Ls 400 Timing Belt

[marc74]

Is there a way to know if the timing belt was replaced? I am buying the car frommy boss and he doesn't know if they did it or not, he just brings it in for service and they do what they do, he's not really interested in what they do but he s pretty religious about bringing it in for service. The car has 74,000 miles, would they have done it?

I read somewhere they put a sticker or something under the hood saying it was done, is that true? Anyone know??

[Carrera228]

yes, they put a sticker (in my case, near the shock tower on the passenger's side) with the mileage and the date the timing belt was done. if your are unsure, get the service records from the dealership/ shop the car has been maintined at; they will be able to confirm if it was done.

[wandawoods]

Is there a way to know if the timing belt was replaced?  I am buying the car frommy boss and he doesn't know if they did it or not, he just brings it in for service and they do what they do, he's not really interested in what they do but he s pretty religious about bringing it in for service.  The car has 74,000 miles, would they have done it?

I read somewhere they put a sticker or something under the hood saying it was done, is that true?  Anyone know??

just got mine done couple of days ago!

if the car was serviced at any Lexus dealership, trust me, the car owner would know whether timing belt/pump/pulleys were replaced or not. because it would be a whopping $1200 job at dealership! unless $1.2K is just small change to him....

although it may last as long as 120K, but it seems that replacing TB @ 90K was mentioned and recommended quite a few times in this forum.

[oversteer]

Definitely follow wandawoods' advice and get the service record at the dealer. I do that before I buy any car and Lexus has a great system for seeing the history. I have found the service techs are usually pretty willing to do it for you. Lexus just implemented a new Widows based nationwide service system so I think they like showing it off.

Chet

[wandawoods]

mine was done by independent mechanic so Lexus system won't have any record of it.

I did found a sticker left to the hook of engine hood and indicated the 1st TB change was done @ 77K. so, I might have changed the TB well ahead of schedule, but I'm glad I did cuz my mechanic found that the previous job was very shaddy, there were no gaskets anywhere for water pump assembly, it was just bunch of thick glue, and I might have water leaks pretty soon! there were also bunch of screws/bolts were missing too!

I bought this car used and these were the things in there that a so-called $75 'pre-purchase' checkout could never find out cuz one needs to remove bunch of stuffs attached to engine to see the true pictures.

also, my mechanic stated that while buying an used car, stays away from any car with 'super-clean' engine compartment cuz it may have been cleaned by pressure wash which is a really bad practice to all the electrnics under the hood! he rather see a dirty compartment so he can see what was done or was not to the car.

specific to LS400, stay away from the one with air-bag type suspension! they are prone to failure and ultra expensive to fix (about $800 per wheel!) or to convert.

[marc74]

Thanks all