funditor

EDIT: My project report and final tool / parts list are now a part of this post. See below.


Hey guys,

I have to do the timing belt on my '99 GS300, 134 k miles all original equipment. There is a lot of oil inside the timing belt area. Please help me decide what maintenance I should add on while everything is apart. I've never taken valve covers off. Should I do anything else in there while they're off? There's oil around the whole rim of the engine, so I suspect it's been leaking at the valve cover.

I plan to replace the following parts:

1. Timing Belt
2. Water Pump with 1 O Ring and 1 Gasket
3. Intake and Exhaust side cam seals
4. O Ring replacement for the VVT pulley ("rebuild" the VVT pulley)
5. Valve cover gaskets
6. Radiator fluid flush
7. Valve cover bolt grommets
8. Crankshaft seal
9. Tensioner bearing
10. Hydraulic tensioner
11. OCV Filter and OCV Solenoid
12. Serpentine Belt
Added via Edit:
13. Accessory belt tensioner pulley. Doesn't feel smooth
14. Denso plugs
15. Plug wires
15. Coil packs
16. Coil / plug wire connectors
17. PCV Valve

Considering:
1. Thermostat


What else should I plan to replace while I'm at it? I'll spin the pulleys on the serpentine belt to see if any feel old. Are any of them known to go bad?

Who makes the J2Z OEM water pump? Is it AISIN? I'm looking at this kit:



2JZ-GE. Does anyone know what bolt size / pitch to use for a pulley puller to take off the harmonic balancer / crank pulley? Ditto for the bolt size to remove the crank timing gear that's in the way of the crankshaft seal.

Thanks so much! If you know of any writeups on this work, please post away.




EDIT: JOB IS DONE. REPORT AND TIPS BELOW:


Bought a new VVTi gear pulley and harmonic balancer from olathetoyota to avoid having to do it all over again. ola was great to deal with when I wanted help looking up parts and to change my order. They got the stuff shipped out a day ahead of what they originally told me. But the front crank seal was defective (bent), so I left the original in place. And I got another toyota parts order from them that was meant for someone else. Check all your parts before beginning the job.

Took me about 17 hours of work to do the job right, including coil packs & plugs, cleaning out a ton of oil sludge and mouse ****, etc.

That front crank bolt was on wicked tight. Did not budge with multiple bump starts and a 2 foot breaker bar. Starter motor and battery are new too, so there's plenty of power. I then started setting the end of the breaker bar a few inches above the pavement instead of resting it on the pavement. Still did not break the bolt. Finally, I hit the bolt with a MAPP gas torch for maybe 30 seconds or so, and tried the bump start again while still hot. That worked. Might be worth buying a harmonic balancer in case you go this route since the torch could easily destroy the rubber. But if that hadn't worked.... I don't know how it would have ever come off. Maybe an impact driver meant for diesel trucks or something. FYI, I was bump starting with all fuel injectors disconnected and all coil packs disconnected from the wiring harness.

Replace your serpentine belt at the same time. For $12 a new serp belt, you've also just bought yourself the perfect size strap wrench to immobilize any of the pulleys that need to be immobilized. Wrap it over itself on the harmonic balancer then hang the end off something sturdy when reinstalling the front crank bolt. I probably put over 200 ft lbs on it that way tightening it back up. I hung the loose end of the serp belt over one of the accessory pulleys, and it worked fine, but maybe there's a risk of damaging them with that method.

You can use the same trick if you need to lock up the cam pulleys. Use the old timing belt. Wrap it over one pulley then hang the spare loop off the other pulley next to it. Takes a minute to get set up well, but it works great. Had to do this a couple of times to get everything lined up right.

Otherwise, since I had the valve covers off, a pair of 12" channel locks on the hexagonal portion of the cam shaft locked the cam shaft to undo those pulley bolts. Even my large (bigger than 1") adjustable wrench did not fit on the cam shaft.

You do NOT need to take off the alternator or even loosen it to get at the timing belt tensioner. You just need a long 3/8" drive extension with a wobbly end that can go up from the very bottom of the car. A few other times, having the wobbly extension on an impact driver was really handy.

My car, stock, did NOT have the rubber grommets on top of the valve cover. Since I bought a package of them, I used them to reinstall. Now, the reason I took the valve covers off in the first place is that they were leaking around the seal. Maybe having the grommets will help. Does anyone know whether Lexus/Toyota added or eliminated those grommets during the production cycle? Or of if it's a Toyota vs Lexus thing? olathetoyota helped me find that they are indeed listed for use with the 2JZ engine found in the Supra, but I couldn't find them listed on the Lexus parts website.

Anyway, my valve covers had been leaking and all valve cover bolts were very easy to remove. If yours is leaking, try tightening your bolts a bit to see if that solves the problem. Beware that some say that valve cover can crack upon heating if overtightened. When reintalling the valve cover bolts, this was the reason I liked having those rubber/metal grommets. They let me get the bolts pretty snug since the rubber's compressibility creates an extra safety margin if there's any thermal expansion of the head against the valve covers.

Someone elsewhere mentioned that their harmonic balancer was rubbing against the plastic timing cover shield after reassembly. This had happened to me too. What happened is that there is a large metal spacer between the toothed timing pulley on the crankshaft and the harmonic balancer. After telling myself a dozen times not to forget it, I forgot it. So look out for that! Fortunately, you don't have to take all of the timing covers / idler arm/ pump pulleys off to be able to squeeze it in. You can get 4/5 of the lower timing cover bolts off, remove the harmonic balancer, and slip the spacer behind the cover.

Also, check your timing marks. I have no idea how, but my timing somehow got perfectly 180 degrees out of phase when I thought I'd finished the job the first time. Had to redo the timing. Fortunately, I caught this before attempting to start the engine! Worst-case scenario would have bent valves, but this can also just create a "no start" condition depending on the exact phase offset that you're stuck at.

Upon starting the car for the first time, smoke started coming out of the previously defective rear O2 sensor, exhaust side. That took about ten minutes to burn off. I think it was from oil and crap falling into the bore holes while doing the plugs. That took care of itself while idling. It's been about ~100 miles now, running great. Engine has a cleaner sound than before probably due to new plugs. And smoother, probably due to new harmonic balancer. No CEL!

TIMING BELT JOB PARTS LIST:
Your final list will vary, but this is what worked for me:


From olathetoyota

Front Crank Seal 90311-460011 $13.85
Sealer 00295-001031 $12.85
PCV Valve 12204-460301 $12.11
Camshaft Seal 90311-400202 $17.12
Crankshaft Pulley 13407-460201 $349.92
Inlet Connector Gasket 17849-460201 $8.67
Pulley Assembly Camshaf 13050-460101 $197.24

From RockAuto

MAHLE GS33723 {#0396316, 9021007001, B45809} Molded Rubbe
GATES K060760 {Click Info Button for Alternate/OEM Part Numbers} Premium OE Micro-V Belt
DORMAN 419634 Idler PulleyDOES NOT FIT. Same dimensions as OEM pulley, but wrong size for OEM mounting bolt!
DENSO 6731203 {#9091902216} Ignition Coils
DENSO 4503 . Spark plugs. There's a difference between twin tip and double tip. I don't know which our car is supposed to use, but these are working great so far.
DENSO 6716181 Plug Wires
Engine : Valve Cover Gasket FEL-PRO VS50660R {#VS50476}
AISIN TKT031 Includes Water Pump

SPECIAL TOOLS:
Tools that I recommend for this job. Obviously, you need other tools too, but these are the ones that jumped out as being extremely useful to me:
- Cordless impact driver
- HF Bolt type pulley puller. Note that you need metric bolts to remove the harmonic balancer and toothed crankshaft pulley! HF kit does not come with them. The crankshaft pulley holes are M6 x 1.0. The harmonic balancer holes are larger. I forced in one of the HF SAE bolts since I was replacing it anyway. Probably M7.
- Lisle Camshaft removal tool
- Extra large adjustable pliers (locking would be best) for immobilizing cam shaft
- Round ended metric allen keys (size 5) would have been worth having, but regular worked.
- Size 14 and 10 hex driver keys for VVTi Pulley
- Wobbly 3/8" drive extensions were great to have
- 12" channel lock pliers were great for radiator hose clamps
- Full metric socket set. I think I needed M10, 12, 14, 17, and 22 for this job plus whatever you need for the pulley puller.
- At least a breaker bar to break front crankshaft bolt
- A pick set for removing hoses and undoing clips

funditor

When reassembling the metal half-circle blocks that retain the cam pulley gaskets, do you apply a sealant between them and the engine? If so, a high temperature silicone based gasket seal?

shwalker07

Get the AISIN water pump, it is the OEM supplier for Toyota. I would order the kit from rockauto, look for a 5% off coupon and check out other parts you may need to get it all done and ordered at one time. I would avoid ebay due to knock off parts.

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...1356061,engine

TrueGS300

You don't have to remove the cam caps to replace the seal. Use a seal puller and then lightly oil the inside of the new seals and push them in. You can do it that way if you want I guess, but have the torque specs for them. Here is a link to the type of puller I use for cam and crank seals. You will need something like this for the crank seal anyway.
I recommend replacing the harmonic damper. It's at that age now where it's bound to give out eventually. Powerbond from Dayco is probably the best value as far as price for a quality unit. Stay away from the $50 ebay junk. On the subject of the balancer. Do you have a Harbor Freight near by? I bought their kit when I started out and surprise, I'm still using it 10 years later. So it's actually a great kit if used right. I used it on my GS and you will also need it for the crank sprocket to get to the crank seal. Here is a link to one I recommend if you're not near one. I've found Astro to be a great budget tools company. Far better build quality than competing price range.
You are going to have a hell of a time with the VVTi seal. I replaced the seal a few times trying to save money. First it wouldn't seal right, then it never worked right. Threw codes for the VVTi systems performance. I ended up getting a Toyota replacement. Got lucky and found genuine being sold for cheap. But I'm suggesting that you may want to just replace it... I watched all the videos etc.. but I find them very vague and you actually don't have any updates as to how the job went after. Just the process to do the job. I have an entire shop at my disposal and could't make this work. If you can, good on you. But you may find yourself taking the timing system back apart. Just my honest opinion.

Lastly, removing the radiator is necessary for the job of removing the damper safely. It may be a good time to replace with a new one if it looks old. I know all this stuff makes the job more expensive than you planned. But it is nice when it's done right the first time, and no surprises when you are in the middle of a job and see that other parts need replaced. Then you have to pay retail because you need the car back together and can't wait to order them. Take some time and use a mirror and flashlight and really look your car over before ordering your parts list. Look at the plastic side tanks of the radiator for signs of residue, and the rubber elastomer on the balancer for any protrusion/separation/cracking. You are going to have full access to your spark plugs, wires, throttle, and pcv valve when going after the valve covers. Now is the the time to replace anything necessary and clean out the throttle. Look at your heater lines for aging/cracks etc. Now is the time to have all these things ready. You will have the coolant out of the system anyway. Now is the time to check for soft squishy radiator hoses etc. Anyways, thats my recommendation. Look your car over well and have a good plan on what you'll need.

firelizard

iTrader: (1)

You'll need form-in-place-gasket for the valve cover
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gs-...l#post10465194

funditor

Thanks guys! Liquid gasket, huh? Cool, that will be new for me.

The reason I'm thinking of pulling the valve covers instead of pulling the cam gaskets out through the covers is that with the valve cover removed, you can grab the camshaft with an adjustable wrench to freeze the pulley and undo the pulley bolts. I kind of want to make a chain tool to hold the pulleys for fun, but I don't want to risk marring the pulley teeth and causing damage to the timing belt.

If there's no other maintenance worth doing with the valve covers off, I could buy an impact wrench instead. I'll get the seal puller too.

rockauto sells Dayco DAYCO PB1174N for $227. Dayco calls it "Premium OEM Replacement Balancer". Versus the Toyota website $466. But the Toyota part has lasted for 20 years, and has no issue that I know of. Before this, I hadn't heard of needing to replace balancers.

For reference, Lexus calls it PN 13407:
https://parts.lexus.com/p/Lexus_1999...340746020.html


Oh yeah, pilgrimage to HF is coming up soon. Will pick up their pulley remover.


That's really good to hear. Do you know what part you had problems with or did it go back together fine, but just never work right?

Watching JeffTsai's video, it seems really straightforward. I was going to use a carbide scribe to mark all the alignments before undoing the component so that it could go back together exactly. But it might not be worth the trouble.

Lexus website lists two camshaft pulleys, LH and RH:

RH, $82. https://parts.lexus.com/p/Lexus_1999...352346030.html
LH, $263. https://parts.lexus.com/p/Lexus_1999...305046010.html

The VVTI pulley is on the driver's side, so I'm going with "LH" $263. Versus an O-Ring. Did anyone else have a bad experience with doing a VVT Cam Pulley rebuild?



Good advice. Putting all the work in, might just end up with this car forever.

funditor

Glad to hear AISIN is the OEM. Hope it's the same quality used in Toyota. A water pump spontaneously failed on another car of mine recently (Volvo, uses AISIN) and the damage destroyed the engine (timing belt slipped off of seized water pump pulley).

ds24y

Yes, FIPG, (form in place gasket). OEM is black instead of grey.

ds24y

Spark Plug tube seals in Valve Cover.

funditor

For anyone reading this in the future, the idea is to put the FIPG on the corners like shown in 10' in this video:
or this one:


For anyone reading this in the future: A gasket kit including the rubber washers that degrade over time:
https://www.driftmotion.com/2JZ-GE-V...t-p/dm2413.htm

Lexus "Gasket Cylinder Head Cover"
Intake Side:
https://parts.lexus.com/p/Lexus_1999...121446011.html
Exhaust Side:
https://parts.lexus.com/p/Lexus_1999...121346030.html

I can see oil around the entire top of the engine where the valve cover goes on, including the back where the VVT cam leak couldn't be responsible, so I'm going to pull the valve covers.


Other tips from the videos:
1. Have plug / coil connectors on hand since the old ones tend to be brittle and break. I've heard that elsewhere as well.
2. There's a metal gasket between the intake and throttle body that can be replaced. Y-Pipes

Posters suggest that there aren't any tube seals in this engine:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/per...ube-seals.html

I guess there are rubber pieces on the tray that divides the spark plug wires. But this isn't making an actual seal, so no need to replace.

funditor

Spun all the accessory pulleys and they feel good. Tensioner pulley is slightly rough and needs to be replaced.

Clear visible degradation to the outside of the harmonic balancer. Surprised to see that the face that contacts the belt is not made of metal. I thought harmonic balancers were a metal-rubber-metal sandwich. But in my harmonic balancer, the surface that contacts the pulley has small cracks and a section that looks like a dog chewed on it. Photo included for reference.

Didn't realize that on 2JZ, the throttle body blocks access to plugs, wires, and coils. Good thing they're so reliable. Time to replace them while TB is off.

TrueGS300

Ya that balancer looks pretty bad. I've had balancers go out on two of my cars. Both caused sever engine damage. On my 98 Eclipse GST it dug back into the timing belt and caused the valves to hit pistons and I had to rebuild the head. My C5 vette it dug back destroying the front cover and oil pan. I learned to use ATI dampers when making 600+whp lol. I saw some age when I did the timing on my GS and thought, best to not let this happen again, so I got the Dayco. The one you are looking at on Rock Auto is the same one btw.

As far as the VVTi. I had no trouble putting the seal in, it just didn't work lol. And the code would come up at freeway speeds randomly. I just said screw it and bought a new one. But like I said, I got lucky and found a OEM Toyota for $80 on ebay.

TrueGS300

There are no tube seals on the 2JZ. The plug valley is separate from the two valve covers

ahill007ny

funditor

ahill,

If you remove the valve cover, it's easy to immobilize the cam by putting an adjustable wrench over the flattened section of the cam shaft. Is that "worth it"? Depends on whether:
1. You have any other reason to remove the valve covers or TB. In my case, it's leaking, so that's a reason.
2. You have another way to remove the cam pulleys. Impact gun or pulley holder that won't damage the teeth.


Good luck