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Prior to purchaseing my 99 LS400, I requested and was presented with a copy of a waterpump/timing belt service invoice as performed by a Mazda dealer in Panama City Florida...the owner apparently worked for the dealer.
Fast forward...after 25,000 miles I discerned bearing noise from within timing cover area...
New OEM; Alternator, power steering pump, Serpentine belt, tensione, idler pulley and fan bracket bearing.
The spine of the timing belt was thin and showed evidence of wear with considerable belt dust in cam covers.
Perhaps on account that Mazda failed to replace timing belt tensioner
Googled the invoiced timing belt and water pump component P.N.'s which tracked back to Autozone...
So I purchased a timing belt and water pump service kit from Rock Auto; All OEM; Aisin water pump with correct gasket, Mitsubishi timing belt, Koyo Idler bearing and tensioner pulley,
After 25K miles, both idler and tensioner bearings were shot...noisy wirh considerable side play.
The water pump bearings were also noisy...and the water pump had been leaking...perhaps because Mazda lost one bolt and failed to tighted another.m
The pump impeller was no where near the confifuration of Aisin.
The casting was cheap construction and was not a solid piece as was Aisin's.
The water pump gasket was ill fitting crap as well and did not seem to have rubber perimeter compression seal.
There was no way this replacement kit was going to last another 65,000 miles.
My guess is 5-10k miles tops...then destroyed engine.
GMB brand bearing...pure crap GMB timing belt idler bearing...bad shape after 25k miles No name brand water pump...Not Aisin.. Unusual gap between impeller and housing..the fin shape appears off as well. Swiss cheese casting...Aisin uses a solid casting
ANYONE WHO INSTALLED NON OEM water pump and timing belt components should have them checked at 15-20k.
Found this on Nachi bearing website..Nachi is OEM supplier for AC clutch bearing..
I concur with it's contents. the Japanese offer more consistent quality
GMB is listed as South Korean..but based on my experience, question their quality
Yeah cheap for the auto parts places and who gets stuck. China people are under paid, and likely not treated well, plus the outfit doing the work there wants it all FAST.
So they make junk, and know they will never have to warranty it. It comes back to them in a huge scrap ship to melt down and make the same junk over again.
We need to stop importing any auto parts from that country period.
this is why I run OEM parts for certain things. It's nice to have that peace of mind.
Certain things like sensors you can probably get away with cheaping out on, but with timing belt/water pump components I wouldn't risk it. It's worth dishing out that extra $100-$200
I don't buy anything from Autozone based on my personal experience. A s a matter of fact, I drive by one to get to the 'better' parts place.
I don't even take my oil for recycling to Autozone.
I don't buy anything from Autozone based on my personal experience. A s a matter of fact, I drive by one to get to the 'better' parts place.
I don't even take my oil for recycling to Autozone.
well i work at napa..i got news for ya..u can always ask if the parts store offers oem stuff..we usually offer both. when i quote prices for asian cars i always give both options and also let them know if they are keeping the car to buy aisin. i actually had a guy come in to buy brake pads for the family's mini van which was used to transport their kids and their kids friends by his wife. he wanted the cheapest pads,25 dollars! i said..."so u have a 40,000 van which is used to cart ur wife and kids around and u want to put 25 dollar pads on it?" he said yes...i told him to just load up the van and have ur wife drive straight off the cliff...he laughed and bought the advics i had gods honest truth
you can buy OE denso spark plugs from "the zone". some of the ball joints there are also stamped "made in japan". it's all in your awareness on the parts you buy. of course most of the stuff there are made in china or have the casing of the OE part but with rebuilt guts from mexico. just be aware of these things. there are things you exclusively should use OE, and water pumps (and even the coolant that lubricates said pump) are some of them. I run autozone axles on my car that sees track duty, lifetime warranty on those!
Somewhat old post but I was planning to buy the Aisin kit from RockAuto so I wanted to ask the question. YodaOne, based on this post, are you saying the Aisin timing belt water pump kit you purchased from RockAuto was not included with Aisin water pump? I've purchased Aisin kit from Rock Auto for another vehicle and the water pump had clear marking of Aisin on the water pump cover and it came in Aisin box so I would be surprised if you got different water pump, hence the qeustion.
Somewhat old post but I was planning to buy the Aisin kit from RockAuto so I wanted to ask the question. YodaOne, based on this post, are you saying the Aisin timing belt water pump kit you purchased from RockAuto was not included with Aisin water pump? I've purchased Aisin kit from Rock Auto for another vehicle and the water pump had clear marking of Aisin on the water pump cover and it came in Aisin box so I would be surprised if you got different water pump, hence the qeustion.
The Aisin Timing Belt Kit includes all relevant parts except crankshaft seal (highly recommended) and camshaft seals..
My issue is with the timing belt itself... Aisin's vendor swears it is off the same production line...however the registraruon marks on the spine of timing belt as provided by Aisin quickly wear off, while the belt purchased from Lexus holds markings after 80,000.miles, so should it become necessary to remove timing belt, it is more difficult to index on the crank and cam pulleys.
Unsure what action Aisin is taking to remedy this.
The Aisin Timing Belt Kit includes all relevant parts except crankshaft seal (highly recommended) and camshaft seals..
My issue is with the timing belt itself... Aisin's vendor swears it is off the same production line...however the registraruon marks on the spine of timing belt as provided by Aisin quickly wear off, while the belt purchased from Lexus holds markings after 80,000.miles, so should it become necessary to remove timing belt, it is more difficult to index on the crank and cam pulleys.
Unsure what action Aisin is taking to remedy this.
Does this help?
That makes more sense. I did use the Mitsuboshi belt that came with the Aisin kit for another vehicle and it has not been an issue so far (50K+ miles, 3+ years). I can believe the ink print used for "after market kit" vs "OEM/toyota/lexus" may be different but I would have hard time believing Mitsuboshi would create different production belt for the same spec belts (it would be more costly for them production wise to have such differentiation other than "printing").
That makes more sense. I did use the Mitsuboshi belt that came with the Aisin kit for another vehicle and it has not been an issue so far (50K+ miles, 3+ years). I can believe the ink print used for "after market kit" vs "OEM/toyota/lexus" may be different but I would have hard time believing Mitsuboshi would create different production belt for the same spec belts (it would be more costly for them production wise to have such differentiation other than "printing").
Thanks again for your quick reply.
These postings "bleed" into one another...
Please refer to the following posting concerning the timing belt provided with Aisin Timing Belt Kit vs the Toyota/Lexus OEM parts counter belt;
you can probably get away with easy to replace Duralast accessory belts, axles, and sensors, easy things to replace if they go bad but for a labor intensive job such as timing belts and even motor mounts, I would go OEM on, since the labor cost to do it the second time would FAR exceed the cost differential between an OEM kit and the cheap chinese kit, no matter if it has a lifetime warranty or not.
you can probably get away with easy to replace Duralast accessory belts, axles, and sensors, easy things to replace if they go bad but for a labor intensive job such as timing belts and even motor mounts, I would go OEM on, since the labor cost to do it the second time would FAR exceed the cost differential between an OEM kit and the cheap chinese kit, no matter if it has a lifetime warranty or not.
Only if a recognized OEM brand....and with Autozone , that limits it to engine oil (not oill, air or cabin filters), and spark plugs.
Frankly, the solurion would be to avoid supporting any establishment that sells substandard rebuilt parts
You really have to have a discussion with your independent mechanic before you take your Lexus there for service as to replacement parts used ....otherwise they are going to purchase off of their Autozone account for convenience or to increase profits .
you can probably get away with easy to replace Duralast accessory belts, axles, and sensors, easy things to replace if they go bad but for a labor intensive job such as timing belts and even motor mounts, I would go OEM on, since the labor cost to do it the second time would FAR exceed the cost differential between an OEM kit and the cheap chinese kit, no matter if it has a lifetime warranty or not.
Agreed. I don't mind throwing on Duralast brake pads. Heck, I'd even use Duralast rotors (which warp over time) if I'm just trying to keep an old rust bucket going a few more years. But it's totally not worth it for the timing belt, since the job is like 90% labor and 10% parts.
08-06-17, 04:03 PM
Issues: Autozone timing belts , waterpumps , bearings
gods honest truth
