Has anyone here done the Timing Chain Cover leak fix themselves? (2 Viewers)

[swild]

I will be tackling the Coolant Valley Plate leak fix here soon and was going to do the Timing Chain Cover leak fix at the same time.
Has anyone here done it? Any tips?
I was considering getting the TIS 2-day subscription to see if it has any helpful information about the process.


2015 GX460 Luxury with 110,000 miles.

 

[r2m]

We also have a sticky post: GX 460 Manuals
There's an FSM in there that'll show you an exploded view of everything, but not how to R&R.
Have you looked for any GX DIY videos on Youtube?

 

[xychromosome]

I will be tackling the Coolant Valley Plate leak fix here soon and was going to do the Timing Chain Cover leak fix at the same time.
Has anyone here done it? Any tips?
I was considering getting the TIS 2-day subscription to see if it has any helpful information about the process.


2015 GX460 Luxury with 110,000 miles.

At what mileage did you start noticing a coolant leak?

 

[swild]

We also have a sticky post: GX 460 Manuals
There's an FSM in there that'll show you an exploded view of everything, but not how to R&R.
Have you looked for any GX DIY videos on Youtube?

I didn't find any DIY repairs for the timing chain cover fix, but there's plenty of info for the valley plate leak fix.

 

[swild]

At what mileage did you start noticing a coolant leak?

I bought it at 109,000 and it already had the leak. I'm suspecting that's why the original owner sold the vehicle.

 

[xychromosome]

I bought it at 109,000 and it already had the leak. I'm suspecting that's why the original owner sold the vehicle.

Interesting. It's looking more like the valley plate leak is more milage dependent than it is MY. Most of the cases I've seen in the forums have been for MY 14 and below, but it looks like that was because those were the model years to have reached the higher mileage when this occurs. I'll keep checking for signs of coolant loss on my MY15 as I'm currently almost at 100K.

 

[Acrad]

DIY Coolant Valley Leak Repair

The coolant valley plate leak is a potential issue that arises on the GX460 platform (and other 4.6 L V8 1UR-FE engine equipped Toyota's and Lexus's) as the mileage gets to around 100K. A key sign that your GX suffers from this issue is a low coolant condition and coolant running down the...

forum.ih8mud.com

Above is probably most detailed on CVL repair... I'd frankly do that one... Timing Chain cover... I better be losing oil between changes that can be seen on dipstick. A can of brake cleaner for cleanup between oil changes is cheap.

 

[suitcase]

I’ve been watching Car Care Nut on YouTube. His take on coolant leaks is that they happen because the coolant turns acidic over time. I think his recommendation was change it 5yrs/50,000 mi. Not sure if just a radiator drain/refill is sufficient or he means engine block dump too. I just did a radiator drain/refill myself and plan on doing at least two more radiator drain/refills in the next few weeks so most old fluid will be replaced with new.

 

[ericm979]

Just curious, what do you do with the old fluid?

 

[Acrad]

I drop mine off at a county sponsored hazardous waste disposal site that takes it. Most places around me that take oil.. don’t take coolant.

 

[suitcase]

There’s an auto repair shop near me that accepts old coolant (and also brake fluid and oil).

 

[r2m]

Just curious, what do you do with the old fluid?

Considering you, like myself are in CA, I believe you can go to most chain auto parts stores and they'll accept it.
AutoZone, Reilly's auto parts, etc. They also accept old car batteries, even if you didn't purchase from them.

 

[swild]

OK, it looks like no one here has repaired the Timing Chain Cover leak repair themselves.
The same is true for the other forums. I will do the Coolant Valley Leak repair, and if I'm feeling frisky, I might continue and do the Timing Chain Cover leak repair. I'll keep you posted.

 

[r2m]

OK, it looks like no one here has repaired the Timing Chain Cover leak repair themselves.
The same is true for the other forums. I will do the Coolant Valley Leak repair, and if I'm feeling frisky, I might continue and do the Timing Chain Cover leak repair. I'll keep you posted.

Do you think you'll have the time (and remember) to take photos/video of your R&R?

 

[swild]

If I get into the Timing Chain Cover Leak repair, then I'll definitely document the process.

 

[Acrad]

 

[swild]

Yeah, I found that video too. I wish it went into more detail about the process. What's disconcerting about the process is the part where they are putting the cover back on, and you see that it takes them a good three or four tries before they cut to a new camera angle. The process of getting that thing back on must be a beast.

 

[Acrad]

How much oil are you leaking between oil changes?

Have you had a chance to look through the FSM on steps listed?

It is the 3UR-FE but they show using an alignment tool here.

 

[swild]

How much oil are you leaking between oil changes?

Have you had a chance to look through the FSM on steps listed?

It is the 3UR-FE but they show using an alignment tool here.

That's a great looking tool for the job. It looks like it nails it on the first try.

Unfortunately, the service manual doesn't have anything about the process. I might try TIS and see what they have.

 

[Acrad]

It's in there in the Engine Unit /Disassembly chapter..

FSM linked here

Once zip extracted on Mac or Windows goto this URL on your machine

Step #23 shows the timing cover being removed

/GX460_10_13/rm14k1e/repair2/html/frame_rm0000030xo00ox.html