chiefnomad

Got a 2002 ES300 as a gift from my father in law. Car was their extra family car and he didn't want it parked there anymore. Got it checked out since its been neglected and heres what it needs:

- Replace valve cover gasket
- Replace timing belt, water pump, cam seals, crank seals
- Replace upper engine mount
- Replace front trans. mount
- Replace alternator

There's a few other things but not directly related to the engine or its external components. Was wondering if you guys recommend repairing them or does it make more sense to buy another motor from a salvage for the cost of about $1000 and installation of $500.

Any feedback is appreciated.

Tiir

I would just fix all the stuff you listed, all of it is pretty common stuff that's maintenance related as far as wear & tear goes. Since the car was in the family you have a general idea of its condition compared to some salvage yard engine that could of been abused for all you know.

mmatheny

How many miles on it?

808mcv20l

All those items you listed are what you would normally expect for a 14 year old car...

See if you can do some of the work yourself.

I would start with the Valve cover gaskets, go watch speedkar9's videos on youtube, I always learn something new when watching his videos.

With the valve covers off, it's also a good idea to change spark plugs as the rear ones are a real pain to get to if with the Intake manifold in the way.

As for Alternator, get a Denso Aftermarket (technically not aftermarket) it's the same oem that Toyota uses in their cars.

The CAM and Crank seals can be done with the timing belt.
Get an AISIN kit from ebay, look for one that includes a new thermostat w/ gasket, all pulleys, tensioner, drive belts etc. the more complete the kit the better your car will be.

Most of the engine mounts can be done without going to a shop, but the rear one you might want to leave that to the pros.

mmatheny

Yeah, upper engine mount is a 5 minute job.

Oro

There is no rear mount on a 2002. There are only three lower mounts, left (tranny), right (engine), and front. This is the source of the notorious "clunk" you feel sometimes on low shifts on the 4ES. Even with all new mounts you cannot entirely eliminate it, and it gets obnoxious if a mount breaks.

808mcv20l

Interesting, my experience comes mostly from working on our 98, 99 Camry and my 00 ES.

I think those years were the most service friendly, at least in my opinion. the 2nd gen might be easier, being it has less electronics.

I wonder if they do something different on the rest of the mounts to share the weight with no rear mount.

I just survived changing a rear engine mount on an '01 Honda Odyssey, a 3-4hr job turned into a 10hr one we used an aftermarket mount which make it difficult getting the hole to line up!

Just a word of advice, oem parts can shave hours of hard labor! Use OEM when ever possible unless you rather have scratched up arms and a sore body for the next few days! lol.

chiefnomad

I was inclined to do that. I think I'll just go ahead and bring it back up to speed and keep it. Selling it and trying to get in another one is a headache not to mention, can't beat the price tag, $0

chiefnomad

169,000. From what I know, the ES's of that generation as well as Toyota Camry can give you 400-500k so long as they're taken care of.

chiefnomad

Thanks for the detailed feedback man. I'll go ahead and do that actually and knock out the stuff that doesn't require visiting a shop then just leave the ones that absolutely must be done there. Should save me at least $500-800 in labor, at least.

mmatheny

Hmmm - I was going to post about a clunk when driving, letting off the gas, then tapping the gas again. Almost like a bad U-joint on a RWD vehicle! So this is what it is and it's unfixable? I asked my mechanic if my mounts were good and he said they were.