MTX: 3.4L V6 Timing Belt/Water Pump/Compression Check/Valve Cover Gaskets

I did an old-school apprenticeship with a former U.S. Army trained mechanic when I was in high school in the '60s. He taught me the basics on the weekends and holidays. A local drag racer, James Brom, took a liking to me and furthered my education with his 1965 solid lifter 289 High Performance Windsor small block Ford and big block Mopar race cars. Been working on my engines, etc. ever since I had a Honda 50 in the '60s. Given that I flew airplanes for a living for 33 years, the smart move would have been to get my A&P for working on airplane engines.

 

In my opinion you not buying the valve adjustment tools was a wise move, even if you did so just because of them not being available. I found it easier to depress the valve bucket with a big flathead screwdriver and pry the shim out with a small flathead, catching the shim with a magnet. Had a buddy help me out, and it worked far better than fiddling with that Schley tool that kept popping out.

Regarding all your intake valves testing perfectly, were you checking them at the proper point in the engine's rotation per the FSM directions? Many will just suggest checking them at a point where the cam lobe isn't pressing on the shim (obviously), but the FSM gets more specific with certain valves being checked at TDC, others at TDC + 60 degrees, and others at TDC + 120 degrees.

 

The Schley valve tool or something similar is probably worth having in the toolbox just for grins. I just could not find one short of having it shipped from Down-Under. Snap-On has not responded yet on the availability of their Blue-Point valve tool. If they have one in stock, I'll probably pick it up. The OEM Toyota tool looks like it may be available for $170-$200, but I don't want one that bad.

I pulled one of the easy exhaust shims solo with a screwdriver and a metal wedge. So yes, that does work in a pinch. But I wanted to compare all the exhaust shims, so it was definitely easier to pull the cam off. Just as well because one shim was stuck in its bucket and had to be pried out. That shim will be replaced. And yes, all valves were checked in the correct crankshaft orientation for those specific valves as per the FSM. Appreciate you checking. This Toyota V6 is quite a bit different than the V8s I routinely worked on in the past which were normally hot-lashed while they were running at idle.

 

Just a quick follow-up and a few tips on the work I performed on my '97 3.4L V6 Taco. HTH

FOLLOW THE STEPS IN THE FSM! Watch all the videos you want for visual aids but the FSM steps rule.

Timing belt kits: The various kits offered by aircabinman on Ebay are a bargain. You get high quality parts for a very good price with super-fast shipping. The AISIN timing belt kit offered by RockAuto is also a bargain.

Timing belt: It is very important to follow the steps listed in the FSM for removing and installing the hydraulic tensioner in the proper sequence. Some of the bearing bolts are threaded into aluminum mounts so can be easily stripped out if removed under pressure from the tensioner.
The new OEM timing belt installed very easily before installing the new hydraulic tensioner by following this great tip at 5:24: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRH2RMG84aE&list=PL2i7Lp5Kw82-YQos1mZpcui0ON40CnoOu&index=9

PartSouq saved me approx. $100 on $500 worth of OEM parts over the best pricing I could find on OEM parts here in the U.S. I ordered from PartSouq twice. Shipping to my door took 5 days on parts that were in stock and 8 days on parts at their warehouse. IMO, A+++++ all the way for PartSouq (and McGeorge here in the U.S.).

Valve cover: The tabs on the inside of the valve covers do not have to be bent back to change the spark plug tube seals out. Just knock/pry the old seals out, clean and lubricate the seal area (I used silicone grease), then press the new seals into place with just hand pressure. No sweat.

Valve lash: The only tools that appear to work well to get the shims out of the buckets are the expensive OEM Toyota SST (09248-55040) made by OTC-Bosch ($200) and something like this $12 Kawasaki valve shim tool (motion pro pn

$15 Motion Pro 08-0019 Valve Shim Tool for Kawasaki KZ

08-0019) used by member "tomtraubertsblues": No Valve Lash | Page 2 | Tacoma World. Some of my valve shims were stuck inside the buckets and had to be pried out.