It's about time for the 3rd timing belt for my '02 LS430. I read it's wise to replace at the same time:

- Timing Belt
- Water Pump
- Tensioners
- Pulleys
- Radiator (towing package)
- Radiator hoses
- Thermostat
- Radiator cap
- Crankshaft seals
- Clean the throttle body

Questions:

- Is there anything else to be done while you're in there already?
- Aside from the Aisin TB kit on Amazon, what are the best parts to use for the remaining items?

 

Camshaft seals

 

Cam seals are a huge pain btw

 

Agree 100%
But assuming mileage alone, 90k intervals x 3 should be approx 270k miles, prob not a bad idea.

 

my .02. My indie said no need: thermostat, radiator hoses, radiator. Their perspective is it's your money, we don't spend it unnecessarily.

Kinda surprised there's no mention of serpentine belt, I would do that.

We're not allowed to mention other brands of cars here, but I know where the indie is coming from. I have a car with 320k, original water pump, thermostat, clutch, etc. So he has a point that some parts you replace when they fail, and not assume they will. The big one mentioned here is radiator, the problem here is a lot of people buy a Denso and it's aftermarket, not OE. It's not as good as what you're taking out--so you're throwing away a still good great part, and putting one in that's known to fail (documented here on this forum). And if you're going to get the dealer part which is the same quality as the one that's coming out, then it's pricey so you don't want to do it unnecessarily imho

In the old days I would have used parts.com, because it was the same dealers that advertise on forums, only a much lower price/bigger discount. Today, I'd use rock auto, and whatever dealer has the biggest discount off list. Seems hard today to get more than 31%. eBay is good too if the seller has hundreds of thousands of positive reviews and they've cut out the USA distributor and the parts are genuine, and say you have eBay bucks and this quarter Chase Freedom so you get 5%....

edit btw here's the thread where a member actually bought the Denso aftermarket, AND the OE and compared.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-...leaking-3.html

also, I was thinking that the mentality of "bigger is better" really doesn't apply to thermodynamics. Think about this, and just use hs physics, not marketing, etc. If your home is optimum with a 3 ton AC condenser, 4 is even better, right? WRONG. For one, it will short cycle, i.e. not stay on as long as it is designed to, i.e. 2 or 3 cycles per hour. It will have more cycles, of shorter duration. More wear and tear, and you'll be less comfortable as a result, since one feels comfortable when the condenser is running, as dehumidifying is taking place. In the worst case, the furnace hasn't got enough airflow going across the coil, and the entire system freezes up. So why would one want to put in a radiator larger than what's in there now, unless one has seen temps rise beyond designed temp? It would seem that the thermostat would have to close more than before, if the radiator's capacity has increased, so what effect does that have? I would think that a thermostat has a range it was designed to move within, as it's a physical device. We've seen this applied to oil filters as well, not just here, that bigger physical size, is better. I would err to the side that what the engineers designed, is optimal. Not better, but optimal.

 

Ummm, Denso is OEM for lots of Toyota parts?? Keep in mind, as years go by, they don't always make the EXACT same part. I purchashed a Toyota "OEM" radiator directly from the dealer in town for a different vehicle, and it was still FAR different than what I pulled out.

The "towing" radiator was a 1" core, and matched exactly to the OEM radiator I removed.

I would also HIGHLY recommend doing the thermostat - don't skimp there. My 256k car I just picked up for $1000 was overheating, all due to just the thermostat having failed. It's 15 dollars...

Amazon is getting more sketchy like eBay everyday - RockAuto is awesome, and be sure to use their 5% off codes.

This is what I used to complete a recent timing belt job, and since the spark plugs were unknown and easy to get to, why not?
2005 LEXUS LS430 4.3L V8
AISIN TKT021 Timing Belt, Water Pump & Component Kit $ 164.79 $ 0.00 1 $ 164.79
AISIN THT015 Thermostat $ 15.54 $ 0.00 1 $ 15.54 <- I had a new gasket on hand already, so order a new gasket too
AISIN SKT006 (SKT-006) Timing Cover Seal $ 31.79 $ 0.00 1 $ 31.79 <- includes cam and crank seals!
BANDO 6PK2240 Belt $ 14.55 $ 0.00 1 $ 14.55
DENSO 2214100 (221-4100) Radiator $ 73.79 $ 0.00 1 $ 73.79
FEL-PRO VS50592R Valve Cover Gasket $ 26.99 $ 0.00 1 $ 26.99
NGK 4589 Spark Plug $ 5.77 $ 0.00 8 $ 46.16

Get some Toyota Red coolant at a Toyota dealer and some distilled water.
I ordered new radiator hoses from a Lexus dealer.
I also replaced the transmission cooler lines with some bulk hose.
Clean off the cam and crank sensors while in there too.
While the access was super easy and spacious, I did a power steering flush.

The Felpro kit above includes a few O-rings as well that were good for the VVTI solenoids - one of mine was leaking, and there was a large trail of oil down to the alternator. The PO had the alternator replaced once already, all due to a stupid cheap O-ring.

 

Also - with your high and similar mileage, check this post of mine - you may be close:

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-...l#post10902625

 

It sure can be. But doesn't make it always the case. It can also be aftermarket. As a matter of fact, Denso is OE for General Motors as well. One cannot assume that Denso is OE for a Lexus. A $67 radiator made by Denso, is not OE. It's aftermarket.

I guess this is why for so many years, ACDelco used the good/better/best model. Many people thought it was stupid, but it clearly illustrated what someone was getting.

ACDelco doesn't make all the OE parts for a GM vehicle, it makes quite a few. As mentioned, a lot of electrical parts are made by Denso. Fuel injection? Bosch. Yes, on a GM.

With Germans, they just come out and tell you, because the business model is different.

 

Definitely also do the cam seals. I wish I had done mine at 180k and now there's a slow leak from them at 196k.
They said if I do decide to fix the cam seals that we would also replace the VVTi gears (or something) since it will all be ripped out and would be very costly to do over if it were to fail before the next timing belt job. We would also do the valve covers since they're leaking too.

 

Reference this video for the VVTI gear seals:

 

I follow this philosophy, no need to replace thermostat, radiator hoses, or radiator until they start failing, and if you do regular inspection of your car, these problems won't just appear out of nowhere. Lexus dealership does not replace timing belt tensioner or bearings unless they notice a problem, but considering the AISIN kits come with tensioners and bearings, I feel better changing these parts out while already in there.

Therefore I just had the Toyota dealership change my timing belt last month, my old timing belt was 12 years old with 110,000km on it. I told them if radiator hoses or clamps need replacing, to go ahead and replace them, but turns out they were still good (or they forgot to check). They used the entire contents of the AISIN TKT021 kit that I bought from RockAuto, including tensioner and bearings. Rumors of counterfeit AISIN kits on Amazon made me choose RockAuto. Toyota put all of the old parts back in the box and gave me the box, so I know they replaced everything.

Toyota tech also recommended a new serpentine belt - I installed an authentic Toyota 90916-02586 10 years ago, so figured they were correct in recommending a new one, so I got another 90916-02586 and installed it myself right after I got the car back from them. Neither my timing belt nor serpentine belt showed any wear, both looked 99% brand new. The 10 year old serpentine belt was browned on the outside but inside ribs were 99% perfect, one small section had very very minor cracking. I highly recommend the authentic Toyota belt over a cheapo aftermarket - the quality of the Toyota EPDM rubber is exceptionally high.

Use Toyota pink Super Long Life Coolant - the red LLC needs to be changed every 30,000km/24 months, whereas pink SLLC has an 80,000km interval and unlimited time interval. Some people may argue changing red LLC per the official interval will extend the life of your radiator etc etc longer than pink, but pink SLLC has been standard factory fill for practically all Lexus/Toyota worldwide since 2003, and when filled from the factory, the first change interval is 160,000km and unlimited time - they guarantee no problems with the radiator up to 160,000km and unlimited time on the factory fill. Both pink and red are fully mixable, but the 160,000km interval only applies to factory fill without ever touching red; if mixed with red at any point, you can only go 80,000km.

I haven't done my camshaft seals or valve cover seals, but if other people with higher mileage say to do them, and you are also at higher mileage, probably a good idea. According to another thread on these forums, valve cover seals may be fixed/extended by torquing the bolts down to proper specifications - I haven't had to do this yet.

Agree that if you're doing this yourself, may as well replace your power steering fluid since it's easy access to the lines. Not sure how much $ a shop would tack on if you request they do this. Otherwise, the easiest way is to do the syringe/turkey baster technique and incrementally replace the fluid via the reservoir.

Speaking of cleaning the throttle plate, you may want to do the full 3-step Toyota Induction Kit ( ) followed by a pressurized fuel injector cleaning ( ), and replace your throttle body gasket (22271-50042) if you have ever unsealed it - it is a non-reusable part.

 

That's quite contradictory - radiator drained, and the thermostat housing has to be removed to get to the timing belt. Again, why skip 15 dollars while you're in there??

 

Alternator brushes if original. And maybe fan clutch bearing bracket.

 

The expression goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. It's not the $15 to me, it's more the idea that what's in there is mechanical and perfectly fine. Also, my hunch is that what one buys for $15 in 2020, is not the same as what was installed in Tahara in Sept. 2005, on my '06.

Now if there's a problem, what are you gonna do except replace it.

I know with my wife's GM, when the radiator cap went bad, I bought the OE. It didn't "feel" right to me going on, and the entire shrouding with like 10+ clips has to be removed to access it. I then bought a Gates made in India. It did feel right but didn't have the proper markings but I kept it. Neither of these seemed to be the same quality as what came from the factory.

To each his own, but I appreciate indies who work on these day in and day out, when they give advice that makes them less money, in your interest.

The opposite? My wife had her alternator fixed under warranty. I looked it up and it's a $1,000 job lol and the part is made by Denso for GM. They said while we're in there we'll do your serpintine belt it's only another $75 in labor we won't charge you the full amount. I said nah you already have it completely off just put the old one back on. i don't negotiate with cheaters and i diy'd when I did her water pump which failed (hey it's a gm)