What did you pay for your valley plate coolant leak?

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Watching the Car Care Nut video on page #1 he said it was an 18 hour job plus he replaced a bunch of parts including:
cam towers
timing chains
chain guides (4)
chain tensioners (4)
valley plate
water pump
belt tensioner
belt idler
drive belt
timing chain sprockets
heat exchanger
PCV valve
Thermostat
multiple gaskets
oil and filter
coolant

His price was a bit over $5000 for 18 hours billed and the parts listed above.

So are other mechanics just not replacing all those parts (or just some of them) and at what mileage do people consider replacing those
parts (above) in this engine?

Also, anyone know what the shop hours were (how long it actually took) for your repair versus billable/book hours??
 
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Thread 'Valley Plate Leak?'

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So I just bought a LC200 for $27,500. Did PPI and my mechanic said it was all okay. However, I noticed today that my coolant reservoir is low.

I’m scared that this could be the dreaded valley plate leak. What could be the signs and symptoms aside from the low coolant? I’m scheduled to see The Car Care Nut on Friday.

The charge for valley plate repair by Tccn is $1400. He does replace the valley plate.
 
$1200 highly trusted local shop with great reviews. They used Toyota FIPG.

If down the road it starts leaking again, I will try @J2HundyOutfitters's gasket.
 
LX Cruiser said:
$1200 highly trusted local shop with great reviews. They used Toyota FIPG.

If down the road it starts leaking again, I will try @J2HundyOutfitters's gasket.
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There are different types of FIPG. Using the incorrect FIPG will eventually lead to a leak.

Seals that come into contact with oil. Use 00295-00103 FIPG
Any place coolant lives/travels through should utilize 08826-00100 FIPG
Seals that come into contact with gear oil 00295-01281 FIPG
 
NKP Garage said:
There are different types of FIPG. Using the incorrect FIPG will eventually lead to a leak.

Seals that come into contact with oil. Use 00295-00103 FIPG
Any place coolant lives/travels through should utilize 08826-00100 FIPG
Seals that come into contact with gear oil 00295-01281 FIPG
Click to expand...
Right. He told me they used what was specified. He has done several of these repairs on 200s
 
I just hit 120k miles on my 13 LX and had to add a pint or less of coolant for the first time. A few minutes with a borescope and I was able to see a bit of seepage. A local independent Lexus / Toyota shop said it was $1,700 for the last one they did (last month). I’ll be dropping it off March 9th. Hopefully it doesn’t snowball on me.

How fast do these issues progress into being stranded due to a complete loss of coolant?
 
jlm43 said:
I just hit 120k miles on my 13 LX and had to add a pint or less of coolant for the first time. A few minutes with a borescope and I was able to see a bit of seepage. A local independent Lexus / Toyota shop said it was $1,700 for the last one they did (last month). I’ll be dropping it off March 9th. Hopefully it doesn’t snowball on me.

How fast do these issues progress into being stranded due to a complete loss of coolant?
Click to expand...
I would not wait or have a backup plan. I went from low heat to overheating in a few days.
 
Mad Titan said:
I would not wait or have a backup plan. I went from low heat to overheating in a few days.
Click to expand...
Ya, that's what my better judgement was telling me too. I have a 6 hours of driving to do between Sunday and Tuesday that I was hoping to use the LX for. Really should take the wife's GX for this one and keep the LX close to home until it goes into the shop. Now as long as this is the only issue and it's not a head gasket too....
 
Unlike a cracked radiator these don’t “blow out.” In theory if you keep the coolant topped up you shouldn’t have any problems.

When you say low heat.. do you mean from the climate control system? If so your rig was already very low on coolant, and that could have caused damage that led to the overheat situation.

@jlm43 just make sure the coolant stays topped up until you can get it into the shop.
 
@bloc thanks. The wife’s GX should suffice for this weekend. I’ll have the gear from my kids ski race team loaded for a 2.5 hour trip each way. I’d hate to be the reason the gear doesn’t show up if there’s something bigger going on. I’ll keep it close to home until the 9th. I’m out of town that week so it’s convenient-ish to get it done then.
 
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