E1

Since this is my first Toyota and I am comming up on 90K what is a ball park dollar amount to get the timing belt and water pump done for at a non-dealer establishment? I am in the DC/MD/VA area if it makes a difference. I called Rising Sun Motors and they said $725 is this guy nutty or am I?
1998 Limited 3.4L

BASSMAN

If you go to a dealership it is usually over $1000 i think. I got mine done at 84k and had the t-belt, waterpump, thermostat, and the 3 drive belts done for $300 labor. But that is at my local shop (independent owned so thats really really cheap). I got all my parts online for under $200. Thats what you should really look into. See how much it will cost for just the labor.

midiwall

$725??? Ouch.

To give you an idea of what they're REALLY charging you, I paid $91.85 for a water pump, and $33.51 for the timing belt. These are Toyota parts from a real Toyota retailer.

Drop a PM to TOR (Todd Packer) here on the forum. Among other things, he's the Internet Sales Dude at Toyota of Richardson.

Like John said, buy the parts online then head to a local shop to do the work. It's a very straight forward job, under 3 hours for a mechanic to do.

Back40

The manual for my 92 4x4 xtra cab recommends replacing the timing belt every 60k. Is this too soon based on the intervals stated in the thread? Also, is replacing the water pump recommended everytime. The service guy at the Toyota dealership told me they only replace if signs of leakage. I replaced both at 120K and am coming up on 180K. Thanks!

User 051420

I paid $480 at a local import shop for my timing belt, water pump, radiator flush, and seal inspection. The stealer wanted $989.50 but only because "they do better work by replacing ALL of the seals".

midiwall

I dunno about the 92 and your engine, but from folks I trust I've been told that 90k is the right number for my 96 3.4L. I'm overdue at 125k.

Waterpump wise, I look at it as preventive maintenance; if it goes out, you're really stuck. Plus, spending the extra parts cost now can save you almost double that cost in labor alone since you've got the front of the engine opened anyway.

UNR.Grad

Is the timing belt/water pump a do it yourself? My brother and I have both changed the timing belts/tensioners/water pumps on our Audi's and we did those fine. It typically costs 1000+ for them at the dealer, so can it be done on your own?

midiwall

Absolutely.

I'm doing it with a buddy watching over my shoulder who's a Toyota blessed mechanic. For this first time, I'll be paying him for his over-the-shoulder watching (VERY reasonable) just to make sure that I don't screw anything up.


Don't forget that you'll be spilling coolant when you do this, so have something to catch it in, and have some around to replace it with.

it's also the perfect time to replace the thermostat if you've thought of messing with different temps.

eric-the-red

If you've done other timing belts and water pumps then there should not be any problem doing it yourself. There is really no major differences from Toyota engines and others that I've worked on. If you search on here you may find a write-up from someone. It's a fairly straight forward repair. Remove rad, fan, timing covers, etc, not really any special tools required.

E1

Will do I actually planned on waiting till I got to 120K, but wanted to get some prices first. The shop I called has a good rp I will see if they use customer bought parts and if so when it's time I will TOR a line. Thanks!

MTL_4runner

The timing belt is totally doable just take your time. You will need a 24" chain wrench and a 4' length of pipe (to slide over the ratchet handle) in order to get the crank pulley bolt off. Other than that be sure to mark the position of the crank and cam gears BEFORE you take the belt off. That way when the new belt goes on, you know it went back exactly the right way. Just one tooth of can make it run pretty crappy.

I have done lots of timing belts already so obviously I don't find it particularly challenging anymore but for someone trying it for the first time, just be meticulous and everything will go quite smoothly.

Dollarbill

I went to my local Toyota dealer and the service advisor told me $685 for the water pump and timing belt. That's labor inclusive. Although that's alot of cabbage, I feel confident that I'm in good hands with Toyota trained technicians.

83

This is a very old thread.

But anyway, that's actually a crazy good price from a Toyota dealership, though personally, I think the mechanics at the dealership tend to be about the worst out there, in general. There are exceptions.

I would never have the dealership do any work to my truck unless it was under warranty. My local, independent shop, who I do trust, quoted me around $900. This is of course over 10 years since this thread was started, so parts and labor prices have gone up.

I honestly find it very hard to believe you could get this job done at the dealership or anywhere else for $685, but if that's the truth, go for it! That's a steal if you don't want to do the work yourself.

Dollarbill

You're absolutely right Zach, that's why I am going to stop over there tomorrow to confirm that price. The service writer told me $587 for the water pump alone and $687 for the water pump and timing belt ( I hope). Firestone quoted close to $900 but like you said, $687 is a steal and I'll get that in writing tomorrow. I actually bought the truck from Scranton Toyota for $6000 but it was missing the rear cat. This is my 4th Tacoma (all first gen). I'll post a follow up along with a pic of my radiant red Tacoma. Thanks for replying.

wyoming9

iTrader: (1)

Did you buy the Truck AS IS !!

How could they sell the truck in a condition of being not able to pass emissions??

Last I heard $ 1200.00 was a good price to have a timing belt done with water pump

Being Able to buy the complete kit on Ebay for @ $250.00 there is lots of labor involved .

I think lots of people get bluffed on trying to do this yourself then it all depends on mechanical aptitude

As far as I can tell my Timing belt has 200,000 miles I can only guess that when the tensioner gets maxed out it might be time to change the parts.

The truck came with all the Toyota parts sooner or later I might get around to changing it .Got the truck because the last owner was told it needed a timing belt that was about 90,000 miles ago.

I am hoping for 250,000 miles.

83

Yeah keep us updated.

My timing belt is also "due", but I've heard things like what wyoming is saying a couple times. Mine was changed for the first time at 120,000 miles. I'm at 194,000 now. So technically it's time, but I'll bet it could easily go another 50,000 if I don't start doing any serious work with the truck.

Dollarbill

Yes, I knew it was missing the rear cat and it was 'as is'. I guess in PA all you need is a pipe. I saw the truck on Ebay and called the Toyota dealer in Scranton, PA. I took the hour ride from Newburgh, NY and after a little haggling, settled on 6 grand. At the time, the truck had 111,000 miles on it. I installed a new cat and the 02 sensors and the check engine light turned off and it passed NYS inspection.

wyoming9

iTrader: (1)

Now I under stand as a out of state Buyer it did not need to be legal in Pa.

If I would have bought the Truck I would have had to haul it home on the trailer.

Cactushead

I paid $963 at the dealer last year. Timing belt, water pump, all belts.

Ritzy4Runner

iTrader: (1)

Just had m timing belt, wate pump, belts replaced at a reputable mehanic shop I have had work done in the past. With tax it ran me $820. Only thing you run into with a local shop is unless they buy the parts they would not warranty the work as the parts are "an unknown quantity" Difference between my buyng them and they buying them was on about $30, so I see that as pretty cheap insurance on the work. I would have attempted myself but I was under a time crunch at the time so one day at their shop was better then trying to do in in my drive way with only a few das till I had to be on theroad for a 2400 mile trip. Next time, I will turn the wrench