of the gasket maker? Its such a PITA and I would rather have it with a legit gasket than a high temp silicone one... Im not talking about the water pump gasket that connects it to the block, but the one at the top that connects to the thermostat housing unit... (I think thats what the part is)

desom

Thanks to everyone with the write ups. Can't wait to get the ball rolling on my GS.

gsimba

For anyone looking to do cam seals, get a copy of the GS430 FSM and follow the procedure to the letter. It was easier than I expected but time consuming. Time is spent removing the bearing caps because the intake camshaft has to come off. I left the exhaust cam in place but loosened the bolts in the sequence described in the FSM. It took me a day per side. The only extra you need is the 6mm thread bolt about 16-20mm long that I bummed from a Lexus dealership. Don't fasten it all the way in, do it half way as it will scratch the valve cover front valve housing wall, not a big deal though. I'm not the most car smarts guy but I did it together with crankshaft seal, timing belt and water pump change. My seals were not leaking but just as a precautionary measure so I don't have to get in there again. For someone familiar with cars, I would say about 3 hours per side. I have 190k miles on my GS400. My car runs great.

Tank

iTrader: (19)

Follow the book,
Don't skimp on parts.