Hey everyone,
First off, I wanna say this site is amazing and the wealth of knowledge here is incredible. I've been a long time lurker of the site but have never posted...until now. Every question I've had has been answered through searching this site. I also want to apologize ahead of time if this post is kind of long winded.
I've got a '13 Blizzard Pearl Limited which just turned 20k miles. I bought it new with 2 miles on the clock back in August of '13. Recently, I began to notice a distinct audible whine coming from the front of the engine that would start at 2k rpm and get louder as the revs increased. It sounded like it had a supercharger (ha, I wish!). The noise was the same whether in neutral, any gear and at any vehicle speed.
So, I brought it in to the dealer to get it checked out. I was thinking at most it was going to be was a drive belt pulley bearing possibly starting to fail. About an hour later, they tell me it's all set and that it's just normal transmission noise that's common in all 4runners. I said that it's absolutely NOT normal and asked to speak directly with the lead tech. A few minutes later I met with the lead tech to which I explained everything that was going on. I took him for a test ride and he noticed the sound before we even left the lot. He agreed it sounded like something more serious so back into the shop it went.
Two days later they call and tell me the timing chain idler pulley needs to be replaced. I'm still under factory warranty so there was no cost to me. Finally, after a week of them working on it, I got the call today to pick it up. The noise is gone and everything seems to fine for now.
I've been looking over my copy of the invoice for everything that was done and some things concern me. It specifically says the noise was caused by lack of lubrication and that a wear mark was found on the pulley bushing. The front cover with oil pump, idle sprocket and pulley were replaced. My biggest concern of all is that if there was lack of lubrication to the timing chain then what else had lack of lubrication?
This whole issue is especially concerning to me with only having 20k miles. I was originally planning on keeping this thing for the long haul assuming no major issues crop up. I've never been one for extended warranties but if do keep this thing then maybe I should do an extended power train?
The more I think about this issue the more it bums me out since I love this truck. This is really the first time since I've bought the truck that I've begun to second guess what my plans are for the long term. I have always been confident that I would drive this thing to the ground but now I'm beginning to have my doubts. Of course, I'm referring to my specific truck and not the 4runner in general.
I guess the point of all this rambling is to get some feedback and thoughts on this whole ordeal. I've attached a copy of the invoice so you can see exactly what they wrote. I appreciate any input you guys may have.
First off, I wanna say this site is amazing and the wealth of knowledge here is incredible. I've been a long time lurker of the site but have never posted...until now. Every question I've had has been answered through searching this site. I also want to apologize ahead of time if this post is kind of long winded.
I've got a '13 Blizzard Pearl Limited which just turned 20k miles. I bought it new with 2 miles on the clock back in August of '13. Recently, I began to notice a distinct audible whine coming from the front of the engine that would start at 2k rpm and get louder as the revs increased. It sounded like it had a supercharger (ha, I wish!). The noise was the same whether in neutral, any gear and at any vehicle speed.
So, I brought it in to the dealer to get it checked out. I was thinking at most it was going to be was a drive belt pulley bearing possibly starting to fail. About an hour later, they tell me it's all set and that it's just normal transmission noise that's common in all 4runners. I said that it's absolutely NOT normal and asked to speak directly with the lead tech. A few minutes later I met with the lead tech to which I explained everything that was going on. I took him for a test ride and he noticed the sound before we even left the lot. He agreed it sounded like something more serious so back into the shop it went.
Two days later they call and tell me the timing chain idler pulley needs to be replaced. I'm still under factory warranty so there was no cost to me. Finally, after a week of them working on it, I got the call today to pick it up. The noise is gone and everything seems to fine for now.
I've been looking over my copy of the invoice for everything that was done and some things concern me. It specifically says the noise was caused by lack of lubrication and that a wear mark was found on the pulley bushing. The front cover with oil pump, idle sprocket and pulley were replaced. My biggest concern of all is that if there was lack of lubrication to the timing chain then what else had lack of lubrication?
This whole issue is especially concerning to me with only having 20k miles. I was originally planning on keeping this thing for the long haul assuming no major issues crop up. I've never been one for extended warranties but if do keep this thing then maybe I should do an extended power train?
The more I think about this issue the more it bums me out since I love this truck. This is really the first time since I've bought the truck that I've begun to second guess what my plans are for the long term. I have always been confident that I would drive this thing to the ground but now I'm beginning to have my doubts. Of course, I'm referring to my specific truck and not the 4runner in general.
I guess the point of all this rambling is to get some feedback and thoughts on this whole ordeal. I've attached a copy of the invoice so you can see exactly what they wrote. I appreciate any input you guys may have.
