91_TOYOTA_4x4

Pulling the heads isnt so bad. You only have to take off everything lol but nah if your going to do it take off a few days and make sure you understand completely what you have to do. You will be pulling exhaust,intake, timing belt, rad (makes easyer), a billion vac lines.. I found the Exhaust the most annoying trying to undo an tighten the bolts that put attach the header to the crossover was easily the most frustrating thing lol. Even after pulling the motorr and doing HG's..

But its really not that bad as long as you have beer, tunes, an a buddy to help lol by the way your going to be there so might as well do both heads! Im sure in the end it will run like a race horse!

jbtvt

115 isn't bad at all, esp if you're cold-checking, and I would put money that it will go up significantly just reshimming the valve. Depends on the person's finances, time, and perfectionism I suppose, but there is no way I would be even considering a valve job for one cylinder at 115. Reshim first for sure.

You can grind the shims in a pinch - https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f116...2-20mm-247426/ - but if you're short on time the best way would be to order a bunch (or put a deposit on a bunch from a machine shop) and return what you don't need. Between swapping around the ones in your engine already and a selection of new ones, you should be able to get them all, or hopefully the ones under the intake at least.

Buck&DuckRig

just wondering what does a valve ajustment usally run$ on a 3.0

MudHippy

I(and a few others here who've done it) recommend removing the camshafts. But not to someone who's never succesfully installed a timing belt on this engine. Since that would need done again(and really is cake work if you've done it once). It just makes the job of replacing the shims SO much easier without the effin' camshaft in the way.

Gamefreakgc

I wish I had a third vehicle... then I could tear it apart and not worry about how long it will take!

scope103

Then I would be glad I don't live next door .....

Buck&DuckRig

well no need for a ajustment on mine since my motor called it doneski pretty possitive it dropped a rod so now i have to get a new one and it sucks right here before cristmas lol

Gamefreakgc

In addressing an exhaust smell in the cab, I discovered a vacuum leak under the air intake chamber (I found it when adjusting the idle speed, at 1000 RPM it was a very loud hiss).

I don't have enough time to do a whole valve job, trying to do this in a weekend in early January after the holidays. Since I'm going to have to remove half the parts necessary just to get the intake chamber off to replace hosing/inspect for cracks, I figure I should check/replace other things while I'm at it. So far my list is:

• Replace Air Chamber gasket and check for cracks/warps
• Replace PCV valve
• Replace old hosing that couldn't normally get to
• Clean air intake chamber and intake manifold
• Clean injectors and replace O-rings, gaskets

Should I also adjust the valves and replace the intake manifold gasket as well since I'm down there? Any other gaskets (besides head gasket, don't have enough time to go that deep) that should be replaced or valve shims, lifters, etc.? I want to hit as many birds with one stone as I can!

Donster

Valve adjustment not too difficult. It is time conuming, because of all the "crap" you have to remove. I'm not sure who said it, but you might as well do the timing belt while your in, and look things over..you might need a front crankshaft seal, water pump? You gotta check it cold and have access to the dealership parts dept. so that you can go buy the shims you need, once you have determined which ones are needed. The shims are not hard to remove or replace, but a good strong little magnet really helps in getting them out. The thickness is marked on the shims but it would be nice to have a micrometer on hand, just to be sure. You could do it in a weekend if you have the shims. No way of knowing if you've burnt the valve with out leak test, but, if you have NO clearance on that exhaust valve, then, it's more than likely burnt but you could try the adjustment first and see if it works for you or not. If you are REAL lucky, sometimes you can "rearrange" the shims and come up with what you need for the total adjustment, but don't count on it. Good luck.

Gamefreakgc

Thanks for the tips. I wish I knew how old my water pump is... they are kinda pricey so I do not want to replace it needlessly. It can't be stock after 279k miles. Any tell-tale signs of one going bad?

Donster

Usually, you can see coolant dripping from the area (front drivers side of the engine) if the seal is going bad. Other than that, not knowing if it is an old pump or not, I would replace it, or just wait until the next time you replace your timing belt.

jbtvt

YES you should absolutely do the shims while you're in there, your compression WILL go up. As I said before, get a selection of 34mm diameter shims ahead of time, either from a machine shop or online so you can get all the ones under the intake while it's off, and make sure you can return what you don't use.

I've never seen shims that had the thickness marked, you will need a micrometer, and valve cover gaskets also. The only thing that a timing belt/water pump and valve shims have in common that is necessary to remove is the negative battery cable, different part of the engine. You do not need to remove the intake manifold to do a belt/pump, contrary to what some books say.

Donster

Yeah, sorry. I was making the assumption that Gamefreakgc was going to do the t/belt at the same time of the valve adjustment. That's the only time I have adjusted my valves is at T/belt change, although I guess you could adjust them with just the valve covers off. My thought was, that if you are in there for Timing belt, you might as well do the water pump while your in there, if pump has high miles on it. I can't remember, but it seems like you have to take to timing belt cover off in order to manually rotate the engine and go through the necessary valve clearance inspection in order to determine what shims are in there and what shims you will need, to bring clearance into spec. I am only a shade tree mech., but have gone through the valve adjustment a couple of times. Best of luck Gamefreakgc, and let us know how you come out on this one!

scope103

!?

Good luck with that. There are 25 different shim sizes, and you might be unlucky enough that all 12 valves need the same shim, so you'd need to get 300 shims at about $8 each. I really like my local dealer (Downtown Toyota in Oakland), and I like the machine shop I've used (Center Automotive), but I really can't see either of them letting me borrow 300 shims for a few days. I consider myself lucky that I'm able to drive down (actually, I took my bicycle) and get the two that I needed.

But if you have a place that will work that with you, it is certainly more convenient.

Gamefreakgc

I'll try and see if they will let me buy and return multiple shims but I'm ok if it doesn't work out. The dealer is just 5 min down the road so not a big deal either way. I have my feeler gauge and the FSM has some easy algebra to calculate the sizes I will need (big fancy chart too).

I was also under the impression that you had to remove the air chamber intake to get to the timing belt. Either way, I'll still change it out since the belt is at the very least 3 years old but most likely older.

I'm also hoping this will fix cylinder 6... but I'm not counting on it. Like others were saying, it's probably a burnt valve. The shop I go to has a toyota mechanic that owns an 89 P/U with a 22RE and he thinks it's a burnt valve. I just don't have the time or means to pull the cylinder heads so this is just a band-aid job for now.

jbtvt

In my experiences the majority of the valves need no adjustment, and the odds are small that even two will need the same size. Also, the key is getting the 6 under the intake, the other side is easy enough to get at again. Plus, there are 2 shims which will put each valve within spec, but even then I and others have shimmed slightly over clearance without performance issues. Finally, in a pinch you can grind them down. I bet you'd be more than fine with a single set for the entire job, probably every other size for under the intake.

But if it isn't your daily driver you can order after measuring anyway. FYI, the shims are a special order from the dealer near me.

Gamefreakgc

Thanks to all who have posted so far, this thread really is a wealth of information for me (and hopefully others) after reading it all through again.

Here's where I am at right now: my truck is my DD so a valve job is not possible. There's no way I can take off half the engine and expect it to be able to get it all fixed and put back on in 3-4 days. I've decided that I don't have the tools necessary to replace/remove the timing belt, especially when it comes to taking off the pulleys (with my luck they will be spec on torque... which is around 180 lb/ft). So I'm looking at a valve adjustment and the other items I mentioned below. I'm going to try it over MLK holiday if I can get the shims at one of the several dealers near me. I'm confident that one will have them in stock.

Is there anything else I should know or replace while I've got the air chamber and valve covers off (that's assuming the FSM is wrong in that you do not have to remove the t-belt assembly to get this far)?

• Replace Air Chamber gasket and check for cracks/warps
• Replace PCV valve
• Replace old hosing that couldn't normally get to
• Clean air intake chamber and intake manifold
• Clean injectors and replace O-rings, gaskets

Gamefreakgc

Just finished the valve adjustment last night and WOW , what a difference!

Turns out the exhaust shim for cylinder 3 was way out of spec, others were so-so. Had to swap around 4 shims and order 2 more. For reference, I have 5 Toyota dealers in the area and none of the carried the shims anymore. They used t, but not anymore so I had to measure the gaps and then order the parts (came in two days later). Hope that helps anyone else planning to do the job. When I was in there, I took out the injectors and had them cleaned by "Doctor Injector". He works nearby so I dropped them off at his shop. Did a great job, they run like they are brand new!

I'm not sure who worked on this engine in the past, but somebody messed it up. The housings for the LH camshaft were out of order... was numbered 1-4-2-3... not to mention the exhaust shim for cylinder 3 was way out of spec, had a shim .2 mm larger than any others (the rest measured between 2.65 and 2.80) causing the exhaust valve to stay open.

FYI, if your PCV valve grommet is old it is a pain to get out. My old gasket had hardened and I had to chip it out with a hammer and screwdriver.

Thanks again for the advice and tips.

Sturmcrow

I'm glad to hear that all turned out OK. I've been following your thread from the start. Do you notice any difference in engine sounds now that you've got the valve lash within spec? I've got a ticking that I hope goes away after I get a chance to adjust mine.

Gamefreakgc

Funny you say that. When I first started it up, it may MORE noises than before! It's back to normal now though (my new PCV valve has a washer that rattled, it's all nice and clogged up with oil and grime so doesn't do that anymore ). Honestly though, it sounds almost exactly the same. The ticking noise you hear is probably the Fuel Pressure Regulator, the small saucer-like contraption sticking out of the LH fuel rail (RH side if looking from the front of the truck). Mine ticks very loud but works just fine.

As far as the engine goes, it's a bit quieter but the most noticeable change is the rhythm. Mine would idle poorly with an irregular combustion pattern and have trouble accelerating in low RPMs, now it purrs at idle and smoothly (and quickly) accelerates in low RPMs, as well as hauls in high RPMs! Mine was obvious it needed the adjustment, at sub 1000-RPM the engine would violently shake back and forth since cynlinder 3 has almost no compression. Everyone said I needed a new engine, all it needed was some TLC. Cost me $250 (with $140 for injector cleaning) instead of $1500+!

A side note though, the 3VZ-E does not have a lash, that's the 22's. A lash would be 10x easier to adjust, you would just turn a screw. The 3VZ-E has shims, which you need a special set of tools ( , also check the reviews on the page, one guy has photos on how to do it) to remove. After performing the adjustment, it would be near impossible to do without this tool due to the pressure of the valve springs. If I were to do it again, I would take one out and replace it while the valve is depressed. I removed them all first and measured, only to spend 2 hours trying to get them back in again. This would require having shims of all sizes though, which I couldn't do since I had to special order from Toyota. Also, the crush washers for the fuel rails have to be special ordered as well, unless you opt not to take the opportunity to clean the injectors while you're down there.