Timing Change

Hi guys,

I'm fairly new to the forums. Here's a video link to my introduction to Tacoma world -

I want to do a timing belt change, water pump, thermostat, drive belts etc... it is going to be my first time doing this, so I lack knowledge.

So I want to ask the community if there are any ways to do the job efficiently, be it with special tools, Tips and Tricks, all is welcome !

Here are some pictures of the front end of the engine-

Kit I'm going purchase -




Tools for the job -


...oh one more question. How can I measure the tension that I put on my belts ?

I will do a video of me doing the Timing Belt and it's components ... so look out for that.

Thanks everybody

 

There should be a sticky somewhere on how to do this. It's pretty involved, so I'd do some digging first and allow at least a weekend for the job. Be prepared for your truck to be down for at least 2 days. I got all the stuff from Aircabinman on Ebay. I bought a tensioner and a few valve cover gaskets from Toyota Dallas. It was cheaper to do it like that for me. Anywho, I have a dealership here that has a timing belt "Package" for 4 6 and 8 cyl engines. The 6 is 800 bucks and includes water pump, drive belts, and thermostat+ coolant. I asked them for a labor only quote and said I had parts. They gave me 500 for labor only and I'm in 250 in parts so I'm ahead a bit. There will be an hour or two extra in labor because of cam seals front seal and gaskets, tensioner, but I think I'll be under 1k for the whole thing.

It's just too friggin hot here in Dallas to do it, and I don't have the time with two babies to work on my daily driver for that amount of time. Plus I need it done before Moab in Oct and I'm pushing 170k on original belt.

 

I watched SafetyDang's youtube how-to when I did the timing belt/water pump on my '02, thought he did an excellent job and it was easy to skip around or go back over whatever you get hung up on. I also purchased that compressor, but remember that it might be a good idea to replace the tensioner anyway, which renders that tool useless. Everyone hums and haws about it cause you have to remove ac compressor, really not a big deal though. The main issue I think is breaking the crankcase pulley bolt loose, that can be a real bitch. If your not comfortable with bump starter method, invest in a tool that will lock that pulley in place, both for removal and reassembling. I also strongly recommend going all in on the actual Toyota parts, not OEM-ish, the motor will thank you! It's an involved procedure, but you'll learn a lot and gain confidence in tackling other repairs as they come up. GL!