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Re: maintence items @ 140k
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Posted by Ari [Email] (#2847) [Profile/Gallery] (more from Ari) on Thu, 15 Jun 2006 05:32:28 Share Post by Email
In Reply to: maintence items @ 140k, aero06, Wed, 14 Jun 2006 17:55:36
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Not having the maintenance records does make it difficult. As an example, I like to replace the serpentine belt every 30K, and the idler and tensioner pulleys every 60K. That's a little soon, but I don't like letting the pulleys go to 90K.

There is a lot of stuff that may only be 20K miles old, or has been limping along with the car since new.

This is what I'd do with an unknown car-
Jack up the right front, support well with jack stands, and remove the RF tire. Remove the plastic fender inner liner. Remove tension from the serpentine belt, and spin the tensioner and idler pulleys. If they are tight and smooth, they're OK. If the bearings feel loose, put them on the list for replacement. If the serpentine belt looks fresh and new, that's fine; otherwise, it goes on the list.

Spin the Alternator (belt off). The bearings should feel good.

Inspect the main pulley (AKA Harmonic Balancer). It consists of an inner and outer pulley, with a thin rubber piece in the middle. The rubber should look nice and clean, no cracks. Any cracks - assume you need a new pulley. Look for any signs of oil leaks from behind the main pulley. If so, put a new main seal (all of $6) and an Oil Pump O ring (also about as cheap) on the parts list.

Inspect the two lower motor mounts. The rubber should look uncracked. Take a crowbar and gently pry the motor up at each mount. Not a lot - just a 1/4 inch or so. the mount should flex with the movement. If the bolt in the center merely lifts out, the mount is shot. Likely with bad upper mounts.

Fluid wise, I would do a coolant flush and replace the thermostat. I'd flush the brake fluid. I'd replace the transmission fluid and engine oil. New spark plugs - use the exact right NGKs - NO SUBSTITUTIONS! New fuel and air filter, and while I was at it, a new cabin air filter.

With the wheels off the ground, you can tug at the tires to see how the bearings and ball joints feel. Check the front lower A-arm bushing for cracks - the front wheels are on A-arms, and the rear of the a-arm goes into a rubber bushing in the chassis. If it looks cracked and worn, replace it.

OK, that's scary - enough to sell the car and by a Toyota. Really, it isn't. Assuming you needed to replace all the parts, it's maybe $600 or so. That sounds like a lot, but bring a new car in for a tune-up and see what it costs. And your car may or may not need all these parts - it all depends on what has been replaced recently.

Nagging ON - that's why it's imperative to get maintenance records with a car. You want to know what has and hasn't been replaced. And a regularly maintained car is going to be cheaper and more reliable than one with spotty maintenance. It may have been serviced by a reputable maintainer, but the maintainer can only do what the owner will allow him/her/it to do. I would do my very best to find out what major items (see above) may have been replaced and when - it could save you big bucks. Nagging OFF.

OK, how do you do all this stuff? First, buy yourself the Haynes 9000 manual. Yes, it is for the UK 9000. But it still works for stuff like fluid changes and the like. Check out LINKs below for many member sites - lots of good info. see Quasimotors.com for lower mounts and other items. See Townsendimports.com for lots of info. And that's just the start.

For the upper mounts, search the archives. We've talked extensively on various ways to fix them, and different options (special tool, machine shop, two-piece units).

For a coolant fluid change, I would probably use a pro, simply because it eases the issue of disposing of the fluids. But see the Haynes to do it yourself.

The ABS light comes on at start during the self test. If it comes on while driving, does it stay on until you shut off the car, or does it wink back out? That is a clue as to what fault there is. In terms of cleaning the sensors, on the back of the hub there is the sensor. That doesn't need cleaning - on the hub is a toothed gear (pickup wheel). Often gunk is trapped in the teeth, and that can be metallic (semi-metallic pads, rotors, etc). Clean that out. The cables should look good - no kinks. The next place to look is at the ABS box, under the plastic cover at the base of the windshield. Re-seat the connector. The ABS sensor cables come up there and join into the harness - you'll see the connectors - they look like black pencils - pull them apart and re-seat - that cleans the contacts.

With the transmission, it could be a simple as bad engine mounts. Engine torque is highest in low gears (1 and 2), so the engine moves a lot if the mounts are shot. That will mis-align the shifter and make shifting hard. It could also be a worn shift coupler - a rubber piece right by the tranny. But I'd make sure the motor mounts are OK before first.




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