LauraJ

I have a Lexus SC430 2002. It has 53,000 miles, should I get the timing belt changed right away?

Coleroad

DshngDaryl

Before you change it, there are a couple of things I would check. One, look under the hood and see if you can find a sticker indicating it was changed at some point in it's 16 year life.

Next go to Lexus Driver's Website and put in your VIN https://drivers.lexus.com/lexusdrivers/home
If a dealer changed it, it will show up in the service history.

You can also take off one of the timing belt covers and have a mechanic tell you if it looks like it is time to change it.

bacardi11

iTrader: (1)

change belt, water pump, and pulley

sixonemale

Cole is correct you should change your timing belt based on either miles or age. Why? The SC has an interference engine and if the timing belt were to fail it could cause catastrophic damage to your engine. The following from Wikipedia is probably more than you wanted to know, but explains it best:

"An interference engine is a type of 4-stroke internal combustion piston engine in which one or more valves in the fully open position extends into any area that the piston may travel into. By contrast, in a non-interference engine the piston does not travel into any area into which the valves open. Interference engines rely on timing gears, chains, or belts to prevent the piston from striking the valves by ensuring that the valves are closed when the piston is near top dead center. Interference engines are prevalent among modern production automobiles and many other 4-stroke engine applications; the main advantage is that it allows engine designers to maximize the engine's compression ratio. However, such engines risk major internal damage if the piston strikes the valve(s) due to failure or poor maintenance of the timing components and/or camshaft(s).[1]

Timing gear (belt) failure

A pair of valves bent by collision with a piston after timing belt failure. The engine was running at 4500 RPM.In interference engine designs, regular belt or chain service is especially important as incorrect timing may result in the pistons and valves colliding and causing extensive internal engine damage and therefore costly repairs. The piston will likely bend the valves, or if a piece of valve or piston is broken off within the cylinder, the broken piece may cause severe damage within the cylinder, possibly affecting the connecting rods."

I had my timing belt changed at 74,000 miles because of it's age. The mechanic saved the old timing belt for me view and it looked brand new, but as mentioned it was over ten years old.

If you do a search in this forum for "timing belt' or "timing belt kit" you'll find a lot of good information pertaining to having a timing belt changed - components replaced, cost, etc. Most owners have the timing belt changed along with the water pump, pulleys, etc., because once that portion of the engine is dismantled, the labor for replacing the water pump and pulleys is minimal, plus timing belt kits are sold with these items in them because these components can fail also.

Goldwinger

As others have said yes it needs to be done. The sooner the better

Harold57

Welcome to the forum LauraJ.

Jabberwock

Suggest you also have the serpentine belt (runs AC and Alternator) changed at the same time if it has not been changed in 5-7 years or is original. The belt has to come off anyway to do the TB and water pump so the additional cost should be just the parts cost of the serpentine belt and zero labor.

Hyper15125

I have an 02 with just under 33K and just changed mine. Better safe than need a new engine if it breaks.

sixonemale

Excellent point and a must do when changing the timing belt..

riknchar

I went ahead and had the timing belt, water pump, idler pulley, etc. changed on my 2006 SC430 with only 21k miles. Just wanted peace of mine, though the old belt that came off looked fine.

You can order all the parts you need from Amazon (they have the complete kit made by Aisen, the OEM maker for these parts) for around $160-170. You can have a good independent shop do the work for around $400-500. Much cheaper than taking your Lexus to the stealership...

ShawnOk

iTrader: (1)

So I'm at 62k miles on my 2002. Haven't done timing belt or water pump. My AC compressor is out so I purchased all the parts (TB, WP, and compressor) and will do it all soon. Called around and best price so far is local Chicago chain brand (Fullers) says $850 for labor and freon recharge. After reading above I guess I should invest in new serpentine belt too. Heard Gatorback is good? In terms of the timing belt, I have always read it's never the belt that goes bad. It's the water pump. Once it seizes, the belt snaps and that leads to disasterous engine failure. Secondly, according to my buddy Retro, if car was housed in hotter climate areas (like mine in Oklahoma, Texas, Missouri, now Illinois) then it's better to change belt earlier. If car was always in cold climate then belt should be fine. Totally makes sense, but not sure what that means for the water pump seizing. In any case, I felt I pushed my luck to 60k+ miles... time to treat The Lex to some new guts.

mandyfig

Highly suggest you get the Aisin kit. It will include a Mitsuboshi belt, which is OEM.

TominBoise

Just curious, has anybody had a timing belt fail? IF so what was your mileage and what year was your SC430?
I khow it will cause alot of damage and it is better to be safe than sorry/

sixonemale

I recall this timing belt failure some time ago that was posted in the forum:

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sc4...ggestions.html

Why the timing belt failed is anybody's guess, did it snap on it's own or did a pulley seize.