98 1uz-fe Timing Belt And Water Pump Replacement How_to

richardkwon · April 5, 2013

14. I took off the timing belt covers (or as the service manual calls "RH No. 3 Timing Belt Cover" and "LH No. 3 Timing Belt Cover). The left hand (driver) side cover is easy to remove. Using a 10mm extended socket, remove the 4 bolts and the nut in the center. For more space, undo the small coolant hose that goes from the water inlet to the engine on the top right side. Otherwise, the cover hits the hose and there's not much space to wriggle it out. The sensor connections are attached to the cover via 2 small black plastic clips. Mine had become so brittle with age and heat that they were not usable. Will have to get some replacements from the dealer. I don't want my camshaft sensor wiring to be flopping in the wind. Using a flat tipped screwdriver undo the round black rubber grommet and bag it with your bolts. I thought I had cracked mine but there is already a split in the grommet through which the wiring can go through. Remove the timing belt cover.

For the right hand (passenger) side cover, remove the 3 bolts and the nut. There are a couple of hoses that are held onto the cover on the left side of the cover. Just pop the two hoses off the holder. There is a small metal tubing that runs across the cover and to the right is a small rubber hose. Undo the hose on the right side, let it hang and then remove the cover.

Both my covers had belt dust and dirt on the inside. The rubber gaskets are still in ok condition. I was thinking of replacing them but I don't think it is necessary. There is no oil or coolant for it to come in contact with so I am reusing it. The driver side gasket had some oil and gunk from the leaking valve cover. I will clean it up and it should be good to go.

15. Now remove the 2 bolts to the water inlet housing using a short extension and a 12mm socket. The bolt on the left is quite a bit longer than the right bolt. Now comes the fun part, getting the damn housing off. First, you've already taken off the coolant hose that is connected to the engine on the top right side. I plan on replacing this hose with a new one so I left it connected to the water inlet so that I know how to perfectly position it at installation. Now comes the fun part of removing the water inlet housing. I fought and fought with it and even banged it with a rubber mallet a couple of times, which I do not recommend as it could possibly damage the aluminum. The first thing to do is to first wriggle it up and down. Then I took a long thick screwdriver and gently pried where the bolt thread is while at the same time wriggling it up and down and back and forth. Be patient and soon enough it will come undone. The reason why it is so difficult to remove is because of the rubber O-ring at the inlet and the FIPG (black gasket material) that is stuck onto the housing. And as usual, have some towels underneath. Again, some frickin' coolant spilled out and now I'm at 1 win and 3 losses for the year.

richardkwon · April 6, 2013

Good job. I guess there is no turning back now!? :D

I've gone to the dark side. Absolutely no turning back. It's fun though. I'm enjoying this more than I thought I would.

richardkwon · April 6, 2013

Attached is a pic of the old serpentine belt and a new Gates one. The old belt has got cracks at every valley/indentation but the back of the belt (although shiny and glossy from wear) is still held on together very well. Not bad for a 118K mile belt.

landar · April 6, 2013

Good job so far. You will cherish the memories (and vow never to do it again! jk ^_^ )

richardkwon · April 6, 2013

16. Using a 24" breaker bar and a 22mm socket, turned the crankshaft clockwise to 0 Top Dead Center. Both left and right camshaft pulleys aligned also. I was expecting to have to use tremendous force to turn the crankshaft but it was really easy to turn. Not too difficult force wise at all to turn the crankshaft. Piece of cake.

Tomorrow I'm going to buy a puller to remove the power steering pulley, loosen up the alternator and then prepare for the big showdown with the all powerful god: the famous crankshaft bolt!

Attached are some pics of the timing belt, the crankshaft at TDC and the camshaft pulleys aligned. The outer part of the belt has numerous cracks in it but the inner side looks good. This is where all the reinforcement and inner webbing is so I think this belt could have lasted a while longer. The passenger side camshaft lined up perfectly but the drivers side is off just by the tiniest bit. I rotated the crankshaft again twice just to make sure and it aligns the same way. The timing on the car has always been spot on so I'm not going to worry about it.

richardkwon · April 6, 2013

17. Took off the power steering pulley and nut. The nut is turned counterclockwise using a 17mm socket. To keep the pulley from spinning, insert a long screwdriver (or 2 like I did) into any pulley opening (there are 4) and wedge it in the area on top of the alternator and below the pump. See pic. Make sure you never wedge it in to something that can come into contact such as a loose hose. Give a couple of soft trial pulls to make sure you won't bend or damage something and then undo the bolt. Or you can use an impact wrench. My electric wrench was too big to fit so I did it the old fashioned way. It will take some muscle, but use it and the nut will come free. As for pulling the pulley off, I first smacked it lightly with a rubber mallet a couple of times and used both hands and pulled it free. Try to smack it directly from behind towards the front and not at an angle as this could possibly damage/strip the gears. Did not have to use a puller although some may have to depending on your fate.

18. Remove the top alternator nut (12MM using an extended socket) and the long bolt at the bottom. Be careful of the AC hose at the bottom bolt. Then slide the alternator towards the front and you are done.

The reason both of these items need to be removed is because the belt tensioner housing is located behind.

19. Using a 12mm socket, removed the 2 bolts and removed the flywheel housing.

I'm still trying to figure out how and where to wedge the screwdriver or allen wrench into the flywheel. Does the short part of the allen key have to face the passenger side to remove the CS bolt?

richardkwon · April 6, 2013

Landar,

Any suggestions on how to set up the flywheel lock with the allen wrench? From your FlickR picture, it looks like the allen wrench is in the middle of the flywheel hole. On mine, the large hole in the flywheel is all the way on the left (passenger) side. Do I just set the allen wrench in the hole to just lay there? Which way does the head face, passenger or driver side?

I'm confused.

landar · April 6, 2013

I put a large allen key in the hole of the flywheel (flexplate) with the key 'L' facing left. Then slowly rotate the crankbolt CCW until you feel the resistance of the key. Get back underneath and verify that the key seems to be securely wedged and is not about to slip out. The key at this point should be all the way against the drivers side of the bellhousing. Once you are convinced that the key is secure, get a long breaker bar on that crank bolt and give several strong but steady 'jerks' (to mimic an impact). I heard a heck of a screech and the crank bolt broke free.

Heres a pic of the allen key in position just before pulling.

richardkwon · April 7, 2013

So since the hole of my fllex plate has a while to go before it wedges the key, turning the crankshaft ccw won't disturb the timing? And when you say the L is facing left you mean the passenger side correct?

landar · April 7, 2013

Yes on all of that. The short leg of the allen is facing toward the passenger side. Your timing belt is still on so your cams will turn in concert with the pistons and a little CCW motion will not hurt anything, timing-wise. Once the bolt is broken free, you are going to readjust the crank back to 50 degrees ATDC. If fact, even when you get the timing belt off, the crank may get moved a few degrees (+/-10) when you are making adjustments and it wont hurt a thing. Just bring it back to roughly the same area.

richardkwon · April 7, 2013

OK, I tried again using the Allen and trying to place the short leg of the allen into the flexplate hole with the short leg facing toward the passenger side. I noticed that the flywheel turns in the same direction as the crankshaft. When I have the crank at TDC, and turn the crank CCW to get the flywheel hole to turn enough to get some resistance onto the allen, the timing mark goes past the 10 mark and maybe even more?

And I'm not trying to get the allen itself onto the flywheel teeth, correct?

I've attached a picture of the allen that I am using and I'm wondering if the short leg is long enough? I'm worried about the allen getting sucked into the housing like the previous poster said and/or getting stuck in there and not being able to take it out. I've attached a pic of the allen that I am using. How would a screwdriver work? Obviously there's no leg on a screwdriver to face left?

The first pic is a general pic of the flywheel housing. The second is a more close up and you can see the holes are either on the extreme right and left of the gold colored 10 bolt which means the crank has to be turned quite a bit before they cause the allen to resist. I tried getting the short leg into the right side hole but there is not enough room to get it into the hole. I guess that is almost the exact position where there would be resistance. So, should I turn the crank CCW a bit to get the flywheel to move just a little bit to get the allen into the right hole? I'm concerned about disturbing the timing.

I knew this crankshaft bolt was going to cause me a headache.

landar · April 7, 2013

Again, do not be concerned about the exact timing position of the crank at this time. The timing belt is still on so everything is good. Move the crank where you need to to get the flexplate hole, tool and housing to 'wedge'. And there is no magic about the Allen key. I used it only because an earlier poster did and would agree that it may not be ideal(I do believe the 'L' on mine was a bit longer). Actually, a hardwood (not soft pine) dowel as big as possible (1" or more) would probably be ideal. That would slip thru the flexplate hole and allow resistance while not potentially damaging anything. The wood would give before any metal. So, feel free to look around and find something else in the garage. Something rather large that could be hooked around that flexplate hole. I have a small crowbar that I could hook around the flexplate hole and that would probably work very well. Is the hardware store open today? ;-)

richardkwon · April 7, 2013

Landar, do I have to first set the timing to 50 degrees? So basically advance to 50 degrees, then place allen in flywheel and then undo the crankshaft bolt?

Or is it the crank is at 0 TDC and then place allen in flywheel?

Because I had it set at TDC and then moved back CCW and the timing mark moved back to 10. Hope I did not do any damage.

landar · April 7, 2013

Richard, forget about the 50 degrees After Top Dead Center for now. That comes later when you get ready to remove the timing belt. That is when movement of the crank and cams becomes more critical. Just rotate the crank to a point where you can get the tool wedged in the flexplate. Do not worry about timing marks in the least at this point in the game. You have done no damage at all so far.

I was wondering however, if it might be worth your while to order a crank holding tool and wait for that to arrive. They are about $70. Might take some of the stress off this project?

richardkwon · April 7, 2013

Thanks Landar. I had thought about ordering the crank holding tool also but I think I am over thinking this thing.

Will give it a shot.

richardkwon · April 7, 2013

Got the crankshaft bolt off!

I'm so excited I could sh*t and pi*s in my pants at the same time.

Thanks Landar for the confidence boost. More details to come.

richardkwon · April 8, 2013

20. Basically I got the crankshaft bolt undone. I was very surprised at how effortless it was in terms of force used to get the bolt loose. I guess this has a lot to do with the great dry weather we have in Texas along with no salt on our roads. :D

First, I moved the timing to 50 degrees and then I used a 3/8 allen and lodged it into the flywheel. An 8mm can also be used but I did not have one that size. At this point, the hole in the flywheel is exactly in the middle of the housing and the allen can be placed in very easily with the L facing the passenger side. Note that the flywheel moves with the crankshaft in that if the crankshaft goes clockwise, so will the flywheel. If you are worried that the allen will somehow get sucked into the house, take a locking plier and lock it onto the allen.

Using a 24" breaker bar and a 22mm socket, and standing behind the passenger fender, slowly turn counterclockwise until you feel the flywheel lock up. The crankshaft and the cams will move back probably around 10 to 25 degrees. Go back underneath and check the flywheel and allen just to make sure everything is ok, and then using both hands on the bar, turn the bolt until it comes loose. I did not hear any screech or have to put up any kind of fight. The bolt came undone in just one pull. :o At first I could not believe it and thought the movement was the crankshaft pulley going backwards. And like anything, please be careful of your back when using any type of brute physical force.

A picture of the almighty crankshaft bolt is attached. I've attached 3 pictures of this precious and prized bolt. :rolleyes: It will have some rust on it. After the bolt is loose, you can then turn the crankshaft a little bit forward and then take out the allen. To remove the bolt again, I used my old serpentine belt, wrapping it around the crankshaft pulley to keep it from moving and the bolt will come undone easily.

At this point, it is good to check that your timing marks are at approximately 50 degrees. I've turned the crank probably 20 or so times already throughout this whole process just to make sure. When turning, some times it will be really easy force wise and other times you will feel the compression almost like it wants to turn back but as long as you don't feel metal on metal contact you will be fine. Man, I'm sounding like a pro now. I can't believe it.

Now it's on to removing the crankshaft pulley and it looks like it's all downhill from here. Or maybe not. I know I'm gonna have some questions when it's time to get that new timing belt back on.

Another thing, when I was using the breaker bar to undo the bolt, the bar touched the small coolant hose and spilled some more coolant onto the driveway. :wacko: Frickin' unbelievable. I'm now at 1 win and 4 losses.

richardkwon · April 9, 2013

21. Take off the serpentine tensioner (aka drive belt tensioner) nuts (3), remove the 2 bolts holding the No. 2 Timing Belt Cover (located in the middle just to the right of the serpentine tensioner). Then pull and slide off the alternator gently and set it aside to the immediate left. No need to unhook any wires to the alternator. Then, remove the serpentine tensioner and the No. 2 Timing Belt Cover together.

22. To remove the crankshaft pulley, I bought a harmonic balancer puller set from Advance Auto for $18. The set comes with various bolts to screw into the pulley. I used the two mid length bolts and screwed them about an inch into the pulley. You can hand tighten these but I needed a 1/2" socket to fully seat it about an inch. You may also want to grease/oil the screws to help !Removed! in more easily with all the rust in the thread. I found it helpful to use a ruler and stop when I had screwed it in an inch. If you go in to far, it will hit a wall and you will know to back it out some. Make sure you put on the supplied nose to the point of the black bolt, otherwise you will destroy the thread to the crankshaft bolt and that will definitely not be a good thing. The nose pops on and off very easily and is held by a rubber o-ring. Make sure the bolts are evenly aligned. Using a 19mm socket, turn clockwise on the long black bolt. I had to ratchet it about 20 or so times. You will see the pulley moving off slowly. Right before it is about to come off you can take it off by hand or make sure your hand is underneath the pulley cradling it so it won't fall down.

23. Then, using a 10mm socket with an extension, remove the 4 bolts holding the black No. 1 Timing Belt Cover (the one behind the crankshaft pulley with the "0" and "10" marks. Be careful when you pull the cover. There is a small male clip at the bottom and it just pulls straight out. If you try prying from the left like I did, it will be more difficult to pry out. Try to use both hands, one on the left side and the other on the right and wriggle it out first from the left side a little more than the right if that makes any sense.

I noticed there was some old oil residue on the bottom of the No. 1 Timing Belt Cover where the male clip is. The cover has a rubber seal around it. The oil and grime was fairly caked on at the bottom. I noticed that towards the bottom where the male clip is, the rubber seal is not a perfect seal. There is a small opening at the bottom and I'm sure the Toyota engineers engineered this so that when and if the front crankshaft seal leaks oil, there will at least be somewhere for the oil to go (meaning gravitating toward the bottom of the front of the oil pan and then to the bottom) and not contaminate the belt and destroy it. Very clever. I'll have to clean the rubber seal/gasket on the cover but I think it is still looks good. Could not really tell with all the grime, dirt and oil on it. I'm debating on whether to replace the front crankshaft seal at this point.

24. Take off the Timing Belt Guide (aka Crankshaft Angle Sensor Plate). It comes right off. Notice the the front side is concave and the back side will have black residue from the timing belt. Also, note that there is only one way for it to come back on and that is with the small keyed notch. The same with the crankshaft pulley. See the pics.

Tomorrow the fan bracket comes off.

richardkwon · April 9, 2013

25. I removed the drive belt idler pulley (top middle pulley/idler) using a 12mm socket. Very easy.

26. To remove the fan bracket, remove the 2 nuts (one is a 10mm and the other is a 12mm). To remove the 4 remaining bolts (all of different lengths), use a 12mm wrench: The 11mm long bolt on the front top right, the 12mm long bolt on the bottom right front, the 7mm long bolt on the top right side (easy access under the driver side by the ac compressor) and the 10mm long bolt which is on the bottom right side. Now this bolt is hidden under a metal clip that is attached by 2 screws. Not wanting to bend the metal as Landar suggests, I first tried to undo the 2 Philips screws. But guess what, there is very little room and the angle is poor. The positive battery cable is in the way. Great, so I'll move it to the side. Still can't get enough torque. Looks like to undo this bracket, you will need an impact screwdriver to undo the screws. Again, the angle is very tough so the battery would also have to come out. Rather than strip the screws, I decided to just do as Landar says and bend the right part of the bracket forward and up towards the bumper. This allows you to get a 12mm offset wrench onto the bolt. I'll leave undoing those screws for a later job and another time if I ever have to remove the AC compressor. From above, due to the angle and very little room for the wrench to move, I found it extremely difficult to push down to undo the bolt. So I got underneath the car and was able to pull down on the wrench much easier. Taking the bolt out by hand is cumbersome but be patient and it will come out. Then to remove the fan bracket, the same metal clip also has a left side that will have to be pried forward. Don't bend it too much or it could break. Then wriggle out the fan bracket.

27. Remove the plastic timing belt cover spacer (dust cover) right by idler pulley No. 2. Comes out easily by hand.

With the fan bracket attached, I did not notice any kind of wobble or uneven spinning. With the bracket off, I spun the shaft end and noticed a nice grinding sound and noticed that it spins quite freely. I compared it to a new fan bracket and the new one does not make any sound and is very firm and tight when turning. A nice twist will only go about one half revolution. I'm pretty sure this is where the continuous grinding sound was coming from when I would listen to the car at idle. I had asked my mechanic about this noise and he could never have an answer for me and just say that was normal. That's why I like working on my car by myself because I will know every detail and get it right.

I would really recommend changing out your bracket when doing the timing belt change. The bracket itself is only $120 to $150 and I'm sure it will make a world of difference in the sound and smoothness of the car and the operation of the serpentine belt. Think about how many millions or billions of revolutions that thing has gone through. The round belt pulley thing comes off by hand. It may be stuck on due to the rust but just give it a tap and it will come off the 4 threads. I noticed some corrosion on the aluminum surface so I took some scotch brite and now it looks nice and clean.

landar · April 10, 2013

Thats a good suggestion about changing out the fan bracket. I left mine in on the first 90k belt change but thought I would change it at the 180k point. But it might be smart to just go ahead and change it at every belt change just like the water pump. The cost is fairly small compared to the labor involved.

richardkwon · April 10, 2013

Landar, when removing the timing belt, do I undo it from the right cam first? I guess basically use a 19mm socket and turn the cam clockwise a bit and then slide the belt off? And then slowly release the cam (let it go back ccw)? I assume the "equilibrium" position that you talk about is basically the cam coming back to 50 degrees?

After the belt is slipped off the right cam, I assume the rest of the belt will slip off easily

landar · April 10, 2013

You want to make sure the crank is approx at 50 degrees ATDC before pulling the belt. The reason being is if the cam "snap-rolls" (due to valve spring pressure) the pistons will be sufficiently clear. So, you have to temporarily throw your plastic timing mark cover back on and slip the crank pulley back on the crankshaft to move things around.

To remove the belt, I simply pulled the belt tensioner out and put a 19mm on one of the cams to create some additional slop in the belt. Its a little bit like pushing on a rope. So, I think I put the socket on the LH (drivers) cam and with CCW pressure (which makes slack on the RH(passenger) cam, I removed the belt off of the RH cam. Even with the tensioner removed there is going to be a fairly good amount of tension on the belt. It just fits very tight and you have to wriggle the belt from behind the cam, maybe use a large screwdriver or other tool to help. Once off the cam, removing the rest of the belt is trivial. And do not freak out if the cam(s) should snap roll a few degrees on you. Its fairly normal and happened to me.

Putting the new belt on is a reverse of the removal but plan on some time to get it right. I had to make multiple attempts AND found the markings on the new belt showing where CR and RH/LH go to be very helpful. Getting the new belt on correctly is your job #1. It has to be exactly tooth-on or there will be problems later. Not all that hard to do but will require lots of patience.

richardkwon · April 10, 2013

Ok I will attempt this afternoon. Thanks for your help.

richardkwon · April 11, 2013

You want to make sure the crank is approx at 50 degrees ATDC before pulling the belt. The reason being is if the cam "snap-rolls" (due to valve spring pressure) the pistons will be sufficiently clear.

Once off the cam, removing the rest of the belt is trivial. And do not freak out if the cam(s) should snap roll a few degrees on you. Its fairly normal and happened to me.

Landar,

The belt came off very easily. However, when I first slipped off the belt off the right hand cam, I heard the snap roll and the cam moved back (left) about 1 notch. The LH cam did not move. How do I get the RH Cam back to 50 degrees or does it matter and should I just leave it as is?

I did not even need the 19mm socket to hold or turn the cam at all.

richardkwon · April 11, 2013

28. Remove the timing belt tensioner using a 12mm socket wrench. I first tried to get the bolts loose from the top of the engine using a 12mm wrench but it kept slipping off as the bolts are slightly angled inward towards the firewall. I thought maybe the 12mm was too big but that's not the case. So rather than strip the bolt, I found it much easier to remove the bolts by going underneath the car using a breaker bar with a foot long extension. The right side bolt near the driver side can come off first. Then undo the second bolt and the tensioner should pull down and off easily. Don't forget the rubber cap. The belt does come unloose a bit with the tensioner removed. The tensioner will be very rusted on the outer tube part but that's ok, we are replacing it with a new one anyway.

29. To remove the timing belt, I gently placed my finger underneath the belt on the inner side (nearest the firewall) at the top of the right hand cam (passenger side). I heard the snap roll and voila, the belt just slipped right off. I noticed the RH Cam rolled back about a notch. The LH Cam did not move at all. I was very surprised at how easily the belt came off. For safety measure, you may want to use a screwdriver instead of your finger.

30. Remove the No. 1 Idler Pulley (the smaller black and reddish/orange pulley near the passenger side) using a 10mm allen socket. It's on there fairly tight so I used a breaker bar and just like the crankshaft bolt, I found it easiest to stand behind the passenger fender and pull. Very easy. Make sure you remove the metal washer with the bolt and be sure this is placed back on with the new pulley. It is very important.

31. Remove the No. 2 Idler Pulley (the larger reddish/orange pulley near the driver side) using a 14mm socket wrench with a small extension. Again comes off very easily. This pulley needs to be removed before the water pump can come off, otherwise it will be in the way.