TRD supercharger acting up

[falvare2]

The TRD supercharger on my 98 is acting up. It is making a horrible grinding noise when it is idling in gear. Once you get on it the noise goes away and it wines as usual. I'm sure the noise is coming from the SC and not the engine. I've heard several explanations ranging from it being a simple part that goes on the nose of the SC to complete over-hall. Any suggestions as to what is causing the noise and how to go about fixing the problem. Any input is much appreciated. Thanks

 

[Pikeman]

I know they make a Nose cone kit that is supposed to be done at regular intervals IIRC 80-100k sounds a lot like yours is overdue. This is just from what I have been reading in my research in making a decision to SC my engine or not.

 

[xStePheNyz]

Hello. I have a TRD supercharger on my 2001. At 100K miles, I had the thing serviced. There is a TRD oil change kit. You can buy it online at about $50. The SC needs to be removed and it comes with an instruction kit and takes about 4 hours to do the job. I am not a mechanic so i had my mechanic do this work and at the same time also changed the spark plugs which were also due at 100K. When he drained it he said there was only a tiny drop of oil left. It does not hold a lot of oil to begin with, the kit comes with a small bottle. He said had i gone another 10K or so miles without doing this i would have begun to hear the grind of metal on metal. The kit also includes a couple of other little parts that get replaced, some round white thingy. If you can do it yourself all the better. If you change the plugs at the same time - good idea since you need to remove the SC to do it anyway, our T4Rs have some weird spark plug wire set so i would suggest ordering that from a Toyo parts place. I also changed out what is called the TRD Dynamic Tensioner. It's the tensioner that works with the SC and it is a wear item - you can order the Dynamic Tensioner kit which also includes a nice new pulley as well. Since you will be doing this, you can also change the SC belt at the same time, i bought mine online for like $12. I ordered my parts from Conicelli Toyota online they have good prices and free shipping over $100. Good luck with it, i am sure if it's gone over 100K it needs to have this servicing done.

 

[rubbman]

I know they make a Nose cone kit that is supposed to be done at regular intervals IIRC 80-100k sounds a lot like yours is overdue. This is just from what I have been reading in my research in making a decision to SC my engine or not.

if you decide to s/c your 4runner, I have a new one for sale!

 

[sc4runner23]

how much for your supercharger how many miles are on it?

 

[994RunnerSC]

supercharger oil change

Is there any way to change the oil on a generation III (grey) TRD 3.4 supercharger without taking it off of the motor? I have heard of the possibility of using a suction tube to extract the old oil then simply refill?

I saw this www.customtacos.com/tech/files/5VZ-SC-TRDOilKit.pdf and wondered if there is a recomended and simpler way based on what I have heard?

Thanks

 

[Millerad1651]

I believe there are only 2 gens of supercharger for the 3.4. The grey one is a 1st gen, and needs to be sent in to be serviced (unless you have the special tools to do it). The black one is a 2nd gen, and can be serviced at home as described above.

 

[jdmaccord6]

It's the coupler that's inside the nose cone that needs to be replaced. While your at it, you might as well change out the oil inside it as well. Once the supercharger is off you'll see a small allen bolt on the under side of the nose cone that can be removed to drain it, but when you replace the coupler you'll have to remove the nose anyways so the oil will drain out.

This is where I got my replacement parts, Rolling Performance

 

[djskorch]

What it sounds like you have going on is a worn out coupler.

It is a round plastic connector that has 6 holes in it. 3 attach to the nose drive and 3 attach to the supercharger "turbines" (brain dead and cant think of the actual name)

over time these wear out and basically cause slack between the drive and causes a "rattling" noise that sounds like marbles or rocks in the supercharger.

the reason the noise goes away when you get on it is there is a constant load that doesnt allow the slack.

This piece is included in the rebuild kit from toyota. costs about $60 and takes around 2-3 hours to pull the charger, take the nose off, replace the coupler, replace the cone and film with oil.

when i bought my sc, i thought i got a broken sc due to the same noise but it went away after doing this rebuild and has not come back in 15,000 miles.

there are some aftermarket couplers that say they last longer but the stock one should be good for 80-100,000 miles so i didnt see the need to upgrade.

 

[djskorch]

It's the coupler that's inside the nose cone that needs to be replaced. While your at it, you might as well change out the oil inside it as well. Once the supercharger is off you'll see a small allen bolt on the under side of the nose cone that can be removed to drain it, but when you replace the coupler you'll have to remove the nose anyways so the oil will drain out.

This is where I got my replacement parts, Rolling Performance

haha beat me while i was typing. stupid phones. lol