Hey, just wanted to get a sampling of y'all's thoughts about where the timing belt/water pump replacement should be done. Just bought a great 2001 SR5 at (what I think was) a good price, and the milage is at 187,000. I've got a good friend who's a quality mechanic who quoted me $700 including the new pump. But... is it a much better idea, for the vehicle's long-term life, to get it done at an actual Toyota dealership? Just trying to get an idea of what's best...
dealership vs. local shop for timing belt/water pump
- Thread starter paulbruno
- Start date
Register to hide this ad
In april I had a ton of work done, Tbelt, waterpump, fuel pump, fuel filter, ALL the belts and some more ****. Came out right to a grand. The dealership would've ripped me a new one. If you have a trust worthy mechanic like I do, then go w/ the mechanic.
white_n_slow
Senior Member
If your mechanic is familiar with the Toyota 3.4, definitely save a buck and hire him. It's not rocket science, and it's one of the more common motors on the road, so my guess is any shop that does a fair amount of toyotas would be more than competent. Or just do it yourself and save a few more bucks 
LINY4Runner
New member
I'm a service advisor at a Toyota dealership, so you know where I stand on this. Basic t-belt and water pump would run around 700-800...add in a half hour per seal if you need to replace any of the front engine seals...also under there are plenty of tensioners and idlers who are sometimes pretty tired by 187k and the thermostat. You have three drivebelts that may need to go also.
If you get it done on the outside at the very least make sure he's using Toyota parts ESPECIALLY TOYOTA COOLANT. Green coolant effs these things all up.
If you get it done on the outside at the very least make sure he's using Toyota parts ESPECIALLY TOYOTA COOLANT. Green coolant effs these things all up.
LINY4Runner
New member
here's how I sell the dealership service department though...
"Would you rather have someone who's done it on this exact engine more times than he can count, or someone who may or may not be learning how to do it on YOUR truck?"
"Would you rather have someone who's done it on this exact engine more times than he can count, or someone who may or may not be learning how to do it on YOUR truck?"
Ilovemy97Limited
New member
One of my friends is a certified mechanic and until i came around he had never worked on a Toyota, only american cars (which I've discovered is fairly common). He tackled my rear main seal, tcase seal and valve cover gasket (which requires you to get to the timing area anyway). Everything went perfectly.
This is my second time around with him and he is more familiar with my vehicle now and he is about to replace my ignition coils, wires, COMPLETE timing (belts, seals, pulleys, etc) and among other things.
The problems with the 4runner is everything is very time consuming and labor costs will kill you.
Find a good mechanic but order your own parts. I bought my timing belt kit from "Aircabinman" on ebay for $355ish. The dealership is crazy expensive, and the only major difference is the guarantee that it will be done right the first time, which is not always the case either, but I'd trust them before a mechanic that doesn't know what they're getting into.
In conclusion, call around and ask specific questions about your timing and see who is the most knowledgeable. The easy way to see what they know is to ask if the timing belt runs the water pump. Anyone who hasn't worked on a toyota (or has immediate access to google) wont know off the top of their head.
This is my second time around with him and he is more familiar with my vehicle now and he is about to replace my ignition coils, wires, COMPLETE timing (belts, seals, pulleys, etc) and among other things.
The problems with the 4runner is everything is very time consuming and labor costs will kill you.
Find a good mechanic but order your own parts. I bought my timing belt kit from "Aircabinman" on ebay for $355ish. The dealership is crazy expensive, and the only major difference is the guarantee that it will be done right the first time, which is not always the case either, but I'd trust them before a mechanic that doesn't know what they're getting into.
In conclusion, call around and ask specific questions about your timing and see who is the most knowledgeable. The easy way to see what they know is to ask if the timing belt runs the water pump. Anyone who hasn't worked on a toyota (or has immediate access to google) wont know off the top of their head.
BlackCat914
New member
The part in bold is incorrect, nothing involving the timing cover has to come off to do valve cover gaskets. Also, I don't necessarily agree with you about calling around to see who knows the most about the engine, either. I'm a former GM tech, and still work for a Chevy service department, and I could ask any one of my techs if the timing belt drives the waterpump, and I'd be willing to bet that none of them would honestly know the answer. So does that mean I shouldn't let any of them work on my car? Absolutely not, Just because a tech might not know the exact specifics of an engine, doesn't mean the nuts and bolts come off any differently.
Stick Figure
New member
This is the exact reason I have a ton of tools and do all of my own work. Dealer techs can suck just as bad if not worse than independent shop techs. Just make sure whoever you chose has the tool to hold the crank to reinstall the crank bolt to the proper torque. I don't find a chain wrench acceptable for this, but sadly that is what a lot of techs do. The rest of the job is about as easy as they come for a timing belt installation.
You can go over the steps here:
http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL...2rmsour/2002/024runne/em5vzfe/timbel/comp.pdf
http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL...2rmsour/2002/024runne/em5vzfe/timbel/remo.pdf
http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL...2rmsour/2002/024runne/em5vzfe/timbel/insp.pdf
http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL...2rmsour/2002/024runne/em5vzfe/timbel/inst.pdf
Those may be useful to print out for an independent tech that doesn't have the factory service manual or know where to look for one. That should give him all the torque specs that he needs.
You can go over the steps here:
http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL...2rmsour/2002/024runne/em5vzfe/timbel/comp.pdf
http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL...2rmsour/2002/024runne/em5vzfe/timbel/remo.pdf
http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL...2rmsour/2002/024runne/em5vzfe/timbel/insp.pdf
http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL...2rmsour/2002/024runne/em5vzfe/timbel/inst.pdf
Those may be useful to print out for an independent tech that doesn't have the factory service manual or know where to look for one. That should give him all the torque specs that he needs.
Quality mechanic forsure. As other's said just make sure the parts going on are quality. The T belt and water pump is actually a pretty straight forward easy job. I just did my first one on my own truck over the weekend and was very suprised how smoothly it went. I'm not saying you should do it yourself if you don't feel comfortable but I certianly do not think the job requires special toyota service. Just make sure its quality parts and the right coolant.
thank you
Thanks for the replies, everyone. Yeah, I think I'll just have a friend, who's a local mechanic, do the work, and get specifics on the parts and coolant he uses. I'd love to do it myself, but don't have the know-how, and don't even own a wrench set (though I live with tons of guys who do). I'm starting small, doing my own oil, and replacing spark plugs, before I work up to doing my own brake assemblies and timing belts and such.
Thanks for the replies, everyone. Yeah, I think I'll just have a friend, who's a local mechanic, do the work, and get specifics on the parts and coolant he uses. I'd love to do it myself, but don't have the know-how, and don't even own a wrench set (though I live with tons of guys who do). I'm starting small, doing my own oil, and replacing spark plugs, before I work up to doing my own brake assemblies and timing belts and such.
Bandit Runner
Senior Member
The dealership quoted me $770+tax to do the timing belt and water pump. I still need to get it done.
This thread leads me to ask the fellow members a question. I don't mean to thread jack but I figure you have your answer by reading your reply.
I have consider putting up a local add to do timing belt/water pump and whatever other maintenance one would want while in there, belts, tensioner, etc.
I figure if I charged 200 for my service, the job could be done for under 400 parts in, only t belt, pump, and new toyota coolant.
Would you as tr4 enthusiasts consider having a backyard mechanic do this work? I by no means am certified as a mechanic, although I am an engineer and I have more than enough experience working on vehicles.
The main reason I haven't put up an add yet is I am concern(don't know enough) about the legal implications of working on another persons vehicle. I would never want to touch anyone's brakes for that reason, but I do see backyard mechanic adds on my local criagslists pages so people are doing this kind of thing. Thoughts?
I have consider putting up a local add to do timing belt/water pump and whatever other maintenance one would want while in there, belts, tensioner, etc.
I figure if I charged 200 for my service, the job could be done for under 400 parts in, only t belt, pump, and new toyota coolant.
Would you as tr4 enthusiasts consider having a backyard mechanic do this work? I by no means am certified as a mechanic, although I am an engineer and I have more than enough experience working on vehicles.
The main reason I haven't put up an add yet is I am concern(don't know enough) about the legal implications of working on another persons vehicle. I would never want to touch anyone's brakes for that reason, but I do see backyard mechanic adds on my local criagslists pages so people are doing this kind of thing. Thoughts?
agloukhoff
New member
Terrible idea. You would find people blaming you for all kinds of unrelated problems that crop up later. The kind of people that your services would appeal to would be the kind that probably don't take the best care of their car or have the best understanding of cars. No offense - but I wouldn't let a stranger without an ASE Cert touch a single bolt on my car.
Plus, Timing Belt jobs are a terrible way to make money. Crank pulleys can be a real nightmare on older cars - which all 3rd gens are.
I'm all for doing work on my own car, my gfs car or SOME of my friends cars - but other peoples - no way.
It's odd that you mention not touching brakes, as that's the easy and quick job that's pretty hard to mess up if you stick to pads/rotors and drums/shoes. Timing belt job has way more stuff that can go wrong.
Ilovemy97Limited
New member
I've wasted a lot of money and time on sorry mechanics who didn't know what they were getting into. They Toyota dealership is the only place I could go for reassurance that the job would be done correctly. Most mechanics don't know what they're getting into and some aren't honest. The ones I've been to until recently have not been able to give me a clear estimate on anything, from my timing to replacing the seals in my rear axle. As a college student I have no room for an adjustable price range or being taken advantage of. Regardless, the toyota dealership will get it done right, and for some reason they don't they have a full one year warranty on parts and labor. You pay for that reassurance though.
I'm unfair to say my experiences reflect all mechanics, but perhaps the mechanics in this area aren't worth a Damn.
I'm unfair to say my experiences reflect all mechanics, but perhaps the mechanics in this area aren't worth a Damn.
chimpy
New member
What is the big difference in the Toyota coolant vs the green stuff? I know in the case of GM's dexcool(deathcool), they settled a class action suit due to that coolant eating intake gaskets. They still claim that it didn't but if so then why settle the suit? I am not saying that the Toyota coolant is bad, just wondering why it is so different than, say ,Prestone or Peak?
agloukhoff
New member
In many cases, mixing coolants will result in a chemical reaction and the formation of brown goopy sludge.
Personally, I don't believe there is any reason to run Toyota Red over any other coolant as long as you fully drain and flush the system of old coolant before putting new coolant in. Would I recomend aftermarket coolant? No. Would I run anything other than Toyota Red myself? No.
My reasoning is that running Toyota Red isn't much more expensive than any other coolant and there will be no doubt in your mind that you have the "right" coolant. The price difference between Toyota Coolant and Peak is $15 over ~50k miles.
T4R2014
Elite Member
Make sure the parts are OEM. Green coolant won't damage anything, I looked at a 1996 SR5 approaching 300k on what was the original timing belt/head gaskets and it was filled with green coolant. Ran like a dream.
With that said, I would use red coolant anyway since I'm an OEM junkie and the 5VZ was designed to use it.
With that said, I would use red coolant anyway since I'm an OEM junkie and the 5VZ was designed to use it.
I was told it would be $676 out the door at Yokem Toyota in Shreveport, LA. They would be changing the water pump, timing belt, and all drive belts. That seemed really fair to me. I bought my truck from them almost 5 years ago and they have always been reasonable and straightforward with me.
Desert Fox
New member
I am not going to say all Dealers are like this but...
I had a front wheel bearing and hub replaced at a Toyota Dealer. When they had the work done they brought me back to show me where both axels were leaking. Funny thing is that I know for a fact they were NOT leaking before I took it there. I declined the axel service and ficed the axels myself.
This kind of experience was common when I was a kid in the 70's so I learned to do my own work. Now that I am a tad bit older I thought I could trust the dealership.
I guess we never stop getting wiser.
NO more dealership for me.
