I really like my SR5. I do not like the knock and lack of power I am experiencing right now. I do not like that my car needs a rebuild on the rear axle. It has some knock (I am unsure if this will be a $400 repair or a $1400 repair) which needs to be fixed. What should I do guys? The engine has 197k on it. Timing belt needs replacing as well. So this list is:

Rear axle bearings and seals
Knock
Valve cover gaskets
New tires
Timing belt

Should I bail? Or is this car worth it?

BTW, it is a 96 SR5 with a manual transmission, power windows, and power sunroof.

Sound anything like this? Video - TinyPic - Free Image Hosting, Photo Sharing & Video Hosting

And is it worse on a cold start then calms down? If so, then attempt to bail. But the odds are, no one will pay enough for it to even make selling an option. Thats where I'm at. Drive it till the motor goes bad, swap a used one in, put another 150k on it!

Btw, if youre replacing the valve cover gaskets because of a leak, it may not be needed. sometimes they get loose. try tightening the valve cover before replacing it.

Thats already 1300 in parts without sourcing the knocking problem.. include your time/labor costs if a shop will do it. Think of the cost/benefit and how much sentiment your truck has to you.

agreed! it depends on many different variables. do whatever is more practical. the only reason i have mine still is because id be taking too much of a loss to sell it. until i replace or rebuild the motor that is. even then ill probably keep it.

Fortunately not that bad. The hesitation and or knock only starts under load conditions and goes away as soon as I ease off the engine. Also, the compression of the cylinders was recently tested and found to be acceptable.

The knock only started once I replaced all the plugs. I think I will try a seafoam treatment pretty soon. I just got back from the parts store, bought a torque wrench. I am going to try and tighten down the passenger side valve cover bolts in a little bit, after the engine has cooled down. I definitely spotted some oil that had leaked out of the covers and onto the exhaust so... the bolts are certainly loose. I was going to just do the gasket replacement because to tighten the driver side you need to remove the air intake anyways. If I am going that far, I might as well make sure everything is good to go.

It sounds like people are sort of telling me to bail if I can. The car just passed smog yesterday, so it's good in that respect. I just don't know. I can't get my usual shop to take a look at the hesitation because of the rear axle. They say the brakes are probably shot and therefore refuse to do test drives.

Exactly, fix what you can, see what more use you can get out of it. But once the cost of ownership passes what it's worth to you and what it is actually worth, try to bail. These trucks are built very well. And one only time I've seen things like this happen are when preventative maintenance and regular maintenance are neglected. Almost always by the previous owner (I know this firsthand). And in some cases, weather conditions cause things like seals to wear faster. That can always be a PITA. Hope I could help in some way. Good Luck my friend!

I brought the truck back to the guy who originally fixed the rear axle seals to take a look at the engine trouble. He saw that one of his seals had broken again and went ahead and fixed it for free (even though the repair was out of warranty).

After messing around with the car he found two problems. First one of the passenger side plugs was loose. Second, one of the coils had gone bad. After swapping the coils everything runs fine.

Now my only problem is the timing belt. It is about to fail and he's recommending fixing it. So my question has now become, what is a fair price for the timing belt (and all the other belts) and the water pump?

And, how many more miles does this buy me? Car is still in good shape. Needs some bushings but that's easy.

The choice is still complicated by the fact I don't currently have/need a car. But it would be nice to have this one around as a backup.

Thanks!

You can easily find OEM TB/WP kits for around $350. Add labor, could be anywhere from 600-800 in the end (including parts). It's still regular maintenance though. TB/WP should be replaced every 90k-ish. If you're truck is running great and needs the TB/WP service, do it, then keep driving your truck for a long time and just address the little issues as they present themselves. It sounds like your truck is running strong! I see no reason to get rid of it. I know what my 96 is worth, and to me it's not even worth getting rid of... $2500? No.

once you said the knock only appeared after you changed the plugs i knew the plug wires were either put back wrong or not on tight. this happened to me. your truck doesn't sound like something i would give up on. ESPECIALLY for the timing belt which is a maintenance item and just because it needs replacing doesn't mean your truck is broken. and once done, your truck will be ready for another 90k assuming you maintain it correctly.

as said earlier, you can find OEM parts for less than $400. you can spend 600-800 on labor, or spend 100 on the tools you need to do it yourself. yeah its more involved but luckily you live in 2013 where answers are at the tip of our fingers. i've seen a video on tb replacement on a 3.4 too.

Ahh Chico eh? You must be dying right now.

I am a Chico grad myself. I spent a few summers up there. Now I am back in the bay, keeping cool. Ironically enough, I miss that Chico summer heat...

This was a triple check that the price was solid.

I'll be making the final decision on Monday.

Thanks guys.

lol Yes sir. Not dying today at least, I've been in the pool for the past 2 hours But it's only 100 right now. Supposed to be 109, 110, 108 Monday thru Wednesday. I've been in Tucson for the past 8 years though, I'm quite used to it.

What part of the bay do you live in? I get oem parts for real cheap. I work at the stealership and could probably do it for a few bucks and some beer!!

Downpour11, Omega and all, I'd like your opinions on brake pads and rotors on my '96.

What are ya'll using and which brands do you prefer for these parts? Liked the review for these but might be overkill: http://www.autoaccessoriesgarage.com...-Drilled-Rotor
Also, upgrade to Tundra brake system (calipers and all) yes or no? I'm not currently towing anything and if anything just throw my Thule bike rack on once and a while.

Looking at reviews and such seems to present a sh!t-ton of choices; I plan on keeping my rig a LONG time, hopefully 400k or better; I've got 173k on it now and just recently (in the last 6-8 months) I've started having to do some of the bigger maint. stuff like shocks/struts, clutch, and the rear main seemed to have sprung a leak at some point.

Bottom line - he's paid for and I truly love driving my T4R! Bought it in 2006 with 119k on it and have had little, if anything "go wrong"! Like Downpour11 said, just keep up the 'scheduled' maint and fix the little stuff and expect to have the truck for a very long time!

PS: I am girl and have recently decided I want to try and fix some of these "little" things myself so needless to say I will be purchasing a repair manual and frequenting the maint/repair threads often! LOL! I grew up around 1/4mi. drag strips/cars and muscle cars so I've always liked learning about how engines and various components work and how to fix things when they stop working correctly - guess that's why I love being a physical therapist!

Do what I still haven't done yet. The tundra brake upgrade. Don't look back.