Water outlet leaking

[beldar]

Hey guys.

I recently did my timing belt, water pump, t-stat, and cam seals (thanks Timmy, you talked me into it!) and after putting
everything back together I noticed a coolant leak around the pump. Wow, I thought I did everything right. Went back in and after
removing the #3 timing cover, hooking up the hoses and pressure testing the system, I could clearly see a leak at the water outlet.
I thought it was just the gasket but after removing it I could see a hairline crack on the outlet. Oops! This was all my fault as
I remember accidentally smacking the outlet with a breaker bar early on.

So I thought this would be an easy fix. I bought a metal gasket from the dealer, and then bought a Gates water outlet, which
came with its own paper gasket. I used the metal gasket without sealant and tried torqing it to 14 ft. lbs.
But it just kept tightening and tightening and something didin't seem right. Then I ended up breaking one of the studs.
It never hit 14 ft lbs before the stud broke.

My question is are these Gates water outlets supposed to have a completely flush surface, because this one was pretty rough.

It might be ok with the included paper gasket and sealant, but with the Toyota metal gasket I could not get it to tighten
down.

Does anyone know the part number for those studs with the torx head? Nevertheless, I will hit the local pick-n-pull tomorrow as they have
a couple 4runners and look for the studs and water outlet if I'm lucky. Or should I just spring for the $55 dealer part that should mate
the metal gasket? I'm so close, it's killing me.

Here are some pics.

 

[2TH4IST]

Yes, go to the junkyard and grab that outlet and the studs from the donor 4runner, they are a reverse torx, probably a e5 or e6. I did that for my lower water pump outlet as mine was badly corroded from the junkyard.

 

[beldar]

I stopped by Pick-n-Pull today and picked up 2 water outlets and a handful of those torx studs.

Again, when torqed down to 14 ft lbs, I broke another stud. So 14 is incorrect.

I looked in the FSM and could not find any torqued specs for the water outlet.

Any guesses?

I'll start at 10 and start pressure testing. Then slowly increase torque until it stops leaking under pressure.

 

[2TH4IST]

Fsm says 13 ftlbs. Make sure your torque wrench is accurate. I've done this a few times and I always torque 13 ftlbs without any issue.

 

[beldar]

Thanks!

It sure is a fine line. I'm being verrrrrry careful to not strip the threads.

I started at 10 ft lbs, and it's about 99% drip free. Crossing fingers and will bump it back up to 13 tomorrow.

Do you know if the OEM metal gasket is a once-use gasket like the water pump?

 

[2TH4IST]

In a pinch you can reuse a metal gasket like that outlet, while the wp has a rubber inner ring thing that can not be used.

 

[3bears]

if the fsm says 13 pounds and your breaking at 14 you need a new torque wrench
I personally dont like reusing gaskets, while I cant speak for this one, some metal gaskets are made in such a way that they act as "crush seal" and only crush one time

 

[beldar]

I ended up removing the junkyard outlet and installing an aftermarket outlet + paper gasket from NAPA that I had shipped to store last week but never picked up.

I wanted to try a new Toyota metal gasket but the local dealers were out of stock. So I went and picked up the water outlet from NAPA.

I was able to get it torqued to 12.75 ft. lbs, and there is no leaking under pressure, hurray! 13ft lbs and it just wanted to keep tightening,
so I backed it down to 12.75 and got it to click. It just makes me nervous torquing to aluminum. The last thing I needed was stripping the lower intake threads.

Here is the torque wrench I used;
Amazon.com

It worked just fine for all the other torque settings for the timing belt job.
Next I'll be be doing the rear hood lift and say goodbye to the prop rod.

Thanks guys!

 

[Sparky 97Runner]

Glad to hear you got it together and working but it sounds like your torque wrench is over torquing. I agree with 3bears you need a new torque wrench.

 

[MaineRunna]

Get a good name brand professional grade torque wrench (Snap On, Cornwell, Matco, Mac Tools etc.) An 8mm stud should not break at 14 ft lbs.