GibbsLexus

iTrader: (1)

With past vehicles, when changing a timing belt, usually it is customary to change out the water pump and drive belt as well. However our engine have timing chains and I don't see anything abut water pump replacement intervals. Do anyone knows when it is recommended to change this component? I am thinking from 100k to 120k but I want to hear other thoughts. Most likely very few in here have reached past the 100k on this 3IS generation. I wonder why the factory didn't specify this in the maintenance schedule?.

brendanf

Probably because there isn't anything maintenance related 'in-the-way' of the water pump.

The reason other cars (Hondas) recommend changing the water pump is that some of their engines, the water pump was driven by the timing belt, or in some cases, to replace the water pump you had to take the timing belt off, so it was a case of, if your doing the timing belt for maintenance, you might as well do the water pump at the same time so save a few $$ down the road. You hate to have to spend several hundred doing a timing belt only to have to do it all again if your water pump started leaking..

E46CT

It looks easy enough to do. The pump appears to be external. Always a good idea to work around your schedule and not your car's (when preventing breakdowns)

Around 120k would probably give me a lot of peace of mind to have a new water pump on any car.

Jay89

Im not sure how well this would apply to our cars, but for the water cooled 911s, you check for play in the pulley. If there is excessive play, then you recommend replacing. For Benz, I usually pull the belt off and spin the pulley by hand. Feeling for any grinding, or resistance. You want it to be smooth. but you don't want it to spin too freely. Should stop itself pretty quickly.

If you do your own services, then checking belts and pulleys might not be a bad idea to add in if it's not already. Personally, I'd say replace around 100-120k (km). Also check around the water pump for any crusty bits of coolant buildup.

It's what I'd do anyways.

jay90011

iTrader: (23)

you should check out the 2IS section on how often these cars (IS250/IS350) required the water pump to be changed out. I know the first signs were always the pink residue around the water pump housings. A lot of the owners were diagnosed with the Gasket of the water pump failing and not the actual pump not working. I had my 2006 IS250 water pump replaced twice through out my five years of owning it. Though the dealer always mentioned it was the gasket failing they would just replace the whole thing. I had my water pump replaced @ 50k and 110k during the carbon buildup issue the IS250 was known for. I do remember though that the part number changed during the second change at 110k miles.

Olasek

Had water pump failure in my BMW 528 after about 100 K. When it failed it actually damaged also the fan, etc, about $600 repair by my neighborhood mechanic. No serviceable timing belt in that car.

Viktimize

this is why after 4 BMW's I just quit owning them. They design everything to fail right around the 100k km mark. When it's off warranty. I had a water pump crap out in my 2007 335i. I caught it right away so no worry about head gaskets or anything. But you got off lucky with a 600$ bill. My water pump alone was 1100$ bill if I didn't have CPO warranty. Although I would've done it myself if I didn't have warranty. But damn their parts and service are insanely priced.

As for Lexus, I would not bother doing something like this as a service item. These cars are rock solid. They actually engineer them to last.

otakusan

HAHA, this is so ironic, my sister's 3-series just had a water pump failure yesterday and i had to go rescue her. But back on topic, I normally like to change out the water pump on all my cars every 100,000kms.. it's a very small price to pay for a piece of mind.

Sasnuke

Periodic inspection will help to identify when it's time. The pink crust is definitely your warning sign.
It's rare to see a Toyota waterpump bearing fail...without an associated leak. The leak is what causes the bearing to fail over a period of time.
Personally, unless it starts to leak, it's gonna stay exactly where it is.
And if it does fail, it's not gonna take anything else out once you don't let the vehicle overheat.
Yes, you will likely need a new belt...and there may be a tow bill.

On the flip side of that, proactively changing it isn't going to do any harm either...so really a personal preference.
There's no recommended interval to change it since it's not a "wear-n-tear" item like engine oil, coolant, spark plugs, etc., that Toyota can pin down a life expectancy for.

Olasek

BMW dealer pretty much always asked almost double what my independent mechanic charged.

Jay89

It's what me and my co workers call a bmw tax. They also charge it because they can lol.

bmw water pumps fail pretty often. So much so that my friends and I joke that it's a regular maintenance item

spraytask

I also had a BMW 3 series and in it's prime it drove great. Once it reached 105k water pump had to be replaced along with hoses since they are ****. 5k miles later and the alternator and battery went out and it was 1k+ This is my first Lexus and I will probably stay with Lexus from now on.