Water Pump Replacement-any "how To's"

[damon]

I need to replace the water pump on my 96 LS400. How do I do it? Big job?

[blake918]

Very big job. Atleast, 6-8 hours. You should do the timing belt, tensioner, idlers, and cam/crank seals while you're in there.

[damon]

Very big job. Atleast, 6-8 hours. You should do the timing belt, tensioner, idlers, and cam/crank seals while you're in there.

←

Thanks for ruining my day :chairshot:

[blake918]

If that ruined your day, you'll contemplate suicide when you have to do it. It's a miserable job; trust me, I've done it before....no fun at all! VMF has a diy tb tutorial on lextreme.com

Here's what my '95 looked like half way in:

[mbpgawest]

with Blake's comments, I know that I will be making a visit to my local dealer when I hit 90k to have all that taken care off. I'll just drive in bend over and take it like a man. OUCH!

[blake918]

LOL When I took that pic, I was thinking to myself is $1k really worth all of this?? Absolutely not...to me atleast. That was my first and last timing belt change. :D

[mbpgawest]

I'll do the simple repairs, but not major ones like this. That picture scarred the crap out of me. I have not been that deep in a car in over 10 years.

[monarch]

Here's a good "how to" water pump replacement tutorial: http://www.lexls.com/timingbelt.html

[PK_Lex]

that picture looks scary :o

[blake918]

I'll do the simple repairs, but not major ones like this. That picture scarred the crap out of me. I have not been that deep in a car in over 10 years.

←

I don't know if there is such a thing as a simple repair on the LS; changing the oil is even a PITA with that damn undercover with 20 screws in it. The best part is my cam/crank seals have a very, very slow ooze. All of that labor must be done over plus more. I'm going to bring it to Jason once it starts to do anything more than ooze. I wish I would have thought to do this while we were "in there."

that picture looks scary  :o

←

LOL....and back in one piece:

[PK_Lex]

VERY impressive *big thumbs up*

[Kennyr]

VERY impressive *big thumbs up*

←

I did my t-belt and water pump for the first time at 115k. It took me 4 1/2 hrs. I only had one long bolt left when I was done. It's been 30k since so I guess that bolt wont hurt me. Let me tell you the belt looked like it would go another 100k. Also the water pump was dry. I would not recomend you attempt this if your not a mechanic which I am. A grand is cheap. 1500 sounds more like it. Look for a Lexus Toyota independant shop in your area. Should save you 25%

[Shadow]

If that ruined your day, you'll contemplate suicide when you have to do it.    It's a miserable job; trust me, I've done it before....no fun at all!

Don't scare the man off! The pic looks ugly but it's not that bad once you start. I was nervous and scared before I started, but after taking off a few parts, things calm down and became straight forward. Just take your time and replace all wearing out parts. There were anxious moments here and there, but overall, it was the most comfortable and pleasureable big job that I had done on the LS, and I am looking forward to do it all over again (on my wife's) LS this summer.

[bicol-ini]

first and foremost, the factory repair manual is very big help, tons of information on how to do things the factory way, but some steps are also neglible, but if youre mechanically incline and loves to DIY then by all means tons of help out there, if confronted with problems, you caneven talked to lexus/toyota mechanics for advice,

[blake918]

VERY impressive *big thumbs up*

←

A grand is cheap. 1500 sounds more like it.

←

I was refering to $1k plus what I spent on parts which was about $400. ;) At any rate, JP Importz can do it for $1k with a loaner, so that's why I'm never going to do it again.

If that ruined your day, you'll contemplate suicide when you have to do it.    It's a miserable job; trust me, I've done it before....no fun at all!

Don't scare the man off! The pic looks ugly but it's not that bad once you start. I was nervous and scared before I started, but after taking off a few parts, things calm down and became straight forward. Just take your time and replace all wearing out parts. There were anxious moments here and there, but overall, it was the most comfortable and pleasureable big job that I had done on the LS, and I am looking forward to do it all over again (on my wife's) LS this summer.

←

I'm not scaring anyone off; that's very nice of you to think that everything I write gets set into stone and accepted as law, but that's just not the case. Anyways, what I said was true. If just the pictures scared him, then he should just setup an appointment with his local dealer/indie now. Mark, damon, and PK are all big boys. I think they can accurately assess the situation on their own regardless of my comments. Changing the timing belt is a big job. A comfortable and pleasureable job? That's a matter of personal opinion, one which I'd disagree with. Everything is pretty straightfoward, but this is a big, grueling job; that's why dealers can get what they get for it.

[damon]

Didn't scare me off...just prompted me to go look a little closer before digging in. Thanks for the great advice and pix, though!

Turns out (knock on wood) the lower radiator hose had a pin hole. This pin hole was only noticable when the rig was at operating temperature, and the radiator full of water. Anyway, the pin hole just happened to be spewing a small stream of water right onto the serpentine belt and the alternator pulley. To make a long story short, I think the water was making the belt whine a bit....and it was affecting the alternator's ability to charge the battery.

I sprayed some belt dressing on the belt and the pulleys, the whining stopped (thank God!), tells me the water pump is likely OK for another 15k miles, then I have to decide if I'm gonna replace the water pump or have it done.

Now, I know what to expect, and for that, I am grateful to all of you!

Damon

[Reyi]

I'd recommend taking it to an independant mechanic you trust if you decide not to do it yourself. I just had this big ol' job done myself (water pump, timing belt, tensioner, etc) and I had it all done for less than $600. Hell, I even needed a new serpentine belt and I had a power steering leak. Got that belt replace and the leak sealed and altogether the whole shibang only cost $627. At first I was like, HOLY CRAP (because I'm a poor student) but then I remembered how much it CAN cost, not to mention my mechanic got it all done in just under 6 hours.

If you can find a deal like that, I'd recommend it. Just my newbie opinion.

[VMF]

i wrote an article about changing timing belt and water pump

it can be found here:

http://www.lextreme.com/timing.htm

let me know if you have any questions

[Shadow]

I'm not scaring anyone off; that's very nice of you to think that everything I write gets set into stone and accepted as law,...

Don't kid yourself! Your words are your opinions and they are the last thing I "set into stone" or "accepted as law".

[blake918]

Didn't scare me off...just prompted me to go look a little closer before digging in.  Thanks for the great advice and pix, though!

Turns out (knock on wood) the lower radiator hose had a pin hole.  This pin hole was only noticable when the rig was at operating temperature, and the radiator full of water.  Anyway, the pin hole just happened to be spewing a small stream of water right onto  the serpentine belt and the alternator pulley.  To make a long story short, I think the water was making the belt whine a bit....and it was affecting the alternator's ability to charge the battery.

I sprayed some belt dressing on the  belt and the pulleys, the whining stopped (thank God!), tells me the water pump is likely OK for  another 15k miles, then I have to decide if I'm gonna replace the water pump or have it done.

Now, I know what to  expect, and for that, I am grateful to all of you!

Damon

←

I'm glad it turned out to be something other than the water pump!!!

Don't kid yourself!  Your words are your opinions and they are the last thing I "set into stone" or "accepted as law". 

←

I don't kid myself, and I told you that already; I suppose the part where i said "that's just not the case" was a little unclear, so let me reiterate what I said before. I put it in all caps and bold for easy reference:

I'm not scaring anyone off; that's very nice of you to think that everything I write gets set into stone and accepted as law, BUT THAT'S NOT THE CASE.

←

[Ribbler]

Here's a good "how to" water pump replacement tutorial: http://www.lexls.com/timingbelt.html

←

Call me crazy but that actually looks like fun!! I even have a lot of those tools!!

If anybody has to do this let me know - Maybe I'll come help.

[Lextreme]

I am doing my water pump, timing belt and other accessories. Be prepare to spend a weekend on it. Take your time and do it one at a time. U should also change out the crank and cam seals too. Since the engine is opened, might as well do it all at once.

david

Here's a good "how to" water pump replacement tutorial: http://www.lexls.com/timingbelt.html

←

Call me crazy but that actually looks like fun!! I even have a lot of those tools!!

If anybody has to do this let me know - Maybe I'll come help.

←