Please recommend a belt drive replacement kit for 4.0L V6

[luke87gt]

Hi guys,

I'd like to refresh the belt drive system in my 2006 4runner V6.

I see Rockauto sells kits from Dayco, Gates, and ACDelco that include the following:

Serpentine Belt
Tensioner and Pulley
2 Idler Pulley

Can anyone recommend which brand to go with? I went through this recently with my Lexus and was surprised to find that the Gates kit on my GS430 had slightly different sized pulleys than OEM. Would like to avoid that this time.

Also, is the tensioner a straight forward swap? Anything that needs to come out before the tensioner can be unbolted?

Thanks!
Luke

 

[fdbyrne]

I used the Gates kit and am happy with it. I didn't swap out the tensioner mechanism itself since mine was still working fine and you have to pull off a few things to get the tensioner out. I just pulled the pulley off of the new tensioner and mounted it to the old tensioner mechanism.

 

[luke87gt]

I used the Gates kit and am happy with it. I didn't swap out the tensioner mechanism itself since mine was still working fine and you have to pull off a few things to get the tensioner out. I just pulled the pulley off of the new tensioner and mounted it to the old tensioner mechanism.

Good to know. I have heard of several people avoiding the headache of pulling off the tensioner if it is still good and instead just swapping the tensioner pulley + idlers. I may go that route.

No issues with Gates, good to know. Thanks!

 

[Brian3676]

I have used the Gates kits dozens of times and many different types of cars. Always great.

Check Amazon also, after shipping it's usually cheaper than Rock auto.

 

[luke87gt]

Thank you guys, I'll order the Gates kit for my 4runner.

 

[radlynx]

I got the gates kit as well and just replaced all the pulleys and kept the new tensioner as a backup. it's really a quick fix. also, I used a torque wrench to make sure it's torqued right.

I used the Gates kit and am happy with it. I didn't swap out the tensioner mechanism itself since mine was still working fine and you have to pull off a few things to get the tensioner out. I just pulled the pulley off of the new tensioner and mounted it to the old tensioner mechanism.

 

[fdbyrne]

Just remember that the tensioner pulley is backward threaded.

 

[luke87gt]

Just remember that the tensioner pulley is backward threaded.

Yes, I read enough horror stories. Thank you for the reminder.

I assume the idlers are standard thread?

 

[fdbyrne]

Yes, the idlers have standard threads.

Some walkthroughs will tell you to pull the fan or the shroud to make room to ge to the pulleys. It would give your more elbow room, but it's not necessary. I did find that for at least one of the pulleys it was much easier to get to it from below than above.

 

[Bluesky 07]

I bought my '07 last year at 96K miles & have 113K now. To my knowledge, the belt has never been replaced. What's the thinking in terms of timeframe and or mileage when swapping in a belt kit is a good move?

 

[Morphyne]

Is it an a v6 or a v8?

V8s need timing belt done @90k so you might as well do the other belts then.

My 07 V6 still has the original belts at 160k

 

[Bluesky 07]

It's a V6.

 

[luke87gt]

Remember guys, v8 has a timing belt, v6 has a timing chain.

In most cases the chain never needs to be swapped. It's a good idea to swap the belt at around 100k (Toyota recommends 90k intervals)

 

[luke87gt]

Still need to find time to replace these three drive pulleys (tensioner pulley and two idlers).

For the people that did it, does the lower engine skid plate need to come out to get to the bottom idler?

 

[radlynx]

nope, you don't have to. I would suggest removing the fan only and moving it inside the shroud. it will make you life easier. also note to loosen the fan bolts first before taking the belt off. once the fan is off, reinstall the 4 nuts and tighten by hand. you'll be able to access all of it from the top.

Still need to find time to replace these three drive pulleys (tensioner pulley and two idlers).

For the people that did it, does the lower engine skid plate need to come out to get to the bottom idler?

 

[luke87gt]

nope, you don't have to. I would suggest removing the fan only and moving it inside the shroud. it will make you life easier. also note to loosen the fan bolts first before taking the belt off. once the fan is off, reinstall the 4 nuts and tighten by hand. you'll be able to access all of it from the top.

Good recommendation, I will follow it and report back soon. Thanks.