cohomology

hi, my ‘03 base has around ~200k and I am doing the timing belt. It is very straightforward to get everything off all the way down to the water pump. But I notices that there is some oil below both cam tubes so it is time to change the seals. I was not able to find the part number, though. Searching brought up several results but I am not sure which is the correct one to use.

Plus what is the part number of the ignition coil gasket? It looks like previous owner ran the car w/ one of the seal missing for a while.

911LE

Not sure on the part number but I know this job is quite involved compared to the timing belt replacement. All 4 cams must be pulled from the engine and then the exhaust cam on each side must be disassembled while clamped in a vise to get to the seals. You are definitely going to need a copy of the factory service manual as the cam removal and replacement is an intricate process.

cohomology

@911LE

Thank you for chiming in. Yes it is definitely a very involved job. The info I found seem to conflict with your input, can you link me to your source?

1) Why the exhaust camshaft needs to come out? According to there is no seal on the exhaust camshaft.

2) As long as one puts a service bolt on the exhaust gear one should be safe right? Do I still need the clamp?

Thank you so much for your input!

911LE

You are correct. The seals are on the intake cam. It's been a while since I did mine and I thought it was the exhaust side.

911LE

There are obviously a lot of steps that that video leaves out. Once the service bolt is installed you must rotate the exhaust cam with a large wrench until the timing dots line up on the back of the gears. There is then a specific order for loosening and removing the 22 bolts that hold the intake cam in.

cohomology

@911LE

It is good to know that you did it with success! Do you remember if you had to use a clamp or not?

Yes I just saw that unbolting sequence in the FSM that I downloaded. But unfortunately I made a stupid mistake by pulling the bolts holding the front bearing cap before I read the manual. Do you think it is a big deal? Also I found that the front cap is stuck there well even with all the bolts pulled. How did you get it off?

911LE

I used a vise to hold the intake cam for disassembly as instructed in the service manual. The guy in the video loosened the bolt while it was still installed and I don't see why that wouldn't have worked if you don't have a vise. You must be extremely careful to not touch any of the lobes if you use a vise.
You should be ok if you loosened all of the front cap bolts first. The manual procedure is there to slowly and evenly release any remaining valve spring pressure. The front cap is sealed to the head with fipg (Toyota silicone) and may need a tap or two from a rubber mallet. Once it's loose be careful not to lose the oil control valve filter underneath. I replaced my filters ($5 each) but you can just clean them with brake cleaner as they are steel mesh.

cohomology

That is great info! I will probably borrow my neighbor's vise for this project.

I have attached the relevant FSM section for anyone that come across with this thread by searching. It is for a 4runner but the procedure is identical. Plus this file is easier to print out and keep with you when you do the job.

My advice after reading the FSM: don't be scared! If you can do the timing belt, I just don't see any reason you would not be able to do this job. Just needs a little more patience and care. And if you are doing the ~200k miles service, don't skip this. Both my cam seals are leaking very bad as I see them, there's tons of mixtures of oil and dirt all over the starter, alternator, water pump, you name it. I believe they've been leaking for quite some time now.