Changing Timing Belt And Water Pump?

[914lps]

I have been reading the posts for about a month and a half. I’m getting smarter on and about my car. I think all you kind folks. And to show my thanks, I’m going to pick your minds some more.

It seems like every post I have read about replacing a timing belt, be it the school of fix it before it goes out, or those that say, let her brake, then fix it. Everyone seems to do the water pump at the same time. Why?

Is it simply because most of the work to replace the pump is done at that time, so for the cost of a water pump do it??? Or is there more of a reason.

And how much time on average should it take an experienced mechanic with all the needed tools to do the job, if this is their first time on a Lexus and their using the tutorials.

Thanks

[lexus400]

Yes, you have one the reasons... that you're already in there and touching the pump and they don't last forever. But, a second reason which a lot of people overlook is that the a high percentage of TB failures is caused by the water pump

seizing and that's what causes the belt to break. Have you done any TB work in the past ? If so, you can probably handle this and you'll save at least $500 by doing it yourself.

Bob

[daffy]

I have been reading the posts for about a month and a half.  I’m getting smarter on and about my car.  I think all you kind folks.  And to show my thanks, I’m going to pick your minds some more.

It seems like every post I have read about replacing a timing belt, be it the school of fix it before it goes out, or those that say, let her brake, then fix it.  Everyone seems to do the water pump at the same time.  Why?

Is it simply because most of the work to replace the pump is done at that time, so for the cost of a water pump do it??? Or is there more of a reason.

And how much time on average should it take an experienced mechanic with all the needed tools to do the job, if this is their first time on a Lexus and their using the tutorials.

Thanks

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Hi,

There is a lot of work to replace the timing belt and for the price of the water pump, might as well replace it and know that your reliablity will be there. Water pump is not expensive for this car. Even though some of these water pumps can go for a long time, reliablity should be high on your list too? IF water pump quits, so does your car. If fan belt goes- car will still go until your battery dies (it happened to me once). Daffy

[Lexls]

It takes a lot of work to get to the water pump. As mentioned, the part is not that expensive. So it is replaced as a preventitive measure. The extra labor cost for doing the water pump in addition to the TB is extremely small.

[jadecuir]

I have been reading the posts for about a month and a half.  I’m getting smarter on and about my car.  I think all you kind folks.  And to show my thanks, I’m going to pick your minds some more......

.......

And how much time on average should it take an experienced mechanic with all the needed tools to do the job, if this is their first time on a Lexus and their using the tutorials.

Thanks

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I just finished the job of which you speak. My timing belt had just over 90k on it. But the motivation to change it was the weeping waterpump. I had to add coolant about once a week. The belt looked like it could go another 90k. Likewise with the Idler/tensioner rollers. IMHO, you should leisurely shop on Ebay for the parts you will likely replace: Belt, Idler roller, tensioner roller, waterpump, distributor caps/rotors. I spent about $200 for all of the above. Then wait for the waterpump to leak. If you just can't wait, then dive in when you have the time. I did mine over three days, about 4 hours per day. Caution! There are some glaring omissions in the tutorials on this site. Nothing a decent do-it-yourselfer can't figure out, but it will slow you down occasionally. If I had the time, and a camera I didn't care about, I would do a followup tutorial.

[914lps]

I'm a strong believer in preventive measures. I also understand that if you are dealing with a lot of labor, and small parts cost. It is best and smartest to replace all those inexpensive parts along the way. Just so they are done.

I know If my water pump went out I would replace the timing belt broken or not, just so I would not have to do it again.

As for do it yourself. Man I can work on and fix just about anything. But when it comes to cars.... I tend to fix one thing and brake something along the way. So, I tend to only do very small things.

It's really strange. I can work on a boat motor, but let me work on a car, and things tend to go wrong.

It is just one of those strange things.

But boat engines are much simpler and you have lots more room to work in.

Part of the reason I’m asking about how much time, is a locale mechanic who is a nice guy, wants to work on the Lexus, as he “likes to get into cars he has never worked on before. He likes to learn about them and he likes to see “how” that car does things”. He is a nice guy and is honest etc. He is willing to take on any job, as long as I have some kind of guide to follow. His labor rate is $55.00 per hour. He will do the work himself, not one of his employees. As for the time he will charge. He states he will adjust the time he spends, down, to adjust for the learning curve.

Am, extremity inclined to have him do this stuff, as I’m not that good with car’s. And he has all the tools. I also know if he “brakes it. He will tell me and eat the cost if it was his fault.

[blake918]

Is it simply because most of the work to replace the pump is done at that time, so for the cost of a water pump do it???

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That's why I did it. I bought the water pump at irontoad.com for $90 which is a Lexus part. I wouldn't recommend generic parts; 8+ hours of your time is not worth a $100 gamble. Lexus parts are expensive because they last(and they can get it because of the Lexus demographic too). I used oem parts, and I paid about $300 for the 2 idlers, belt, tensioner, and pump. There are a few other things to do "while you're in there" like cam and crank seals, ignition componets, etc.

As far as the time it takes, JP Importz said his best record for the timing belt change was about 3 hours. Jason is a beast of a Lexus mechanic though! It took us about 8 hours to change the belt and water pump on my '95 when we did it in August of '04. The job is nothing terribly complicated; it's just very time consuming.

[Wilfred]

I just found this and its quite interesting

http://planetsoarer.com/cambelt/cambelt.htm

[flanker271]

About how many miles should one expect a water pump to last? Also, let's say you changed your timing belt at 100,000 miles. Is it necessary to change the belt again when your LS reach over 200,000 miles?

[92Lex]

Recommended change interval is 90k miles or 7 years...whichever comes first.

It's not that you have to change the WP along with the TB but it would wise to. It's not fun having to tear everything apart a second time, like say 10k miles after you replaced the timing belt, just to replace the WP that you could of knocked off the first time around.

Hey jadecuir, what's wrong with my tutorial? I'm sorry if I left something out but you have to understand this...it ain't easy doing a TB while taking pics of EVERY single step.

[95LS400Bob]

Because Murphy's law says if you don't change the pump while your in there you will be back in there to change the pump.

[jadecuir]

Hey jadecuir, what's wrong with my tutorial? I'm sorry if I left something out but you have to understand this...it ain't easy doing a TB while taking pics of EVERY single step.

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I'm not knocking your tutorial. I couldn't have done the job without it! But,....there were a few items missing that slowed me down. For example, how/when to remove plug wires/coil wires and holders( not hard to figure out), how to compress tensioner piston(found with belt supplier's instructions), extra bolts where A/C compressor attaches to housing/waterpump(may be different on later years), and how to clean RTV out of the holes where the long studs go thru the waterpump( I'm so slow, that by the time I was putting them in, the RTV had dried, and I had to dig it out with an undersized drillbit). There might have been a few other stumbling blocks, but overall, a very thorough tutorial, and I thank you for the effort.

John DeCuir

[92Lex]

Your tensioner didn't come pre-compressed? Removing wires isn't really necessary...just loosen the distributor caps and flop them out of the way. Are you refering to the 2 hidden 12mm bolts on the side of the fan bracket?

[jadecuir]

Your tensioner didn't come pre-compressed? Removing wires isn't really necessary...just loosen the distributor caps and flop them out of the way. Are you refering to the 2 hidden 12mm bolts on the side of the fan bracket?

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My tensioner was ok, so I didn't replace it. Looked easy enough to replace later, if it gives up. I pulled all the wires, removed the plugs, and checked the compression while waiting for parts to arrive. The A/C comp had two large bolts, with 14mm heads, I think, that threaded into the fan bracket or waterpump, I can't remember which. I can't see 'em in your pix. It may be something unique to '90 model. I was so filthy most of the time, I couldn't touch the camera. I'm really amazed you were able to get the pictures you have, with apparently no smudges on the lens, either!

Like I said, great job!

John

[TexasLexus94]

I don't want to say I'm chicken, but my '94LS with 109,000 miles has the drip from the water pump, and the timing belt has never been changed, as far as I know. So I'm accumulating all the great advice from this forum. I'm a slow DIY'er, so I've taken precautions....

I've bought an old beater car, so I can take my time repairing the LS. No way I want to dump the LS-It's the best car I've ever owned, but if it takes a week to repair-no problemmo.

FYI-I just bought a P/S air control valve from Irontoad-It was $82 with shipping. Local Toyota wanted $102 plus tax=$110. Thanks LOC dudes.

[pkshin]

I have been reading the posts for about a month and a half.  I’m getting smarter on and about my car.  I think all you kind folks.  And to show my thanks, I’m going to pick your minds some more......

.......

And how much time on average should it take an experienced mechanic with all the needed tools to do the job, if this is their first time on a Lexus and their using the tutorials.

Thanks

←

I just finished the job of which you speak. My timing belt had just over 90k on it. But the motivation to change it was the weeping waterpump. I had to add coolant about once a week. The belt looked like it could go another 90k. Likewise with the Idler/tensioner rollers. IMHO, you should leisurely shop on Ebay for the parts you will likely replace: Belt, Idler roller, tensioner roller, waterpump, distributor caps/rotors. I spent about $200 for all of the above. Then wait for the waterpump to leak. If you just can't wait, then dive in when you have the time. I did mine over three days, about 4 hours per day. Caution! There are some glaring omissions in the tutorials on this site. Nothing a decent do-it-yourselfer can't figure out, but it will slow you down occasionally. If I had the time, and a camera I didn't care about, I would do a followup tutorial.

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