radioactiveboyscout

radioactiveboyscout- I think I'm gonna take you at your word... and stay a long ways from you. I'm betting that you went to the parts house and got an aftermarket belt, because what Lenore was referring to in telling rdragoo to be sure and use OEM Mitsuboshi (Toyota/Lexus original equipment) belt was because they have always come with ALL pertinent marks already on the belt. Also, that they will likely long outlast the aftermarket belts. Also, the interference vs. non-interference has been beaten to death and buried a long time ago and some pretty intelligent people on this board have come to a conclusion as to what reality is in this respect. I think it best to let you newcomers think whatever you want, rather than confusing you with the facts. Ahh someone taking my advice. Wonderful! As for what Lenore was referring to ...does not completely touch on what I was suggesting. If you read my post again you will see that my suggestion is to not rely on the factory timing belt marks but to actually mark the pulleys with something more readable than the pulley's timing notches. I used white fingernail polish because it does not easily rub off or wash away. You see I find that the notches are very difficult to accurately sight with the engine marks anyway. It is also unlikely the pulley timing marks will line up with engine marks anyway. And unless the individual want to set the engine to TDC, which of course isn't absolutely necessary but highly recommended, the pulley notches may not be even be pointing at the belt. Sighting the pulley marks is especially difficult when the engine is transverse mounted with one bank of cylinders against the firewall. Keep in mind that when you remove the factory belt the timing paint on it is usually worn away. If they were present they are also very unlikely to land directly on the notches in the pulley. Again, by marking the old belt and pulley you can then check the old belt against new and transfer marks if necessary. By transferring marks or at least lining the belts up to see that you didn't buy the wrong one you will be more likely to get the new belt back on the pulleys in the exact place the old one came from. Also, I would not assume that everyone visiting this forum is going to buy OEM. As most people will not, it is pertinent to transfer the marks yourself. Since this forum is about passing along information to all people and not just people that are determined to buy OEM parts I thought I would mention that detail. As far as intelligent people concluding one thing or another. I find that the intelligence of a debater can never be used as evidence to whether something is correct or incorrect. I give you one very famous example. Albert Einstein, the father of modern physics and arguably an intelligent man could not, would not, refused to believe many of the assertions of quantum mechanics. Turns out he was wrong. Not judging what side of the camp you sit on I would be appreciative of any information that lends evidence to whether the 99 RX300 is interference or not. The majority of the research I have done indicates it is not. And I would like readers of this forum to know that I sit in that camp. Being the true skeptic that I am if someone can present evidence to me otherwise I have been known to change my mind. Thanks for pointing out that I was not completely clear with my suggestion. RABS- Am still scratching my head about your statements about the timing marks (both on the belts and on the gears). I have had all of that area apart 3 times on my DIL's RX and not once found that any of the marks were anywhere but where they should be. There were reasons why I have had it apart 3 times (over 30k mi.) that had nothing to do with the work that was done. (developed an occasional squeal at 27k mi. on the new belt) Not wanting my DIL to have problems with it because she lives a very busy life and needs the car, I went back in and replaced W/P, top and bottom idler or tension pulleys and the belt. Never did discover what the occasional squeal was but I suspicion what it was. I replaced the "Goodyear Gatorback" belt that I installed at 97k mi. because I wasn't happy with what it looked like (the original belt looked better at 97k mi.), hence my feeling about using aftermarket parts. I turned the crank to TDC before I started, just as the factory manual says to and ALL marks lined up just as they are supposed to. That way, I don't have to mark anything before I remove it. I am also curious as to whether you have done a survey on what people use for a replacement timing belt or if you just made that assumption. Lastly, I would suggest you go to the "Gates" online reference chart concerning these specific years of the RX with the 1MZ-FE engine and tell me what it says. There has been a lot of confusion on this subject (interference vs non-interference), but I'm wondering if you are willing to take responsibility (as you should) for someone losing an engine should they break a timing belt when they took your firm position as gospel. That's something to think about. Code58- I don't think I need to explain to you again the details of my post. It is obvious now that you are being obtuse/argumentative. It was not my intent to try to lure a forum lurker in to spar with. You can either take my advice or not as I think it makes changing the timing belt much easier. Gates is a manufacturer of belts and hoses. If you would rather believe a third party over the manufacturer of the vehicle that is your business. As I've said, my post was meant to be constructive to help people trying to perform a difficult job. You said yourself that you were going to take my advice and steer clear. Why not do that starting now?

radioactiveboyscout- I think I'm gonna take you at your word... and stay a long ways from you. I'm betting that you went to the parts house and got an aftermarket belt, because what Lenore was referring to in telling rdragoo to be sure and use OEM Mitsuboshi (Toyota/Lexus original equipment) belt was because they have always come with ALL pertinent marks already on the belt. Also, that they will likely long outlast the aftermarket belts. Also, the interference vs. non-interference has been beaten to death and buried a long time ago and some pretty intelligent people on this board have come to a conclusion as to what reality is in this respect. I think it best to let you newcomers think whatever you want, rather than confusing you with the facts. Ahh someone taking my advice. Wonderful! As for what Lenore was referring to ...does not completely touch on what I was suggesting. If you read my post again you will see that my suggestion is to not rely on the factory timing belt marks but to actually mark the pulleys with something more readable than the pulley's timing notches. I used white fingernail polish because it does not easily rub off or wash away. You see I find that the notches are very difficult to accurately sight with the engine marks anyway. It is also unlikely the pulley timing marks will line up with engine marks anyway. And unless the individual want to set the engine to TDC, which of course isn't absolutely necessary but highly recommended, the pulley notches may not be even be pointing at the belt. Sighting the pulley marks is especially difficult when the engine is transverse mounted with one bank of cylinders against the firewall. Keep in mind that when you remove the factory belt the timing paint on it is usually worn away. If they were present they are also very unlikely to land directly on the notches in the pulley. Again, by marking the old belt and pulley you can then check the old belt against new and transfer marks if necessary. By transferring marks or at least lining the belts up to see that you didn't buy the wrong one you will be more likely to get the new belt back on the pulleys in the exact place the old one came from. Also, I would not assume that everyone visiting this forum is going to buy OEM. As most people will not, it is pertinent to transfer the marks yourself. Since this forum is about passing along information to all people and not just people that are determined to buy OEM parts I thought I would mention that detail. As far as intelligent people concluding one thing or another. I find that the intelligence of a debater can never be used as evidence to whether something is correct or incorrect. I give you one very famous example. Albert Einstein, the father of modern physics and arguably an intelligent man could not, would not, refused to believe many of the assertions of quantum mechanics. Turns out he was wrong. Not judging what side of the camp you sit on I would be appreciative of any information that lends evidence to whether the 99 RX300 is interference or not. The majority of the research I have done indicates it is not. And I would like readers of this forum to know that I sit in that camp. Being the true skeptic that I am if someone can present evidence to me otherwise I have been known to change my mind. Thanks for pointing out that I was not completely clear with my suggestion.

In my humble opinion the RX300 engine is non-interference. The confusion stems from the fact that most "documentation" that is cited is a call to the local Lexus dealer. What is the dealer going to tell you? It's non-interference so don't worry about timing belt breaking. OR You run the risk of catastrophic engine damage should the timing belt break. That'll be $1200 dollars thank you. Hmmm I wonder..... The engine is non-interference but the dealers are going to tell you everything to the contrary. I called three dealers. One told me it was technically interference. The other two told me it was non-interference. The one who told me it was "technically interference" went on to say that should a valve float at high engine speed it has the ability to strike the piston. I ask myself, Is this not possible with any engine then? I guess there is no such thing as a non-interference engine in existence according to what that particular dealer said. Problem solved, there is always a chance, however slight that the valve could hit the piston. Must be an interference engine then! What BS. Okay. I'm done ranting.

Just did the timing belt change on my wifes 99 RX300. It is not fun. If I could make one recommendation it would be to take your time and make your own position marks between the belt and the pulleys. I did this with white finger nail polish. Using the permanent notches on the pulleys helps but doesn't tell you where the belt resides on the pulley. The permanent notches on the pulley and metal guard only tell you where the pulleys reside in relation to the engine. By marking the belt to pulley with finger nail polish I found it was much easier to ensure that I got the new belt on in the exact same position the old belt came off. It's pertinent that you transfer your marks between the old belt and new belt correctly once you get it off. Best of luck to anyone doing this themselves! BTW My wifes RX300 had 142,000 and the belt looked fine. I went ahead and changed it because we often go on long trips with this vehicle but I wouldn't have any problem letting it go much longer otherwise if I used it mostly around town. This is in light of the fact that the RX300 engine is non-interference so the belt breaking will not cause engine damage. And I verified this with multiple dealers.

Are you original owner? No. My wife bought it with about 50k on it. She bought it before we were married so I have to go on what she says. She said the Lexus rep told her the previous owner kept a meticulous service history. I will have to check the transmission tag to see if it matches the id on the door jam. I bet the trans was replaced or rebuild using the upgraded parts during the original owners period. The tag should still match if it was rebuilt. "Lexus rep" sounds like you mean the salesman, in which case all previous owners always kept meticulous service records. I am still waiting for the car salesman that tells me that the prevoius owner really didn't take care of this car I misspoke. She did not buy it through the Lexus dealer. She bought it from the owner. The "rep" she spoke with was from the shop she called after the owner let her inspect the service history. She got the vin and called his auto shop to speak with the mechanic. He had no vested interested in the car. Whether or not the transmission is rebuilt, I don't know. Believe what you want but I will be checking because you have peaked my interest. Any idea of the model on the original transmission. I would find it hard to believe that no paper trail would exist for such as there is no reason to hide the work?

Are you original owner? No. My wife bought it with about 50k on it. She bought it before we were married so I have to go on what she says. She said the Lexus rep told her the previous owner kept a meticulous service history. I will have to check the transmission tag to see if it matches the id on the door jam.

Not to rub salt in any wounds but my wife drives a 99 AWD RX300 and I have been amazed at how reliable her car has been. I installed a class 3 hitch on it about 4 years ago after downsizing my daily driver to a small car. I needed something I could use to tow. Since then I have abused the hell out of that car towing a fully loaded 3500 pound trailer through the mountains multiple times. Drove it between MI and CA towing a trailer once. I was frankly amazed at how well it handled the trailer. I think I was averaging about 13 mpg on these tows to tell you how hard I pushed it. Never had any problems with the transmission other than the annoying whine that shows up during cold weather. The car has about 140k on it now. The maintenance I've done was a complete drain at around 70k. I also will sometimes pull a few quarts out after a hard tow and replace it with a few quarts of new fluid. I do this because I firmly believe that doing a complete change of fluid can sometimes "shock" older transmissions resulting in more harm than good. I prefer to thin out the bad old stuff rather than put in a bunch of new. Someone said it right earlier - its cheap insurance. Hope there are other owners out there that haven't had all the troubles you guys have had. With fingers crossed I continue. Let you know if my luck changes anytime soon.