Hey everyone!

Just got the unfortunate news that our 2010 4runner with 188k miles needs a timing cover reseal. Right now oil is leaking onto the alternator and almost making it back to the exhaust manifold. Dealership is trying to charge 4300 and a local shop I trust is at 3200. We are not sure if we should fix it or sale it. We are having to pay a lot right for infertility stuff we are going through right now so it’s just bad timing. Any advice would be greatly appreciated we are so stressed right now and need the advice! It is SR5 Premium 4wd and in excellent condition we have really taken care of it. We know 4Runners are usually worth it to repair but just not sure. Thanks yall

Depending on how much it's leaking, I'd just clean up the oil, tighten all the timing cover bolts you can reach and check oil often and add more when necessary. Can't get much cheaper than that. I think there was a recall on this but I'm not sure. You can research for one if you wish. It's a common problem with the 4.0 V6 and there are other threads on this timing cover leak issue.

I agree with trying this first as well. If it appears to be seeping and not an outright leak I would also run a good high-mileage oil. I don't know if that gasket/seal is made of rubber, but if it is a bottle of AT-205 can help too if it is. If that does help, you would need to add a bottle every time you changed your oil. I think a bottle would be worth trying out just to see. A lot of people think both of these are snake oil, but that's because they think it is viewed as a "fix". It is not. It can slow things down temporarily and maybe get you down the road timewise to where you can swing the expense better. Sometimes if it more than just seepage, it won't help, but you won't be out a lot for trying either.

It might be wise to degrease the alternator so it doesn't go bad and add to your expense. The best way is with hot distilled water and a degreasing agent ,but then you have make sure you take steps to completely dry it out with heated blown/circulated air. You could try CRC Lectra-Motive 3000, but I'm not sure how effective that will be. I would definitely at least remove the belt before spraying that on there and I would wipe the alternator down beforehand to get rid of as much oil, grease and dirt as possible. Really it is best to remove the alternator to clean it anyway. My son had a rear main seal seep on his Xterra that dripped onto his starter long enough that it finally killed the internals; the same will likely happen with that alternator if oil keeps getting at it.

we need more details here on that price. $4300 from the dealer for just the seal? alternator too, water pump too? what else is included in that $4300. I would expect $3000 maybe max $4000 for just the timing cover seal from a dealership. if you are not seeing drips, it's not severe and could probably wait

I don't understand the rationale of selling the 4runner. you mean selling for cash and removing 1 vehicle from your household or selling and buying something else. with that age and mileage you will probably be trading one problem for another unless you put in more $$$ and buy a newer vehicle if you want the same utility/benefits as a 4runner. any vehicle at that age/mileage will have issues now and then. it would be foolish to think you could trade out of your problem at no extra cost and not encounter something just as bad on another vehicle. at which point trading/buying newer has now exceeded the cost of the repair. repairing is almost always always always cheaper than trading or buying a new vehicle if cost is a top priority (except for what I call trading down, see below). what condition is the rest of the vehicle in?

fertility treatments are very expensive so I understand where you are coming from. here's how I would rationalize this situation

- if you like your 4runner, it's in good working order and you plan on keeping it, pay the shop you trust the most. if it's the dealer, try and haggle a bit lower. they usually can take 10% off a big job. otherwise pick the indy shop, get the work done and move on. cut down on groceries/hobbies, etc. to slowly make up that cost. maybe even sell some stuff around the house on craig's list.

- if the repair would stress your financial situation and you are not seeing drips in the driveway, monitor oil level and fix when budget allows. the risk here is alternator damage or other damage which will cost you even more $. if this doesn't sit well with you, go back to first bullet and re-evaluate or go to bullet three

- if you don't plan on keeping the 4runner, can't budget the repair but absolutely need a second vehicle, then don't repair and trade down. down to a corolla or civic. you would likely get a substantially newer corolla/civic with likely less chance of problems for the same value as your 4runner. I say trading down because you're basically getting a commuter car at this point and losing significant utility and potentially a hobby if you wheel your 4runner. avoiding any outlay of incremental cash, and certainly no monthly payment. corollas are often slept on cars, tremendous value for what you get/pay. if you don't really NEED the second vehicle, then trade and pocket the $ for your family

If the truck is in overall good running order, I would not sell or trade for another over a $4000 fix. Keep the oil full and wipe down the alternator area every week and it will run fine for a long time until you decide to fix. My 13 Limited just turned 285,000 miles and I need to put a few dollars into it. You could buy another 4runner and the tranny or engine could blow within the first week. Stick with what you know

Necessity is the mother of DIY. You can do that job in a day.

I can afford to pay people to do this work, but I still DIY because I would be paying someone in after tax dollars. When you do the calculation, it's a lot for me.

I am nearly finished with a new 6.5 diesel long block install on my 1999 K2500 Suburban. Engine was $8,500 plus shipping ($900) and miscellaneous peripheral parts that would bring the job to about $11,000. If I had someone do the work, the labor would have ran $10K. So I saved $10K for two weekends of work. Should have been one long 3 day weekend, but for the miscellaneous parts and order wait times. In the end, I basically have new engine, transmission and transfer case on a truck that will go another 300K which is my lifetime, for $11K. A new Suburban would cost $80K and they only come in 1/2 ton which would have less capability than my 3/4 ton. Plus I don't worry about scratches while off-roading.