Reno_eNVy

Hello everybody! I love this website and have gained valuable information for keeping my baby running. But I find myself needing to post now... I need help! Rocking a 1992 4Runner SR5 V6 3.0L 3VZE 4WD.

I recently found my water pump leaking out the water pump weep hole and replaced it and the timing belt (small crack on the old one.) I used The Right Stuff as the Chilton's recommended a sealant like that. I filled my system with coolant and luckily there were no leaks. However, when I fired the old beast up it started to leak; revving the engine made it leak more.

So I had to go back in and re-do it.... ugh. This time I used the sealant and the gasket that came with the water pump (as per a mechanic-friend's recommendation.) I made sure to adhere to the torque specifications of the mounting bolts and cross-tighten them (like one would lug-nuts.) Fire her up again and after 20-30 seconds or so it didn't leak so I figured I'd take it around the block to see if it starts leaking again. Well, about 5 minutes later I noticed an odd smell and pulled it back home.... LEAKING AGAIN!!!

I'm really at a loss here. I'm not sure if it's just a bad seal or I'm tightening it improperly... but something isn't right. Has anybody encountered this or read/heard about it and what the solution may be? I would like very much to fix this myself; the folks say I should just take it in to a shop now but I really don't want to pay them several hundred dollars just for the labor of getting in there when I can do it for free. Haha, maybe take everything out and have them assemble it

Thank you!


Also, as a side note: I feel like the vehicle drove better after replacing the timing belt. I do believe the old belt had become less tensioned since the new one fits much better. When I took it out for a spin after the second "fix", I noticed the gas pedal was much more responsive, plus shifting was MUCH smoother... especially because it no longer makes a slight "grinka" sound when shifting in/out of 3rd at higher RPMs. Is a properly tensioned timing belt the cause of this fun benefit?

Reno_eNVy

Yeah I did clean it though I don't think it was immaculate... I guess I'll have to take a pneumatic buffer to it or something. I'm going to give it another shot today and if it's still leaking it has to be defective, wouldn't you think?

fork

was it a new water pump? or a 'remanned' water pump?

sam333

Yeh some of the reman stuff is junk.

Where is it leaking from? Not the weep hole or around the shaft?

Make sure the mating surfaces are true/not warped, no nicks/burrs and that you get every bit of old junk off. Use a single edge razor and scotch bright to remove old gasket and sealent and then clean it with lacquer thinner.

Toyota FIPG( form in place gasket) sealant is the best stuff I have found.

Reno_eNVy

Update: I ended up trying to fill the system completely when I got home from work (only did it partially before just to get the sucker running... mistake) and it is now leaking when the car is not running... I was under the impression before that it only leaked while running... another mistake.

To answer posted questions:

- It is not leaking out of the weep hole. My old one was, which was the reason for doing this job. I've finished draining the system again and am about to open her up and find the leak source now that I can see a coolant trail. But it's most definitely not the weep hole

- I don't believe it's remanned but regardless if the aforementioned process of cleaning the mounting surface by hand (that's for that advice sam) doesn't give me a good seal it must be defective and it will be going right back to the store

To the garage!!

nv4runner

Make sure you let the sealant cure after you put it back together. I recommend cleaning the surfaces, getting everything back together and ready to go and then calling it a night BEFORE you put coolant in. I replaced mine when I did my head gaskets and it sat for a good couple days while I was waiting for my fuel injector O ring kits to show up. The only coolant leak I have is a drip from the heater valve on the firewall behind the intake.

Good luck!

Reno_eNVy

Yeah this last time I did it the sealant cured for roughly 18 hours so I'm good there. But....

UPDATE: Crap.... sooo it's not the water pump. It would appear I put it on properly as there is no moisture around it.

As you can see in the photos below (forgive the fuzzy cell phone quality) the leak appears to originate behind where the idler pulley mounts... like in the engine. You can see it best in the third photo where I'm shining in a flashlight.





Yeah, I'm pretty mechanically adept but removing cam wheels and, more so, getting them back on properly seems awfully daunting. I'm pretty new at repairs on vital parts; it was terrifying enough dealing with the timing belt.

So a couple questions arise for the awesome, knowledgeable folks here:
1) What could be causing this? Just a hose or a line? I don't believe it's a blown head gasket as the other tell-tale signs are not there (i.e. green spark plug, white ring on oil cap) but I could be wrong

2) If I'm wrong and it is a blown head gasket, since there was a recall on my model for the head gaskets would a Toyota shop fix that free or for less monies? I believe my car was actually serviced on that before I owned it but is that still obligatory?

3) If they won't do it on the cheap, would it be considered a d**k-move to tow the car as-is (disassembled) to my neighborhood shop to avoid labor costs? The whole reason I wanted to do this myself was to save the several hundred dollars it would cost for a professional to get in there and then reassemble everything, which I (proud to say) can now do easily.


I apologize for the long post... thank you to anybody who is willing to read it and offer some advice.

sam333

It looks like the head gasket , looks like and old leak, but its hard to tell from the picture. You could temporarily put back your radiator, get a coolant system pressure tester and you will see where its leaking from. You might be able to rent one from the auto parts store.

If it is the head gasket , you can do it yourself.

fdp101452

I cant really tell by your pictures......is it leaking at the headgasket line? It almost looks like its leaking above there and running down the front. You can fix it yourself with the info you can get right here...good luck

Reno_eNVy

Okay so I've searched yotatech and other toyota specific forums and I can't seem to find any guides on how to replace a head gasket (or even get to it to look and see where the leak is coming from) even though most "3VZE head gasket" have someone saying there are tutorials out there but no leads.

Does anybody have a link to a good tutorial? Preferably one with photos?