Timing Belt Job from Dealer...Sounds too good

[4'running'26]

You guys comparing prices in different ares have to keep one thing in mind; Competition. Your region may have more or less competing dealerships and or service shops, this will greatly affect the hourly labor rate you are quoted.

Our dealership is 100 USD per hour, which is in line with every dealership in the area. However, to compete with independent shops and chain shops, we menu price our T-belt/WP jobs. T-Belt/WP on a V-6 here is 659.change. We also don't touch seal unless they are leaking.

If we do a seal, it's an industry standard 0.3 hours of labor each and parts on top of the 659. The reason for leaving the seals alone unless they are leaking is; there is a sizable chance that the new seal could leak when the old one didn't. The seals wear down the crank and cam surfaces and can actually cause the new seal to not seat correctly on the sealing face of the cam or crank. If they are leaking already, it's a chance worth taking, if not, they generally hold up very well.

Along the same lines, how important is it to have the idler pulley and tensioner pulley replaced while in there?

 

[nevada]

Along the same lines, how important is it to have the idler pulley and tensioner pulley replaced while in there?

personally, I think they should be done. if one of them fails, it could be catastrophic. especially on an interference engine.

 

[TakeitApart]

Along the same lines, how important is it to have the idler pulley and tensioner pulley replaced while in there?

I personally also think they should be done. I will always recommend them to the customer and explain the added charge, which is over 200.00 for parts with no additional labor. I let the customer decide and check for play and feel of the old parts before doing them and advise the customer of my findings. Rarely do the tensioners themselves fail, but the idler pulley bearings do develop play and noise as they age. They are typically not a catastrophic type failure, so much as a noise concern that gives warning before they let go. I have only seen two catastrophic failures of timing belts on 3.4l V6s and they were simply the belt breaking due to neglect. 150,000+miles.

 

[LittleCaesar]

In DC/Obamaville, it is about $1400 give or take the outlying city.

I'd replace both idlers and tensioner.

 

[LittleCaesar]

In DC/Obamaville, it is about $1400 give or take the outlying city.

I'd replace both idlers and tensioner.

 

[4'running'26]

Thanks for the opinions, recommendations, and explanations! I guess I have some thinking to do. Maybe when I get some of that money back the gov't has been taking from me I will go ahead with it!

 

[Brutalguyracing]

Thanks for the opinions, recommendations, and explanations! I guess I have some thinking to do. Maybe when I get some of that money back the gov't has been taking from me I will go ahead with it!

Me too
hell for the kind of savings i have seen posted in here
i will incorporate it into an extra long weekend and make a road trip out of it

 

[4'running'26]

Me too
hell for the kind of savings i have seen posted in here
i will incorporate it into an extra long weekend and make a road trip out of it

Hell, I have a couple extra bedrooms and I'll put you up for free!

 

[vipergrhd]

Nuts &

My dealership is nuts
They printed this out and i did not read it until i got home
Going back another time to see if they will drop one of the labor fees

Stupid! Look at the price difference in labor,the water pump job cost less.:crazy:

 

[TNRunner99]

I personally also think they should be done. I will always recommend them to the customer and explain the added charge, which is over 200.00 for parts with no additional labor. I let the customer decide and check for play and feel of the old parts before doing them and advise the customer of my findings. Rarely do the tensioners themselves fail, but the idler pulley bearings do develop play and noise as they age. They are typically not a catastrophic type failure, so much as a noise concern that gives warning before they let go. I have only seen two catastrophic failures of timing belts on 3.4l V6s and they were simply the belt breaking due to neglect. 150,000+miles.

I agree. I was at 176,000 and my bearings were making a whining noise. After everything was replaced the noise was gone. Worth it to me.

 

[monmendoza]

What parts do I need to buy

My 1998 4Runner has logged 87,000 miles and I don't have
a manual. I read it here in the forum that the manual recommends
a timing belt change every 85,000 miles. I want to do it all at once.
So what do i have to buy ?

1. Timing belt
2. Tensioner bearings
3. Water Pump
4. idler pulley
5. ?

is there anything else? I have zero mechanical ability and I want
it done all at the same time by a reliable mechanical shop. Thank
you very much.

 

[4'running'26]

My 1998 4Runner has logged 87,000 miles and I don't have
a manual. I read it here in the forum that the manual recommends
a timing belt change every 85,000 miles. I want to do it all at once.
So what do i have to buy ?

1. Timing belt
2. Tensioner bearings
3. Water Pump
4. idler pulley
5. ?

is there anything else? I have zero mechanical ability and I want
it done all at the same time by a reliable mechanical shop. Thank
you very much.

Buy a $300 kit from Ebay with all OE/OEM parts. Aircabman (I think that is the name) sells quite a few of them it seems.

 

[4'running'26]

Quick update:

I stopped by the dealership today to get a quote down on paper from them.

Well, the guy I talked to today quoted me an hour's worth more labor than the guy I talked to on the phone a few days ago.

So, with timing belt, water pump, tensioner, and both idler assemblies, the parts and labor (with tax) comes to just under a grand.

$990

Sound like a good deal?

I'm going to call back once I look at the notes I took the other day when talking to them on the phone and ask why I was quoted two different labor times, but in the end it seems to be a decent deal.

One other option: do they sell a kit on ebay that includes the tensioner and both idler assemblies? If so, maybe I should order one and then just pay them for the labor. The parts alone (once again, water pump, timing belt, tensiioner, and both idler assemblies) cost $550.

Thanks for all the help and opinions everyone. Any other opinions you have to add based on the above information is greatly appreciated! I love this community!

JT

 

[LittleCaesar]

Not the best price by far, but not a deal breaker. Where I live right now (DC), that price would be a blue light special at Kmart all day.

Ask them if it includes new drive belts as well.

 

[Yotacollector]

Quick update:

I stopped by the dealership today to get a quote down on paper from them.

Well, the guy I talked to today quoted me an hour's worth more labor than the guy I talked to on the phone a few days ago.

So, with timing belt, water pump, tensioner, and both idler assemblies, the parts and labor (with tax) comes to just under a grand.

$990

Sound like a good deal?

I'm going to call back once I look at the notes I took the other day when talking to them on the phone and ask why I was quoted two different labor times, but in the end it seems to be a decent deal.

One other option: do they sell a kit on ebay that includes the tensioner and both idler assemblies? If so, maybe I should order one and then just pay them for the labor. The parts alone (once again, water pump, timing belt, tensiioner, and both idler assemblies) cost $550.

Thanks for all the help and opinions everyone. Any other opinions you have to add based on the above information is greatly appreciated! I love this community!

JT

GO TO CAIN TOYOTA!!!!! It's 15 min away from summit toyota. I just paid $548 and got a new 4runner as a rental for the day!

 

[4'running'26]

GO TO CAIN TOYOTA!!!!! It's 15 min away from summit toyota. I just paid $548 and got a new 4runner as a rental for the day!

I called and they quoted me nearly $200 more and that was when I was asking only about the water pump and timing belt. If I add in the idler assemblies and the pulley I fear they are going to be well over a grand. Buy maybe I am wrong.

 

[Yotacollector]

Like the one poster above me stated about dealership competition.. These service departments believe it or not, most of them are hurting for work. Toyota makes a crap load off oem parts and if you tell them another dealership quoted less then them, 9 times out of 10 they will beat it.

 

[4'running'26]

Yotacollector,

I want to go to Cain, I really do, but their service department is starting to piss me off. Why do they keep trying to talk me out of changing the idlers and tensioner!?!?! I keep telling them I want it and they keep saying, "Oh, we never change that...we'll check it but I doubt you'll need it...we don't even carry those parts in stock..."

And it seems that they still won't match Summit's price. I'm going to go in there tomorrow and get a straight quote from them with all the parts I want, and if they won't match Summit I'm done with them.

I just can't fathom why a dealership would try to talk me out of attempting to be proactive in maintaining the health of my engine, especially when I am buying from their parts department.

 

[4'running'26]

Yotacollector,

I want to go to Cain, I really do, but their service department is starting to piss me off. Why do they keep trying to talk me out of changing the idlers and tensioner!?!?! I keep telling them I want it and they keep saying, "Oh, we never change that...we'll check it but I doubt you'll need it...we don't even carry those parts in stock..."

And it seems that they still won't match Summit's price. I'm going to go in there tomorrow and get a straight quote from them with all the parts I want, and if they won't match Summit I'm done with them.

I just can't fathom why a dealership would try to talk me out of attempting to be proactive in maintaining the health of my engine, especially when I am buying from their parts department.

 

[LittleCaesar]

Easy call on this one.

The stealership doesn't stock those parts because most customers don't want to pay for them. Excess, non moving parts is costly for them to hold for the future.

Plus, the stealership doesn't want you to keep your present 4runner on the road too much longer; they would rather you keep enjoying the 4runner experience by buying a 2014 model to help their bottom line.