V6 5-speed, what was your clutch life?

We'll see about the flywheel, I'll wait for the diagnosis. I'm inclined to do anything that is logical, sort of like replacing a water pump when you do the timing belt.

The squeaks are undiagnosable in my case too. I've told my mechanic, actually two, since the truck has outlasted one that retired. They couldn't get it to duplicate. It's a short squeak when shifting, I'm convinced it is clutch related. I kept asking my mechanic whether I need to replace the clutch, he'd drive it and say, nope, seems good.
I should know later today what's going on.
Thanks for responding.

 

i can chitchat about this until the water runs dry LOL
this was the 2nd big concerning rattle/vibe/squeak that my rig has had in 27 years and now 353k miles
first rattle was Also misdiagnosed at a pro Yota shop as a clutch throw out bearing fussing and i had to drive it out until the culprit finally broke many months later and avoided a major catastrophic experience thankfully

hopefully your trusted 'expert' is competent and won't bugger your truck up while dismantling it like mine was
the level of incompetence at these places i have been running into for the past several is nauseating...

your truck has two cats?
where is the downstream O2 sensor harness mounted underneath there?

 

Yes, mine has two cats, I'm in California, maybe that's why. When I get it back I'll crawl under and snap some photos of where the O2 sensors are. They are readily available. I had them replaced at maybe 100k, 150k ago....can't remember. I left my service record book in the truck. I used aftermarket cats due to unavailability of new. These are my 2nd set of aftermarkets. First set went in at 225k, approx. I'd been getting p0420 codes for a while but finally, I knew the truck wouldn't pass smog unless I did the cats. The p0420 code would come back in two start/stop cycles or 40 miles. I suspected my O2 sensors were still ok and took a chance at leaving them, glad I did. The new cats cost me just under $1700 installed. I kinda wish I'd put some kind of theft deterrence device in, but didn't. Any recommendations?

I'm also hopeful about the mechanic. he came highly recommended by my regular mechanic who I really trust. My reg guy drives a 2007 tundra and the new guy drives a 2000 tundra, but they are HUGE taco fans, especially the older ones. Keeping fingers crossed.

My reg mechanic did my timing belt plus associated stuff (water pump, etc) at 405k for about $1600, including all the parts and labor. He's a perfectionist and I think did a great job.

Next possible issue is the power steering is getting stiff when turning at low speeds. I'll tackle that after the current issue is done.

 

After 1998 or 1999, I forget which, Toyota started making all their cars and trucks 50 state compliant with 2 cats. That's why the early years only have one unless they were specifically made to CA spec emissions.

 

Short squeak when shifting could be the brass bushing attached to the clutch pedal. Happened to me when I first got the truck and instead of replacing the bushing I just put in a spring to get the pedal to return (although it would return even without the spring)

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/clutch-squeak-linear-spring-swap-tw-how-to.159429/

 

short squeak 'might' also be the fork pivot area and that ball thing what is it called?
this is the fork that came out of my rig... i am located in a very humid and brutal winter climate so she be crusty looking!

but you would probably hear this noticeable squeak just exercising the pedal in neutral while sitting in a drivethru with echo
may or may not have some grease from that throwout bearing that dirt clung to?



or perhaps the other pivot end?

 

Bought a 1st gen used, it needed a clutch at 213K My other first gen had the original when I sold it at 345K. 2011 155K untouched and I pull my camper with it. Pays to drive it like you want to keep it for a long time.

 

or perhaps you drive it like you mean to keep it for a long time and it ends up costing several thousands of good coin from a pricey damaged transmission part and then even more headaches after that

 

For what?

 

a roached input shaft tip that was undiagnosable to the pro diagnosticians until truck was finally dismantled when the throwout bearing started to quietly chirp
clutch worked just fine! shifted just fine! nothing wrong LMAO

 

Well, I got the truck back from the independent shop my regular mechanic recommended. They agreed with him that the main noise is the throw-out bearing. Of course the clutch has 406k on it, so no surprise. Both will get replaced. The TOB noise started about 3 weeks ago and is getting louder.

However, they also heard a noise they think might be the input shaft bearing. They could hear this while it was on the rack, I guess. I didn't hear it while driving perhaps because I'm focusing on the TOB.

After the holiday weekend, they will give me estimates for various options. One is clutch/TOB and associated work only, another is clutch/TOB plus take the tranny over for a rebuild, last option is clutch/TOB and find an already rebuilt tranny. (5 spd).

It will depend on the costs, but I'm inclined to just do the clutch/TOB. The tranny can always be dropped later and leave the new clutch in place. There would be some overlap of work but maybe not too much? I think maybe some of the exhaust system might have to be dropped if the input shaft bearing failed later.

I'd love to hear your thoughts! The experience level on this forum is fantastic and very helpful. If the input shaft bearing or other input shaft part (tip?) fails, would I mess up my engine?

I have about $3400 into the old girl this year so far (timing belt work, new cats, low idler pulley bearing failure after the timing belt was done, etc). I'm anticipating perhaps some power steering maintenance at some point.
Thanks in advance...

 

The new throwout bearing in my rig started some small chattering right before 11k miles since installation and I am unclear why it started so soon!!?

 

My original clutch is still going at 330,000 miles. I started towing a ~3,000lb camper trailer with it at ~200,000 miles. There are times when it's definitely not happy, and the throwout bearing will occasionally make some noise when it's cold out, but it still works just fine. A couple winters ago when the throwout started grinding I thought "well, this is it, time for a new clutch". But then it went away...it's happened maybe 6 times, most of them within one week of it happening for the first time. Can't remember the last time it happened. Might have been once over this last winter.

I'm getting ready to sell the truck and while I'd love to say "it has a new clutch", I just can't bring myself to replace the clutch on vehicle I'm about to sell. If I had a more equipped shop, maybe, but I'm not dealing with the pain of the transmission for something I'm just going to sell. Clutch may last another 20,000 miles for all I know...

I'm plugging away at some smaller stuff. New blinker wiring since it sheared off the front driver side. New passenger cv axle. Flushed brake fluid. But I'm not pulling the tranny.

 

I did a complete clutch/tranny job all the way from the rear main seal/pilot bearing to a Marlin reman R150F tranny 2 years back. Last year, I did a complete timing belt/water pump job and valve cover gaskets including re-shimming the valves. New OEM/KOYO front wheel bearings/CV axles/etc. are getting replaced now. I know what all this costs, where to source the parts, and what it takes to do it.
When your mechanic changes the clutch out, be very sure he goes back with JAPAN made TO/Release bearing and pilot bearing. OEM is probably best. When I changed out my original AISIN clutch on the '97 V6 Taco at 136K miles/25 years, the clutch disc and pressure plate were still very serviceable. But both the TOB & pilot bearing showed a lot of wear. I also installed a new OEM clutch fork for $30. The OEM TOB and pilot bearings are both NSK JAPAN IIRC. And either resurfacing or replacing the flywheel is a must. Don't even consider it otherwise. This is also a very opportune time to change out the original NOK JAPAN rear main seal if that has never been done. Use high-quality JAPAN clutch parts and you should be able to forget about your clutch for a decade or 2. The after-market AISIN kit from Rockauto was all JAPAN parts except for the KOYO pilot bearing. The OEM Toyota/NSK pilot bearing was approx. $6, so I installed one instead of the KOYO. The current OEM clutch disc and plate offered by Toyota are not new but reman AISIN.

 

Thanks for the write up! Great advice which I will follow. They already mentioned that they'd replace the flywheel as the good local machine shops aren't around any more.

I looked into a Marlin R150F rebuild. $2000 and 4 to 6 weeks, and afterwards I'd take the old one in as a core. I'm fortunate that Marlin is a few hours away from me so I could pickup and drop off.

I may not be able to wait for 4 to 6 weeks. But I'll discuss it with the mechanic after I know what his thoughts are. We were supposed to go on vacation, delayed it, and hope to go in early June. But another option is to stay home, order the tranny, and do all the work when it's ready. Problem is that the truck is our most used, reliable vehicle right now. We are shopping for a new car for my wife, her '98 subaru is about done.

It's hard to know how bad shape the tranny is and whether it warrants replacement. Now that I think about it, I have heard a different whirring sound other than the TOB, but it is not very noticeable.

Last option is to replace the clutch, TOB etc, but leave the transmission for now. But maybe that costs more in the long run if it goes bad. I might go this route if it doesn't add too much cost and more importantly, doesn't damage the new clutch or engine.

It sure helps to hear about other's experiences! Any thoughts and advice greatly appreciated.
Thanks again.

 

are the hydraulic master/slave cylinders on your truck original still?
mine went out around 210k miles with a pedal that would not return fully, especially in reverse

 

Yup, they are original. I guess I should consider replacing those with the clutch. Thanks for the heads up.

 

i wouldn't see a 'need' necessarily to replace those if in good working order? it is a minor big cost to replace
maybe just put new hydraulic fluid into the reservoir and bleed it?
mine went out long before the clutch started making a small chatter likely because of cold-weather starting (way below freezing LOL), fast idle, and having to back out safely of a Long driveway in the winter
to maintain control backing up i used that 3rd pedal to maintain a lower RPM because i do not sit for 15 minutes (or however long it takes) for the engine to fully warm-up and the fast idle to stop drop back to normal

 

Thanks, I am going to leave the master/slave cylinders for another day, but change out the fluid. It's pretty dark. But the cylinders seem to be functioning well. I got a quote for the clutch job. They'd replace the disc, pressure plate, flywheel (Luk, OEM adds $600 plus), release bearing pilot, exhaust gaskets, transmission fluid and transfer case fluid for $2658. Aisen parts.

I can't hear the input shaft bearing. They heard it while diagnosing, and mentioned it. I haven't noticed shifting issues other than what I attribute to the clutch. I'm inclined to not rebuild it until it becomes a larger issue. Mainly because it would add a week or two. I called around and no one has a core they could rebuild for me, they'd need to rebuild the one I have. Cost of the R150F rebuild would be between $1700 and $2100 depending on options chosen.

I guess I could always drop the tranny later if need be. But that would add some cost to that job unless I try it myself. That's only an option when the truck isn't our primary vehicle.

 

have you had any odd noises driving in warmer temps when the truck is hot? the odd noises on mine started in warm weather and occurred around 2200 RPM (2nd,3rd,4th gear) and then again at 3k RPM while getting onto the freeway on-ramp in 3rd gear which was startling
I still have yet to find out what and why this was occurring because it was undiagnosable to the trained and certified 'experts'

what hours did they quote you on?
i had quotes for 5hr 6hr and one 9hr