IS400

use either the impact gun, or put a big pipe on the wrench, and just do it, while ur helper is holding the flywheel.

if you dont have a helper, then you have to put the wrench, put it against the ground and crank the car just a bit to loosen it.

i did it without cranking, just with a wrench and a pipe over it.

O.K. Impact gun is not recommended due to risking damage to the crank bearings. I understand the wrench with the pipe over it, I have a long breaker bar and 22 mm socket ready to go. I am asking HOW did you keep the pulley from turning as you used the wrench? If you do not isolate the pulley it will just turn over the engine.

It is impossible to remove the bolt without keeping the pulley from turning somehow. If you are saying the only options are using my ENGINE to remove the bolt, using an IMPACT device inline with my crankshaft or buying the toyota isolation tool?

I'm sure toyota designed the tool so that they could prevent damage to the crank. Why build a special tool when every shop has an impact gun and 7.3 seconds to spare. I'm not being cheeky, but just do not want to be having bearing failure 1,000 miles from now from a, jeeez that's how we did it and our engine works fine still, technique.

A hammer removes the bezel from a watch pretty good, but that is not what the rolex designer had in mind.

If I told the toyota engineers that I cranked the engine to remove the bolt they would probably whisper to themselves in japanese, "twripical amrrriiikin fool."

There are threaded holes in the pulley, does anyone know even what this toyota pulley isolation tool looks like?

P.S. to any others that are thinking about doing their timing belt and water pump and have a leaking power steering pump, you probably have ps fluid getting on the belt and inside your engine.

I noticed as I started taking the engine down that on the passenger side there is a ton of fluid built up on the timing belt top cover and it seeps under an inadequate rubber gasket as it is thrown from the pump and gets inside where the belt is. I found fluid all over the place where the distributors are and on sensors and such.

A bad pump is going to damage more than your alternator is seems. I'm glad I took the time to do this job even though the tutorial lists only 3/4 of what you will encounter and is missing parts that you will need to replace.

There is no way to remove the radiator without removing the fan first, if you have AC. BTW when I did get my radiator out the surface that was next to the AC condensor was thick with decayed leaf matter. Over one half of the radiator was blocked at least a half inch thick. If you have a car over 100,000 miles and live in an area that the trees lose their leaves in the fall I'd take out your radiator and you will see at least a POUND of impacted leaves and debris. New leaves and twigs and bugs on top and each layer a little more decayed until you reach the radiator fins finally.

I thought I had a mouse nest the size of texas until I took it apart and identified all the layers of stuff. Pretty amazing that the car cooled itself at all in the summer.

Back to the drawing board on this pulley I guess...

My question is: How do you remove the crankshaft pulley bolt when it is torqued to 180 foot pounds and spins freely.

Your tutorial shows how to remove the pulley but does not show how to remove the pulley bolt. There is no way to remove the pulley without removing the bolt right?

How did your friend hold against 180 foot pounds by himself? How did he grab the crank pulley?

well you have to hold the flywheel if you dont want to crank the car, this how me and my buddy did it, one under the car and the other one using a wrench to pull the pulley off. we put a big piece of pipe on the wrench to have sufficient force to remove the pulley.

http://www.lextreme.com/timing.htm this is the howto that i wrote when i was changing mine, it seems u might have gotten a wrong tool, look at the pic of mine and how to connect it to the pulley

I have the same tool you do in your tutorial. Step 18 and 19 do not show how to remove the bolt. All the pictures show either the bolt already out or the puller in place to remove the pulley.

How did you remove the bolt?

How can you access the bolt if the remover is locked in place?

I understand you are describing a way to keep the pulley from turning, but my rented remover looks like a clover leaf with a threaded hole in the middle and slots on the 'leaves' for various pulley diameters.

Is this the type you are talking about or did you use something different?

I bought all the parts and tools for changing my water pump and timing belt for my 90. I got the list of parts and tools from your knowledge base article. Cracked open everything and now I read the part where the author wants me to put a 22 mm socket on a breaker bar and crank the engine while whacking the floor with the bar.

Do you moderators actually condone this technique? I'm pretty good with a wrench, I took off my 200,000 mile plus steering rack solenoid with five good hits with a hammer and chisel, but this sounds like madness to me.

I'm asking if there are any ways to keep that crank pulley from moving while appying the gorilla force to loosen that pulley bolt, without buying the lexus/toyota specialty too.. I'm stuck at this point and with a rented pulley remover that has to be returned tomorrow before noon. I'm ready to wedge something between pulleys before cranking my engine against a breaker bar.

Notice that the crank pulley bolt in the knowledge base tutorial is mangled? Wonder how it got that way.

I have smelled coolant before and noticed small puddles under the car after a hard run. I found an ebay seller that has a kit with the pump and belt and gaskets for $215 plus shipping. Based on the design of the pump, it will wear out no matter the manufacturer IMO.

Plug wires. Test with a clamp on ohm meter is what you mean? What should they read for resistance?

Ordering the kit tomorrow morning unless you boys tell me it is rubbish.

I'm not going to spend $1,500 on a 200,000 mile car at the lexus dealership when I can turn wrenches myself.

Just got done doing the lower ball joints. If I didn't have strong legs, those lower bolts would have NEVER come off!

Thanks for all your replies!

Hey Lion, yours has a timing belt that should be changed @ 90k miles according to Lexus. If you have a mechanic that will do the labor, you can buy OEM parts on ebay, have them install them, and save some $$$. Welcome to the club

Hey guys.

I just put my lexus in storage for the winter and wanted to do some maintenance items, like plug wires, timing belt, water pump and starter contacts. I was told to adjust the valves also. Sounds a bit tough without experience to me.

What should I be paying for a water pump on e-bay?

The car had regular service by the previous owner at lexus right up until 144,000 miles when it was sold.

The timing belt was listed as replaced at 60,000 miles, but the tech could not find another time it was replaced but admitted his computer was having trouble pulling up all the screens. Do you think it likely it was changed again after the 60,000 mile mark if the schedule was followed by the dealer?

Thanks for any ideas or suggestions for my engine teardown over the next month of weekends.

Don't take my word for it, but you cannot run a ecm (computer) car without a battery at proper voltage, within reason. That is why you got the low volt warning those couple of days maybe. The computer recognized the bat was not charging.

Ding. Ding. Ding! We have a winner!

That is why it will not jump. It cannot run on just an alternator IMO. It needs constant, regulated voltage for the computer and sensors etc.

Take your battery to the local autozone, kragers etc. and get it tested. If it tests dead, get another one.

Ok today I cleaned the corrosion off the battery and even lubed it with the stuff they gave me at autozone. My car still wouldn't start. I turn the key and nothing happens. I don't even get a crank or anything no sound. All the light comes on and now my stereo doesn't even work. It was the first thing to go right before my engine shut down. Everything else does but my stereo doesn't even work anymore. The lights are also weak, but not very weak. I don't know what's going on with my stupid car. Ok so here's the conclusion. My stereo doesn't work, the car won't even crank when I turn the key, and I don't even think my alternator is recharging my battery. Also even when I try to jump my car nothing happens. So does anyone have any idea what's going on because I'm so stumped right now. PLEASE HELP, I hate not having a car.

How old is your battery? Take it out and see if it is swollen. My boat has dual batteries and I buy them alternately every year. That way I always have one that is relatively new. Getting stranded on the water is a lot worse than what you had happen.

When I have had a battery go bad, that would not charge, I get a low volt reading at the helm and then when it goes below 12 volts with the engine running I know it is time to switch it out. Invariably it is swollen out or will not take a charge when tested.

I'd bet you have a combination of things going on like the other guys said, but I'd test your battery first.

The lower ball joints and tie rod ends are the parts that may be clunking on the bottom of your front suspension. Pretty cheap to fix, especially if you know a buddy with a home garage and an impact wrench.

Hi fellows:

Got the new tires on yesterday morning. "H" rated Exaltos and they ride very well so far. Had to settle for 205s because there were no 215s. They offered MXM4s in 215s, v rated, for a lot more (~$145 each) but I declined since I wanted exaltos. They couldn't do the alignment because they said my upper arm "something" was bad and had to be fixed first. I think they said "ball" too. I've known something was bad in the front and/or rear suspension for a few months since I'd hear these occasional clunks when pulling over the curb as I get into my driveway.

What they said about needing alignment with these tires was hogwash at best since they sold me the tires anyway. It all came to $530 and included balancing and road hazard insurance. For going before 10AM on black Friday, I also received a $60 Sears gift card. Net cost $470...not bad.

I'm feeling better now cos I have a few business trips coming up in the next several weeks. Gotta do approx 200 mile round trip, twice a week for a few months. Also have to go visit my son in Blacksburg, Va next month. Thats a 1,000 mile round tripper. I'm a Hokie dad and UVA is toast today...ESPN2 at noon Eastern.

I like tanning on boats. Drinking on boats. s*x on boats.

All the things you cannot do properly in cars! I'm sure tanning weather in b.c is pretty short. I'd have to give up my bikinis for long johns! I hope you got a good deal on your 42 footer. My 25 footer was a steal after the owner found out his wife wanted a divorce. Boating is fun as long as someone else is paying for the gas. Especially diesel now. What did you name her? Mine is named 'Barbie Doll' for obvious reasons.

Hi Ridgerez - You'll not be dissapointed with that choice of tire. They'll handle great in every respect.

Hi IS400 - You appear to like boats - I sold the Cobra in order to buy another boat, and I have a 42 foot Uniflite with two large diesels. If you are ever on the West Coast...... :D

its the combination of the ice (internal combustion engine) running longer and more frequently to produce heat, and the drain on the battery required to run the fans that hurts the mpg, also the battery is less efficient in winter.

The amp draw of the heated seats is MUCH more inefficient than the low amp draw of the heating fan, even on high. Unless you are using the ac to reduce humidity in the cabin during winter (defogging), I'd wager dollars to donuts that it is less than a mile per gallon loss to run cabin heat in the winter.

You are only raising the ambient temp by 30-40 degrees most of the time. The heat needed is already available in the cooling system and transferring it to the cabin does not reduce engine efficiency by any statistical significance because it is not capable of cooling the engine below its optimum temp. Unless you try to get the cabin to 150+ degrees.

I do agree that running the ac in the summer is terrible for gas mileage. The calculations, as other engineers or physics students will tell you, are staggering in their results. You might as well run with a stuck parking brake as to turn on the ac to cool off a blistering hot car, in regards to gas mileage.

My 7,000 pound boat gets 1 nautical mile per gallon at best, so don't feel too bad about your cars though guys!

I know the hat looks goofy, but I buy anything pink I see.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

What I meant was that most porsche owners paid for their cars and that is about all they know about cars. When they are told they need track tires, they get them, but do not know why. Just that everyone else uses them.

The neat part is that you had the traction of competition tires but to them it looked like you would have less performance; due to their lack of knowledge of what makes a snow tire work great in summer for cornering and launches.

I've found porsche owners are pretty arrogant, until I get their pants down. Then it is me just giggling at what drove them to buy a porshe in the first place! Tiny little thing!

Nice work building your own cobra. I like them for the vibrations , but long drives tend to just leave me windburned and my hair full of knots. Fun for short blasts though!

Well not so much sneaky - more that I had run out of money after building the rest of the car! But it did have traction.

;)

Very sneaky with those snow tires! I bet you did not tell them they have a softer compound because with winter temps normal compounds get too hard and don't allow the tire to grip properly and release snow/mud from the tread.

Not a bad idea compared to what racing soft compound tires cost. Thanks for the tip!

That's a reasonable statement Sanpete and I agree with it in general.

Here's what happened with my LS. When I bought it the stock 205/65-15 tires were mounted - old ones, older technology. I went to Michelin 215/65-15 H rated tires and the change was dramatic - excellent ride, slightly squishy handling, but certainly good handling, and better than stock. Last month I installed 16 inch wheels, using my own choice of tires - different from the 225/60 the 93 LS's used - I installed 225/55-16 H rated. The Exalto's as previously explained on this site, are as exceptional a tire as I have ever used, the handling is absolutely transformed, the ride is still excellent, and the car feels completely different. My point is that the tire size change produced a more dramatic change in handling that the speed ratings would or could have in each case.

When one considers the extreme wheel and tire combinations installed on all sorts of vehicles ( like the goofy wheels and tires Unique Performance installs as part of the "bling" packages they offer - how that show got on TV is beyond me....) the changes brought about by those changes are dramatic and at times downright dangerous, and speed ratings pale in comparison. Just varying tire pressures 5-8 psi will change the tire's characteristics more than a speed rating, and I see people driving about blithely with a tire or two well under pressure simply because they don't check them regularly.

So concentrating on speed ratings as though all of the safety factors are met through it alone is not wise. Tire size, pressure, wheel diameter have far greater influence.

Some years ago I built a 427 Cobra replica. Built the whole thing. Installed Goodrich tires - S rated, and m/s for mud and snow. I entered it in solo motorsport events and at one event the Porsche club showed up. I remember watching them as a group -all 14 of them- approach my parked Cobra and look at it. One of them shouted to the others - "it's got mud and snow tires on it!!!" They all laughed. Three hours later I had beaten 13 of them in the event with my Cobra - only a 930 Turbo got me. They weren't laughing.

I'm more concerned about the suspension. If you are not mechanically inclined you are going to spend a couple of thousand at least at a shop getting all the bushings, bearings, control arms, etc. replaced.

These cars are only lexus quality when these have been kept up. Also make sure you completely removed the parking brake when it comes off the trailer. The rear can lock up and when you get to speed the car will vibrate like a paint mixer.

This happened to me once after getting it detailed and now I tell the valets and such to not engage the parking brake. It is an automatic so no worries unless you are parking on the side of a cliff! LOL.

I'd definitely have a mechanic check the suspension before buying so you can get the price a lot lower if it is bad. <_<

Trust is earned and you do not know the seller so watch out and be suspicious.

205 is recommended, but a little thin for such a sizable car IMO. Try getting some 215s at least. I've run 225's with no problem for years. No rubbing at all. They look great from the back and have nice grip when I get a little hot in the turns.

Try looking at kumos (sp). They are always a great deal and have an awesome reputation. Extasia I think is the model of kumo tires that I put on my 17's for summer.

You are right about the H rating. She is trying to upsell you or at least get you in what tires she has in stock to make a sale.

If you are paying over $100 for 15 inch tires, you my dear, are getting ripped off.

I had my trunk do the same thing except it did not click. The wiring had pinched from too much luggage and we had to take out the subwoofer to get it working.

I'd have someone put some upward pressure on the trunk lid as you flick the driver's latch. Maybe the popper is just sticking and needs help releasing. Tapping with a soft mallet in the area of the latch could not hurt either if lifting does not do anything.

Good luck if you have to go the drilling route. Either that or the dealer. Yikes!

Anyone have any ideas where I can get one.

Getting one is the problem. Here in the north a lot of us use our factory wheels to keep our snow tires on. I use my 17" IS300 wheels 9 months of the year and switch back to blizzaks mounted on my factory 90' wheels for dec-feb.

I'd say unless a dealer has one in stock from way back when it is going to be a hard sell to get someone to part with one and be left with three. Good luck in your search and I'll keep my eye out for one.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

oops sorry i thought i was on the sc300 sc400 side ,, talking about brakes swaps for a SC400 wait i was ,, dont be a donkey

we can all live in peace if we want too!!

You thought...

...now there's your problem.

Live in peace? You are from texas right? Iraq is very peaceful. Thanks.

Talking about brakes swaps?

Writing about brake swaps.

School is out.

not to be rude but dont hijack my thread

im trying to find out about my sc400 swap to the 4pot ls 400

lextreme has plenty of infor for a ls ,, just do a google search for ls400 brake swap

Your first post mentioned ls400 to supra brakes as a common swap. Don't mention things in YOUR post if you do NOT want them discussed. :chairshot:

That way you won't have to waste your time whining later on. :cries:

:cries: Zero available. Damn. Thanks guys I'll keep looking. Have a great thanksgiving!

Everyone on the older posts say they are $55 a pair on e-bay. I can only find them for $80 plus. Anyone know where I can get the mentioned price for lower ball joints?

Just get some IS 300 wheels like mine and be done with it. 17" and no rub after two years of HARD driving.

Tell me these do not look the best compared to the grandpa wheels on the other 400's and 430's.

the LS calipers fit no prob!

I did not know supra brakes would fit my car. Is this true? What other swaps are possible for my 1990 LS 400. I do think an upgrade would be nice while I am going through the trouble of doing the front suspension this winter.