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300K miles on stock water pump and timing belt 99 runner
Hey everyone,
Well....i did it. I just logged 300,000 miles on my 99 4runner v6 4wd with the original waterpump ,timing belt and idler pulley. Along with those parts, the rack n pinion and transmission are original and i've never dropped the trans. pan. I exchange the fluid. The coil packs and injectors are original. This rig has spent lots of time on the trail and is no trailer queen. I actually think the climate in Arizona has a bunch to do with the longevity of the parts.
A true testament to whats possible with these 3rd generation gems!
That’s awesome. I did the first timing belt job at 171,000 miles, and again at 350,000 miles. It’s tedious & time consuming, but not terribly difficult.
I currently have 441,000 miles on the truck. The injectors & coil packs are original, the transmission pan has never been dropped (complete fluid exchange every 100k), spark plugs & air filter every 25k, oil changes (Castrol GTX 5w/30) every 3k. It’s starting to show its age but I keep on top of maintenance and use Toyota parts whenever I replace something. I wouldn’t hesitate driving to Alaska tomorrow.
Very cool.....maybe i'll be keeping my runner another 100,000.
But yes.....keeping up on the list is essential otherwise repairs can get away from you.
Another key to the pump lasting longer was to switch over to import antifreeze. I never knew about silicates and how they attack interior parts.
So, switching back to the red antifreeze was important.
Very cool.....maybe i'll be keeping my runner another 100,000.
But yes.....keeping up on the list is essential otherwise repairs can get away from you.
Another key to the pump lasting longer was to switch over to import antifreeze. I never knew about silicates and how they attack interior parts.
So, switching back to the red antifreeze was important.
Well I’m hoping to see 500,000 miles with this thing - need to get my money’s worth.
I’ve only used Toyota red coolant as well. Silly expensive, but hopefully worth it.
It's not the belt I'd worry about, it's the water pump!
But yeah, that's great.
I feel like my truck finally grew up yesterday. Its first oil leak! 260,000 miles. Front output shaft of the t-case just suddenly sprung a nice leak, so that's my project next week.
Question for you post 300,000 mile guys.......
Has anyone had a front wheel bearing go out on them or have you changed them out as a preventative measure?? I always wondered especially since they are pressed in and are no easy thing to replace on the road. Thx!
Ps.....my new job has covered parking in Az so my paint and repainted surfaces will get a break!!
I assumed mine had been replaced with the first timing belt job, but no. The mechanic said it was the original, and it was leaking. This was at 250,000 miles.
Question for you post 300,000 mile guys.......
Has anyone had a front wheel bearing go out on them or have you changed them out as a preventative measure?? I always wondered especially since they are pressed in and are no easy thing to replace on the road. Thx!
Ps.....my new job has covered parking in Az so my paint and repainted surfaces will get a break!!
I had the first wheel bearing go at 300,000 miles - one of the rears. So I decided to change all four bearings at once. The fronts were a BEAR to extract. I purchased the full SIR Tools wheel bearing kit to do the job.
This thread makes me wish I had saved the $1000+ I spent to change my timing belt not once but twice! ...Once at 90k and again at 180k. I'm at 255k and was originally planning on doing it around 270k. Since these are zero interference engines I think I'll wait until it fails before I replace it again. Hope it doesn't fail too far from home!
This thread makes me wish I had saved the $1000+ I spent to change my timing belt not once but twice! ...Once at 90k and again at 180k. I'm at 255k and was originally planning on doing it around 270k. Since these are zero interference engines I think I'll wait until it fails before I replace it again. Hope it doesn't fail too far from home!
Why would you wait until it fails?
That just sounds pretty dumb. While you could pile a bunch of miles on the timing belt until the belt breaks in the middle of rush hour traffic, the tow bill and the repair bill, plus other damage the belt could have done doesn't sound much like savings to me.
If you are able to do the job yourself, it will be much less expensive than you were paying to have it done, even using Genuine Toyota parts at full MSRP prices.
When I originally had the timing belts replaced I paid a mechanic. Now I would definitely do it myself. This is my around town vehicle, so it's never very far from home. In the unlikely event it's beyond the free towing range, I would just tow it home myself with my other 4runner. I have all the time in the world. Rush hour traffic...what's that? What other damage...non-interference engine?
Only other damage would be "worst case scenarios". I don't know where you live, but there's always crossing train tracks, pulling out into traffic in front of someone, rushing to the hospital or to some other emergency, etc.
I know what you're saying and how you feel, and if you're comfortable with it failing at an unknown moment, that's up to you. It's just that in the scheme of things, taking Murphy's Law into account, it seems smarter to replace it before it fails.
I completely see your point of view as well. It actually got me thinking about a scenario that would be a huge disaster...towing the boat. That alone may justify replacing it before it breaks. Instead of 270k miles maybe 350k. I am curious how many miles you can put on a timing belt before it fails.
Yeah. A lot probably depends. Depends on how hard your use is, the local climate etc. Like I mentioned, my belts were changed around 90,000, I think, by the first owner. Then I had them replaced at 250,000. The belts were totally fine. Just the water pump was starting to leak.
These Timing belts are pretty robust, I let mine go for extended periods aswell 250,000Km to 300,000Km, you will have a water pump failure (minor leak out weeping hole) before you need to change the T-belt. On my Eclipse 4G63T it gets changed at 90,000Km as it is a turbo charged interference motor with a rev limiter set to 9000rpm's and the t-belt drives both exhaust and intake unlike the 5vz-fe which has geared intake and exhaust cams.
Aug 14, 2019 | 04:54 AM
