peterls

So, it happens that I will be driving more than I thought next couple of weeks, and I decided that I should do timing belt and everything related to that before the trip.

Now take into account that I have to have this done some time this coming Tuesday-Wednesday at the latest, so I had to order parts based on not only their quality/price but also how fast I could get them...

I wanted to replace everything that makes sense to be replaced when one is having almost half of the engine apart. Consider also that my harmonic balancer is going out, it is vibrating a little at certain engine RPM (not only during driving ,but even more when parked), so I had to order that as well.

Here is the list of things I ordered so far, please let me know if I missed something or if you think I should add something here:

1. Aisin Timing Belt kit (From Amazon):

2. Bando serpentine belt (mine is getting old):

3. NGK Iridium IX Spark plugs:

4. NGK Spark Plug wire set:

5. Bosch rotor (x2) and distributor cap (x2) (couldn't find OEM) - hoping Bosch will be OK

6. OEM Harmonic Balancer/crankshaft pulley

7. Cooling Fan clutch (OEM); noticed what seems like slight vibration on the fan itself... so playing it safe:

8. Fan Pulley Bracket (OEM) - preventative maintenance:

9. Camshaft seals: 2 front, 2 rear

10. Valve cover gasket (includes: Valve Cover Gaskets, Grommets and Tube Seals for both Valve Covers)

11. Radiator Upper hose

12. Radiator Lower Hose

Total is near $1000 or so... just parts.

And that's it.

Tell me if you think I missed something - some odd seal, gasket what-have-you... I plan on getting the crankshaft pulley removal tool, and my friend who will help me with all this has a 6ft steel bar to hopefully take off the screw on it...

I am going blind from ordering all this... and looking for the best price... and looking for fastest shipping (Amazon covered everything with my prime account, so I should be getting those parts from them this Saturday, and the prices seem pretty good too). If you can believe it, it took me almost whole day to come up with this list, so it is highly likely I am missing something obvious.

Hopefully this list will also help someone else.

timmy0tool

iTrader: (7)

why are you replacing the crank pulley? it should be ok unless it's cracked or very old.

i believe you can only do the front cam seals so the rear seals may not be necessary. also include the crankshaft front main seal, the PCV valve, and toyota red coolant in your list.

LScowboyLS

correct OEM kit, available $28 cheaper on ebay, good job except for overpaying


Bando is OEM, good job


correct OEM brand part, iridium is overkill as easy as the plugs are to service on this car


correct OEM level part, good job


this needs to be the Toyota (Denso) part, I'd send the Bosch back and get the correct OEM from online Lexus dealership such as Sewell, Park Place, Lexus of South Atlanta, Lexus Parts Now, etc. (these places should show a price of ~25-28% off Toyota full price, make sure on Sewell that you register with your Club Lexus username for additional discount.)


can't imagine why you need this unless yours has sheared in half


this is the smartest thing you bought all day - OEM, good job, will make the A/C extra icy cold in summer - the most overlooked part on the car!


fan bracket is a waste unless yours is definitely screwed up, but if your ordered Aisin FBT-001 - then at least you got the right one


needs to come from Toyota (online dealerships listed above) only, you don't need the rears, where is the crank seal?


needs to come from Toyota only


Toyota preferred, but aftermarket is OK


Toyota preferred, but aftermarket is OK




several of the baby water hoses will go out sooner than the big ones, these are mostly dealership only if the pipe is formed

THIS is the best crankshaft pulley removal tool for the money, by far!

the most important thing you forgot is probably OEM thermostat and OEM engine coolant temp sensor from online Lexus dealership such as Sewell, Carson Toyota, Park Place, Lexus of South Atlanta, Lexus Parts Now, etc.

LScowboyLS

Correct!

UNCNOR

iTrader: (1)

Model year?

dc893

http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/more...574&cc=1187478 Might save some money by using the denso plug wires.

http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/more...295&cc=1187478 These NGK plugs will also work fine.

I am currently running those wires and plugs in my 92 and everything runs great.

I am guessing this is a 90-94 just by looking at the parts on the list.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

Only thing I would change out of all this is the drive belt to a goodyear gatorback.

peterls

Thank you all for replies! BTW forgot to mention that it is a 1990 LS400.

LScowboy - yes I ordered the Aisin fan bracket - got it on Amazon for a small price ($80 if memory serves), and I kinda thought I saw a little wobble in the fan itself, and also read about people's fan bracket going bad after 150-200k (and my car is 150k), so I decided that I may as well do it now.

As for valve cover gaskets, unfortunately I already ordered from rockauto Beck/Arnley... I know it is not the best, but I thought it would be a relatively safe choice that should (hopefully) last a couple of years... Do you agree at all, or have you seen things that should make me return these?

Thank you for the tool recommendation, but neither I nor my friend have a compressor and I would not have where to store it... He has an electric impact wrench, but I don't think that thing has the required torque.

As for the rotors/caps, why do you think that Bosch needs to be returned? Are they that bad? I know that since everything else that is electrical is OEM it would be wise to have this OEM too...

And, yes, I just realized- I completely forgot the crankshaft seal... had it opened on one of my web pages, and completely forgot to order it. If I was just to walk into a toyota dealership, I am hoping it would not be too much money...

As for the rest - thank you all for suggestions - I have already done all the temperature sensors one can think of: the sensor on the passenger side, the switch on the bottom of the radiator, the vacuum controlled switch next to the thermostat, and the thermostat itself. All OEM.

I also replaced the coolant after doing a thorough flush (put the Toyota red one in there), and now I am wondering if I should replace it yet again, since it is pretty much brand new, or maybe I can reuse this one?

This one is vibrating at certain RPMs, so it is going bad I am quite sure.

Oh, and I already did the PCV valve and grommet a few months ago. The best cheap thing I ever did.

Can I replace those later, or should I do them now? I mean - how hard are they to reach?

LScowboyLS

it was more like $130 at amazon, but not necessarily a bad idea if you can afford it

can't say for sure, I like to avoid unnecessary labor, so put me in the OEM camp on gaskets, the price difference isn't great enough to chance leakage, but the ones you got will probably be OK as long as you torque them precisely with a torque wrench (too much torque is usually why they leak)


electric doesn't have enough torque and you might be surprised at compressor prices lately, you can get 8 gallon portable oiled compressor that works quite well here in the states on sale for $99! at home depot and other places.


I have learned the hard way that on critical ignition and fuel injection components, OEM may seem expensive, but is generally a lot better made, so I prefer to seek out a good online price on the real Lexus part - if you start using the cheap stuff, you end up with a Ford Taurus, rather than a Lexus - I want to keep the legendary Lexus reliability and running like a Swiss watch, save aftermarket for tires, batteries, oil, Felpro pan gaskets, and the better oil filters


speaking of Toyota dealerships, always try an online Toyota dealership like Carson or Toyota Parts Zone first to see if a Lexus part is available through Toyota dealership, as it is generally cheaper than Lexus dealerships for the same part!


good deal


definitely re-use Toyota red coolant if it is fresh, just make sure you catch it in a very clean container and keep it clean until ready to refill


you can replace them later, the ones going to the idle control valve would be easy to get to now, though

LScowboyLS

do you really feel this belt offers any advantage to OEM brands Mitsuboshi and Bando?

explain

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

having used OEMand the gatorbacks on cars, most of the time, yes.

The gatorbacks seem to run quieter longer than the factory belts. Are the factory bando belts on the LS bad? No. Is the gatorback better for a minimal price difference? I believe so.

deanshark

I have the Beck/Arnley valve cover gaskets on my 93 which I got from rockauto and haven't had a leak yet. They've been on since Dec 2009. (almost 4 years) The only thing I wish I did when I had the VCs off was adjust the valves. That little tick, which is so common on this engine, drives me nuts sometimes. As cowboy mentioned, torgue the VCs correctly and you shouldn't have a problem.

nthach

Personally for belts, you'll do OK with Gates. But I'd stay OEM or OES with timing stuff. Bosch's Japanese-app caps/rotors are made by YEC, a Japanese aftermarket supplier. Gates and Dayco are OEM suppliers to Toyota's US operations, I'm running a MasterPro belt from O'Reilly which is a basic belt made by Gates and it's working fine. The Goodyear was a smidge too tight. My parent's Sienna came OEM with Dayco belts, but one of them was replaced with a Mitsuboshi under a warranty AC compressor replacement. I've seen Goodyear as OEM on Tacomas and Corollas made at the old NUMMI plant.

As for spark plugs, NGK's IX/Denso Iridium Power are "performance" single-tip Ir plugs. Best would be the OEM-type Denso or NGK double-platinum or double-iridium plugs for longer life.

peterls

Hey guys, I really appreciate all the replies! (LScowboy gets a tip of the hat )

So, it seems that all my parts are going to get here tomorrow or monday, which is great, except that the most important part - timing belt kit, which is coming from LA, CA, will take its dear time - they say, probably Wednedsay. Considering that I placed that order on Thursday morning (that was the first thing I bought!), that would make it a whole week to deliver a package within the state (I am in CA). To make it worse - I paid for two day shipping. How bad can it get???

Not to mention that shipping is via Fedex... so I thought - a day or two max, even if it is ground... and then I found out about the incredibly, horribly stupid shipping method called "Fedex Smartpost". There is NOTHING smart about; this is how it works:
- I placed an order for the Aisin TB kit, on Thursday morning. I chose TWO DAY SHIPPING, and it says on the checkout and in the confirmation - TWO DAY SHIPPING.
- Then, they give it to Fedex.
- THen fedex drives it up through state, and rather than dropping it off at a Fedex faciliy (where I could theoretically show up and pick it up sooner than if I was to wait for home delivery), they actually drive it to the nearest USPS sorting facility.
- Then USPS sorts the package.
- Then the next day they deliver it to the local USPS office
- And then, the USPS may or may not deliver it the next day. Your mileage may vary...

Arghhhh , I can't even begin to tell you how pissed I am about "two day fedex shipping"!

I tried calling a couple of ebay sellers to see if they would be willing to ship fedex overnight, with me paying the shipping, but they don't want to. What school of business did they go to?

So if anyone has a good source for Aisin TB kit, somewhere on the west coast or in California, and that is at right price and willing to ship today for, say, Monday, please share. Otherwise, I can only pray that this thing makes it here on Monday as it should (the Fedex site is already saying "estimated delivery - Wednesday or Thursday")

Oh, and the amazon seller has their phone number listed there, but no one is responding - "our call volume is too high, please leave us a message..." which I did, but no one ever replied...

note to self: when ordering from amazon, stay away from items which do not fall into "prime" category. Everything from Amazon which qualifies for "prime" shipping is arriving today or tomorrow- that's how fast things can and should be. But from other sellers who sell through amazon? - good luck with that.

YoshiMan

Bosch doesn't make bad parts in my opinion/experience. some of them may be cheapies, but i think their ignition parts are actually pretty decent.

Considering that the Denso ABS actuator in my LS says "built under license from Bosch" and that the original Toyota EFI systems from the late 70s and early 80s were also bosch systems, I would say that i trust their stuff.