Timing Belt Replacement success!

[formerathlete]

After a couple nervous seasons, I finally decided to bite the bullet and change the timing belt on our 2000 X-22.  Boat only has 455 hours but it's 18 years old, so I could have been on borrowed time.  I'm not a close to calling myself a mechanic and I was extremely nervous to do this but I am pretty handy and resourceful (thank you, internet machine).  My brother also helped me along the way at a few critical stages.  Additionally, there were a few of resources that I leaned on heavily...here they are:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXlL1-Whkl0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEvz-cmTUWg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCTGHurWA1c

That last video was for a 4.3L but it's basically the same procedure-wise. I watched all 3 of them as I went along and it really helped.

One KEY thing to remember...BEFORE you take the timing belt OFF, and after placing it at TDC, you need to then rotate the engine CLOCKWISE ONLY (from the crank) until the mark on the crank pulley lines up with the little dot on the timing cover behind the crank pulley which supposedly puts it to 50 degrees after TDC.  This is a crucial step to ensure your pistons won't come in contact with your valves if you have any movement with belt off.  A lot of people say to go to TDC but that's not accurate (might work still but...I did the 50 ATDC thing with good outcome).  Go to TDC AFTER you put the belt back on to make sure your cams marks and crank marks are all lined up.  Watch videos above to understand what I am talking about here. 

I used the Aisin TKT-021 Engine Timing Belt Kit with Water Pump and it has everything you need for this job unless you are doing cam seals, I didn't.  Here's where I bought the kit:

https://www.amazon.com/Aisin-TKT-021-Engine-Timing-Water/dp/B008EEYWKI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1515364160&sr=8-1&keywords=TKT-021

I also used the black Toyota seal packing FIPG 103 for the mating of the water pump and thermostat housing.  I didn't use that goo with the gasket that is used for the water pump, just used the gasket from the kit...sounds like that's personal preference.

Basically, my first step to make this easier was to take the ski pylon off.  There's a bolt at the bottom of the pylon that you have to remove and then two nuts holding a U bracket that braces the pylon under the floor.  Take those off and it slides right out.

To get the crank pulley off, I used an impact wrench and 22mm socket.  Didn't come off initially but I used a hair dryer to blow hot air on it for 5 minutes (don't have heat gun or torch) and tried it again...boom, it gave in.  Doubt the hair dryer did anything but it was funny nonetheless.  I thought I'd have to use a wheel puller but I just grabbed the pulley and gave it a good pull and it came right off.  Right before taking crank pulley off, you'll want to put at the engine at TDC at cylinder #1 on the compression stroke (right front cylinder when facing engine)...then advance it to the mark/dot on the timing cover and make sure you are lined up on the 'T' of each cam (watch videos).  At that point, I marked up the belt, took the belt off and transferred those marks to the new belt.  Upon taking belt off, I experienced a slight move to the cam on the right when facing the engine.  I was able to line that back up before putting new belt on.  They want to spring roll on you...so be careful here...my engine was nice to me.  I think this is one of the main reasons for the 50 ATDC...minimizes spring roll of cam?  From there, I removed water pump and two idler pulleys.  FWIW, the old belt looked perfect, as did both idler pulleys and the tensioner.  The water pump looked pretty tired but it was working fine. 

Next, I cleaned up thermostat housing (including the trough), put the goo on there and installed new water pump, then both new idler pulleys, then put new belt on and made sure all my marks were lined up PERFECTLY.  After I got new belt on and lined up, that's when I put in new tensioner.  Waiting on tensioner until this step allowed me to have enough slack in belt to get it on the way I wanted.  Then installed tensioner, checked marks and pulled tensioner pin.  Next, I rotated the engine nearly 2x stopping just short of 2 full rotations (at TDC) to ensure all 3 marks lined up...and they did...Rotated an additional 2x just to double check.  It was perfect.  Left it at TDC based only on the crank marking and Cam markings ON THE MOTOR, not on the belt.  The belt markings are not important at this point, so don't get scared when they aren't lining up.  It's all about the marks on the engine.
From there, I just reversed my order and put it all back together.  I downloaded and used the manual that's in the maintenance section of this site for torque specs. 

Lastly, I fired it off today on the hose and it ran like it always does...perfectly.  PHEW!!  And no leaks! PHEW! Oh and BTW, I took Captain Rick's advice and used the Stant 14077 thermostat.  It's 170 degrees which is 10 degrees more than the original but it should be fine.  I'll keep original as backup.
I couldn't find anyone who wanted to do this job, so I pretty much had to do this on my own and I'm glad I did.  It's nice to know that I don't have to worry about my timing belt for at least another 10 years (if I even own it until it's nearly 30 years old).  So, if you are on the fence, give it a shot.  Lots of great resources out there and just go slow--just google 'changing timing belt on a 1UZ-FE' and you'll have plenty to read/see.  Reach out to me if you have questions...I may not have the answers but I can tell you what worked for me.

I ended up attaching the maximum 5 photos allowed.  The final two photos are with the new belt, so remember to ignore the markings of the new belt.  The markings are no longer lined up because those pics were taken AFTER I rotated the engine and stopped it at TDC (right before I put everything back on engine).  In the first few pics, you'll notice that the 50 degrees ATDC on my boat was SLIGHTLY past the T marks on the cams.  Looks like Toyota painted a yellow mark next to the T and on the cam pulleys that line up perfectly when I put the crank at that little dot on the timing mark cover.  Anyways, it worked out perfectly, just wanted to explain why it looked a bit off from the T's.

Also, here are a couple youtube videos I posted so you can see how it sounded at first start after the repair, if you are interested (it's a beautiful sound). 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b80u82oG5NQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rI1jRpSozpo

-BJ   

[formerathlete]

Final photo of TDC after installing new belt and rotating engine...couldn't add this to original post.

[DENNIS]

Thanks, I still need to do mine.  It is good to hear your belt was in good shape after 18 years.  I don't have as many hours on mine, about 380.  But it is on the list to do before summer.

Dennis

[formerathlete]

Good luck!  Hopefully it goes smoothly for you. 

[jwilcox]

I am about to do my belt this next week - as for the timing marks I see that the hash mark and dimple on the cam gear(s) match the orange marked hash behind the gear itself.

Am I correct that these are lined up for the engine to be "in time"? I am interested to see what the markings look like on the crank since the belt doesn't seem to have markings on it for them. Although, most of the belts I've had never have had them.

Interesting about the 50 deg past TDC - Maybe I will try this if the gears start slipping when putting the belt on. I've only really had that issue when doing quad cam engines - hopefully this one will be easier!

I just ordered the same kit you used. Fingers crossed mine goes as well as yours! 

[formerathlete]

On my engine, the orange/yellow marks behind the gear only line up when my engine is at 50 deg past TDC and the mark on the crank pulley is lined up with the little dot to the right of the '0' on the crank timing cover (see image 368 above).  I'm not totally convinced that that is a full 50 deg past TDC but it is the mark we are supposed to go by before the removal of the belt (according to all the videos I posted in my first post above). 

When you are at TDC, the dimple and orange/yellow marks on the L cam-bank will line up with the bar-like mark to the left of the 'T' and the hash mark and orange/yellow mark on the R cam-bank and hash mark will be lined up with the with the bar-like mark to the left of the 'T'. Also when you are at TDC, the mark on your crank pulley will be at the '0' of the crank timing cover and the dimple and hash marks of the cam line up with the bar like mark to the left of each 'T'. 

Before you begin removing the belt, I definitely recommend putting the engine to 50 deg past TDC (image 368).  That's when the orange/yellow marks behind the gears will be lined up with the orange/yellow mark on the 'T' (images 370 and 384 above).  If you don't have those painted marks, just line up the dimple and hash with the T which is what should happen if you put the crank to that mark on the crank timing cover that indicates 50 deg past TDC.  Then mark the belt up like I did just for a reference and transfer those marks to the new belt (probably not necessary but helpful nonetheless).

The new belt will have markings that should line up with the marks you placed on the old belt before removal.  Just line those up before putting new belt on and you should be good.  Hopefully nothing moves as you put new belt on and once you release tensioner, you will hopefully be all set and lined up.  It's at that point that you should slide the crank pulley and crank timing cover on and rotate engine nearly 2 full revolutions and stop when crank pulley mark is at the zero on the cover.  When it's at zero, the dimple and hash marks on the cam banks should be lined up with the mark behind the gears to the left of the 'T' (see image 403 and 404, disregarding my belt markings in those pictures).  If it all lines up, you are in time and should be good to go.  If you need help during those critical moments, I'm glad to talk to you on the phone if I can.  Just email me and I'll give you my number (dawsonbj@gmail.com). 

It's tough to write this in a way that makes sense and gets all the little step by step details down, so a phone conversation might be easier if you don't understand what I'm trying to write here . 

Good luck!
-BJ

[jwilcox]

Yes, I may reach out once I get in there. I haven't really dug into anything yet but I probably will tomorrow or Tuesday depending on work.

I appreciate the info and response! Thank you!

[jwilcox]

If anyone is needing help on their t belt swap - sunpointmanagement@gmail.com

Thanks!

[ScarabEpic22]

My 99 E22 is on the original timing belt still, think it's probably time to bite the bullet and do this as well. I'm pretty mechanically inclined, but I haven't dug into Toyota motors before. How much time should I allow to do this swap? I have limited windows to do it with the boat storage situation, so want to make sure I set aside enough time!

Any other gotchas besides changing the thermostat?

[formerathlete]

I think it will depend mostly on how fast you can get the crank pulley bolt off. Mine was fairly nice to me but I've read some horror stories. I used the impact gun and it finally gave in. You can also try the bump-start technique but that makes me a bit nervous and would have been a last resort for me. There is also a tool you can buy from Amazon for $65 that will make it simple. But it's $65 for a likely one time use, so...Let me know if you want the link to that tool and I can find it.

If you include the time it takes to remove the ski pylon, it probably took me ABOUT 3 hours to get to the point where it was time for belt removal. Once the belt removal started, I went slowly and cautiously and probably had the water pump and belt replaced and installed in about 2-3 hours (can't remember exactly). Once the new waterpump, pulley's and belt are on and everything is lined up, it's pretty fast to reinstall everything as long as you have marked where everything goes. In most cases, I labeled bolts/nuts I took off or put them back into their spot after removing the parts they secured to the engine.  The re-installing of everything took about 1.5 hours maybe.

I also changed the Serpentine belt and raw water impeller while I was in there. Other than that, the Aisin kit has everything you'll need. I also did new plugs (autolite 3923) but I do that every year and you can do that another time if time is an issue.

That's about it I think. Let me know if you run into any problems and I can try and help out.

Good luck,
BJ

[jwilcox]

The only thing to look out for really is the crank bolt. And you can almost take it to a shop and have them break it loose or use the Harbor Freight electric impact gun. Worked like a charm for me!

The T Stat housing is a little odd and didn't want to come off very easily as it is a push seal (you'll understand when you take it off/put it back on).

Good luck!

[tryme]

Once I got past all the cussing of getting things out of the way.  it went fast for me.  I had to get an impact wrench to get the crank bolt out.  it took time.  I had to use the impact wrench multiple times to get it out.  then it iw just taking your time.  the covers were like plastic so I had to be carfull.  just took my time and 2 years later my e21 is still going strong.  putting it in the water this weekend

[formerathlete]

My experience was exactly like tryme's. Get the freakin' bolt off and plug away carefully, one thing at a time, labeling as you go. I took a lot of pictures to help me remember how stuff was supposed to be reinstalled.

[toyotafreak]

Awesome!!!

Ps. Also cool if you can practice on your Sequoia before doing The Precious