welcome wilboud. pretty sure phil had a failure of the idler pulley bearing and the pulley over time traveled away from the engine block and started to rub on the t-belt cover. at 220k on one set of idlers i'm not surprised. the 5vz and 3vz are non interference motors, meaning that no matter what happens the valves never travel below the pistons upstroke. i was doing 80 on the highway when mine shredded. put a new t-belt on, changed the tensioner, water pump and idler and was on my way.

 

Yes, exactly as I said. My nephew is a Toyota mechanic and told me there's something about the way the engines are made that the breaking of the timing belt will not effect the engine when it goes. Forgot the terminology. Yes, the bearings on the top pulley melted right through the cover. I repaired the cover with epoxy after replacing everything and it's working fine.

 

Non-interference...that was it. Mine went at 70mph...just shut down with no noise at all.

 

145000

 

I would like to meet someone that can change a timing belt on a 3.4 V6 in an hour. It took me about 6 hours to do the belt and water pump. And I am pretty handy with tools (former A&P mechanic airframes and powerplants).
Just for your reference the timing belt is NOT the belt that you see when you open the hood. The timing belt is underneath the timing cover. There are half a dozen fasteners to remove before you can even glimpse at the belt. That said, I changed mine at 109K. I would not recommend waiting until it breaks...as Murphy's law dictates that this will happen at the most inopportune time.

 

so far about 20k miles on the belt, pully and water pump.

 

Mine was changed at 122,000 by the previous owner.

My 4runner has 328,000 on it now, so yeah, it's time for a new timing belt !

.

 

WTF ? Thats like 200k miles in between! Awesome!!! But playing Russian roulette lol.

 

I have around 265,000 miles on the original timing belt and water pump. Now, I had 265k miles on the radiator and thermostat, though the radiator popped mid-trail this past weekend, so they've been replaced (thermostat for caution). Amazing both were OEM parts (bought the truck used).
With the fan/shroud/radiator removed, I took a peek at the TB - yeah, it needs replacement. Full of spider cracks, very dry, but isn't frayed. When the change happens, I will time myself, along with replace water pump, cam seals, crank seal, and tensioner. Expect a write-up in the next 2 months.

 

Hey Guys,
Thanks for posting up all the good info& pics. Very helpful, and with this data we can make some decisions on when we're comfortable doing this maintenance. Maybe for some of us, it'll turn out to be a one time, instead of two or three time per vehicle chore/expense. As for me, I'm very comfortable with a 150K interval from what I see here, and wouldn't be too worried about running my Taco 175K before a change. I've always changed the whole laundry list of parts under the timing cover in the past. I don't recall hearing any reports of leaking seals in the thread, though it's been quite a while since I reviewed it. Anyone got leaking seals to report?

 

I have leaky seals. When I changed my acc. belts, there was quite the build up of oil at the bottom of the engine. No doubt coming from the cam/crank seals. When I get around to replacing the timing belt, I will replace the seals as well (along with wp, tensioner and valve cover gaskets).

 

Do what i did..... Pull the cover and get a mirror and flashlight and inspect for cracks.
Got about 150,000 on mine.... Still looking good.
That job is gonna be mad time and money so i'll do it all once.
Pully , pump, belt, lower pully tool etc.
Ks

 

I ended up just changing mine at 82000

 

Anyone have prices on getting the timing belt, tensioner and water pump replaced? I have 138K on a used vehicle but don't know if its been replaced or not. I guess I will have to check for the sticker on the top cover. If not, I need to start saving up and need to know an estimated cost?

 

mine was like 150k when I had it replaced.

 

Call your local Toyota dealer or trusted mechanic for a quote. Seems we see $700-1000+ tossed around here.

Also, consider changing the thermostat, auxiliary belts, radiator hoses, and the cam and crank seals if they are leaking.

 

I know this was asked a few months ago but just an FYI for people searching for this. When I had mine done the Toyota Dealer in Frederick MD quoted me $1200, so I went to the Toyota dealer in Hanover PA (about 45 min drive) and got it done for $600... that was the whole job, belt, pump, and everything, and they even gave me a loner car. So shop around a little, not all Toyota Dealers charge the same.

 

I'm at 160,000 and i have no intention of changing it until the waterpump weeps or i can see cracking .
Kenny s

 

I just did the TB and everything on my 3.4 swapped into my 92. I bought everything from an ad on Ebay and it was all top quality stuff. Everything was Toyota or Aisin. 355.28 shipped

Here is the link.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/180729034728...84.m1497.l2649

Username is aircabinman if that link dies one day.

I recommend!

Dont forget to replace the crank bolt!! Not advised to reuse the old one.

 

How Do you check the timing belt do you just look for cracks ?