Procedure for replacing 100 series(98 and up) starter contacts (2 Viewers)

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So I used one of those cheap scope things to take a picture of the driver side starter bolt. There isn't enough room to get a quarter underneath the bolt so question is did you guys just use a crescent wrench? There is no way even a thin walled socket is going over that.

Thanks, Christian

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So I used one of those cheap scope things to take a picture of the driver side starter bolt. There isn't enough room to get a quarter underneath the bolt so question is did you guys just use a crescent wrench? There is no way even a thin walled socket is going over that.

Thanks, Christian

View attachment 1674734
I used a socket.
 
Unless you've a non standard transmission (which I doubt) a socket will fit.
Notice it's and extra long head on the bolt.
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Engine 08 4Runner 2UZ-fe VVt-i (5)a.jpg

I don't have a transmission on at the moment, in these two shots. But you can see a 14mm 3/8 & 1/2 sockets on the bolt.
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Take a socket and reach back there and put it on. It will fit!
 
I have found two part numbers for reman Toyota starters.
28100-50101-84 says from 2004
28100-50100-84 says from 2000-2004
My LC is a 2004 so I’m not sure which I need or the difference between the two.
 
Go by MFD date or VIN #, found on door plate. Most Toyota or Lexus online parts offer VIN # input at check out. In this one input your VIN, to see each part has month and year range. PartSouq Auto Parts Around the World it about 97% accurate.

Here some for good prices:
https://toyotaparts.mcgeorgetoyota.com/
Genuine OEM Toyota and Scion Parts & Accessories | LHM Toyota Colorado Springs

Or
If you have auto crank it's 28100-50101-84.
Or
Calling your local Toyota Dealer Parts Department, surest bet.

Tip: The earlier non auto crank have contact and plunger available for ~$35.
 
I have tried a socket and it won’t fit. I’m guessing once I remove the harness I will be able to get a crescent wrench on there but the amount of room under the driver side is tiny. It’s completely different on the passenger side.
This is frustrating me beyond belief. Going to remove the harness maybe this weekend and see how it goes. Also going to buy some smaller sockets.
 
I have tried a socket and it won’t fit. I’m guessing once I remove the harness I will be able to get a crescent wrench on there but the amount of room under the driver side is tiny. It’s completely different on the passenger side.
This is frustrating me beyond belief. Going to remove the harness maybe this weekend and see how it goes. Also going to buy some smaller sockets.
If everyone else can get a socket on it, odds are, your using the wrong socket. I used just a 14mm deep well socket and got it off quick. Pretty sure I moved the yellow harness for the alternator as well.
 
The difficult part is reaching back there, it's just awkward. Some put a board across from fender to fender and lay on it. (protect fender with towels so's no to mare) I've gotten up into the engine bay, reach from side on standing on step stool, even gotten from underside back of transmission with 3' of extensions. Having the Factory Service Manual, follow step by step works very well. Although there are some short cuts aside from FSM.

Pulling the small (10mm or 12mm don't recall which) bolts holding the plastic housing of wire harness form back (DS) and side (PS) of intake manifold, will give wiggle room. But if your following the FSM it has you pull the rear water bypass first on VVTi engine, so intake manifold is already off. This makes seeing and getting to everything easier (especially on the VVTi engine). It can be done without removing the rear water bypass, just a bit trickier.
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Got my new starter in last night. 14mm deep socket, long handled ratchet. Removed the 10mm bolt holding the 3 plug harness on top of the transmission to move them out of the way. Thanks all for the published advice.

Most important piece of advice for all old and huge mechanics: be sure get your kid a 62 Studebaker to wrench on when he is 14 or so. That way, three years later when he is 17, he can hop right up in the LC engine bay, see the issues at hand, and whip those offending bolts right out. Worked a peach :)
 
I'm thankful for this info -- this morning the first tell-tale signs presented of my pending starter failure.
I'll be ordering parts and kocking this job out in the next week, I'm sure.
 
So I used one of those cheap scope things to take a picture of the driver side starter bolt. There isn't enough room to get a quarter underneath the bolt so question is did you guys just use a crescent wrench? There is no way even a thin walled socket is going over that.

Thanks, Christian

View attachment 1674734
I have a 2005 4Runner w the V8 engine, and I can confirm that a standard deep well 14mm socket won't fit over mine either. I ended up using a thin wall / shallow socket to get that bolt out. It was tough because the shallow/thin-wall socket wanted to roll off the bolt head since it couldn't take advantage of the long bolt head and I was coming over the top around the starter motor wiring harness (even with the 12mm bold removed) what a monumental PITA to get the that starter out in a VVTi engine with the check valves and stuff back there.

I'm a mechanical engineer by trade and have always maintained that the guys who design cars should have to do the maintenance procedures on what they design - I suspect they would have come up with a few design improvements to make life easier. First of which would be to have the wiring harness in the back have more slack and / or put it up higher on the firewall so there is enough room for tools and hands back there.

The good news is my rig has 200K miles and the only reason I'm even doing this is because one of the check valves failed, and I figured that as long as I had the manifold off, I'd do the starter as well (should be good for another 200K miles) while i had the check valves out since they need to be removed to get the starter out. Hello Mr T - this is a maintenance nightmare. Other good news is that we have 7 cars in our family, so having the 4runner sidelined for a few nights won't be an issue. I have spend about 1-2 hours/night working on this and have about 2 nights left in front of me. Listen to the radio, have a beer or three and it's not that bad. Tough on my ribs to lay in the engine bay, but otherwise not too bad. I'd be pissed if I was in a hurry.
 
I had to change my contacts and plunger last week and can confirm, it still sucks real bad. I put it off a couple of nights and then storms gave me another night off but by Thursday I couldn't avoid it any longer. Actually started out making great time and then had a really dumb moment while balanced one one cheek on the battery, toe on the ARB for balance, I decided to flip the manifold over toward me for final removal. Cha-Ching went 6 manifold bolts and I just laughed cuz if yer gonna be dumb you gotta be tough right... 2 hours later all 6 had been located and I was back on track. That's when I was reminded that it's not all the removals to get to the starter that suck but the starter removal itself that sucks real real bad.

I was able to use a 3/8's drive 14mm deep socket on the starter bolts though. On my '99 I didn't find any interference around the bolt head and didn't need a thin walled socket.

Pretty sure I should have changed contacts AND the plunger the first time I did this job as this time the contacts were mostly there but the plunger had worn thin. So do change them in set's "while you're in there".

-I think next time I may actually hire this out OR buy a 'superman' creeper, it sucks real bad.
 
I too lost some intake nuts while doing a starter job in the street, on a no start condition I towed home. Intake manifold was still in place, I just happen to flip my magnetic bolt dish from HF by dropping wrench on it. Look forever for one remain lost nut. Couldn't find it, and was the second nut/bolt I'd lost in as many months on left side of engine. Like some trap on that side doesn't let it fall to ground. Funny about two months later (yesterday) I found the nut at end of my driveway;), must have finally fallen out.

I too would like a superman creeper, the reach would be so much easier. I see some place a piece of wood from fender to fender to lie on. I think about doing that everytime I crawl up onto engine, but have bolt out before though ends.

The starter bolts itself has never given me much of a problem with either 3/8" or 1/2" drive sockets deep or short on VVT or non VVT.
 
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Well, I finally finished this job up this weekend. Back story: had the manifold of the 2005 4runner v8 to get to the secondary air injection check valve on the DS (which had failed and thrown CEL), and since that one and it's evil twin on the PS have to come off to get to the starter motor bolts, I figured I'd swap the starter while I was swapping out the air injection components.

I watched videos of the check valve swap, and that seemed like a pain, but not too bad. It was a complete cake walk compared to the starter replacement. Holy crap that was a pain. The wiring harness has like zero slack to even rotate the starter motor to get the big cable off - in spite of having unbolted the harness hold down bolt. Have 200K on the first starter, so hoping I won't have to do this job for another 13 years / 200K. It was that much of a pain. At least now I can move on to some fun projects on the truck.
 
So if I order a new starter do I need to order anything else? Do the contacts and plunger come with the new starter? I was going to do the intake manifold gasket and valve cover gasket as well.
 
So if I order a new starter do I need to order anything else? Do the contacts and plunger come with the new starter? I was going to do the intake manifold gasket and valve cover gasket as well.
A new starter will come self contained with new contacts and plunger in place. I ordered two intake manifold gaskets in case I screwed one of them up, but the way they go in makes it idiot proof.. They press in to the groove in teh manifold and stay put while installing the manifold.

Can't speak to valve cover gaskets because I didn't change those.
 
The Title to this thread is misleading.

In 98-02 we can buy contacts and plunges, 06-07 we can not. I've never done 03-05, but I assume they are like the 06-07 where we buy magnetic switch (solenoid). For either we can buy a complet rebuilt Denso starter rather than rebuilding ourselves.

Intake manifold has two gasket one on left the other right. No need to buy extra!

The 06-07 VVTi 4,7L use a plastic intake manifold with a rubber gasket that fits snugly into manifold.
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VVTi have the A.I switches which are in the way. So I order extra hose, No 2 switch gaskets and water pipe O-ring for those.
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98-May 05 have aluminum intake manifold that uses two hard gaskets, one on left the other on the right (3 piece, plastic/composite samwitched in metal)
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Z 01 LX470 day Starter, wire splice & intake installed 3-22-16 026.JPG


If I'm removing fuel injector during job to have them rebuilt or replaced, planning too at later date or very high mileage. I'll then replace bottom rubber seal (isolator) for each (8) fuel injector.
 
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The Title to this thread is misleading.

In 98-02 we can buy contacts and plunges, 06-07 we can not. I've never done 03-05, but I assume they are like the 06-07 where we buy magnetic switch (solenoid). For either we can buy a complet rebuilt Denso starter rather than rebuilding ourselves.

Intake manifold has two gasket one on left the other right. No need to buy extra!

The 06-07 VVTi 4,7L use a plastic intake manifold with a rubber gasket that fits snugly into manifold.
View attachment 1808511 View attachment 1808510
VVTi have the A.I switches which are in the way. So I order extra hose, No 2 switch gaskets and water pipe O-ring for those.
View attachment 1808513

98-May 05 have aluminum intake manifold that uses two hard gaskets, one on left the other on the right (3 piece, plastic/composite samwitched in metal)
View attachment 1808509 View attachment 1808508

If I'm removing fuel injector during job to have them rebuilt or replaced, planning too at later date or very high mileage. I'll then replace bottom rubber seal (isolator) for each (8) fuel injector.
I should have been clearer. I got two sets of gaskets (each set has two gaskets - one for each side) in case I pinched one or otherwise damaged it trying to lower the manifold into place. Turns out that was an unfounded worry, as the installation went smoothly.
 

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