tj884Rdlx

i was quoted $2200 for what is said to be a 13 hr repair. i just looked up the lce double chain kit and it's only $400, making me wonder about the price to install a standard kit, which i agreed to while i was in shock. i brought in for an oil change, on a new motor with 30k on it.

it is leaking only slightly, but i do have the symptoms of a stretched chain making me think the engine i bought exactly 3 years ago may have had a cheap chain kit. i don't know if i'm getting hoodwinked or what. i have to call in the morning and ask for a price break down i guess.

anyone have recent experience with paying for this repair?

rokblok

iTrader: (1)

Holy crap! I could come to ATL, and do the chain repair for $2000...

Or find a good Toy shop that'll do it for a reasonable cost.... You could remove the engine from the truck, do the chain kit/tensioner, clean everything while the engine was out, and reinstall everything in less than 13hrs... And I'm betting that's what they're charging you for. To R&R the engine. Which isn't necessary for a chain replace...

And Engnbldr is much cheaper than LCE....

Inferno451

Holy CRAP! You're getting taken, dude. Buy the kit from engnbldr (comes with steel chain guide) and you'll never have to worry about it again. Or if you're feeling cheap, just make sure the bolts are all tightened to spec and put some RTV where it's leaking. Do NOT let them get away with that, there's no WAY it would take 13 hours for anyone who's ever so much as looked at a wrench before. Even if you're at some super high end place that charges $100 an hour for labor, that's still NINE HUNDRED FREAKING DOLLARS for parts to fix a small leak. That's only $75 less than i paid for my new engine, including buying a spare complete engine to build.

Stetson_md

When they said timing chain where they referring to flava-flavs gold one? If not your getting screwed.

wyoming9

iTrader: (1)

I knew you were in trouble the minute I saw I took it in for a oil change.

Just where did you take it??

Just what kind of engine did you buy 30,000 miles ago??

I was pressed for time and had a very good mechanic do a timing chain on a 22rec and I thought $600.00 was expensive.

just what is leaking and where is it leaking ??

the timing chain tensionor and guides should not wear out in 30,000 miles even with a K-Mart Kit!!

Yes I know no such thing!!

tj884Rdlx

well i just made a call to the shop, and now were puttin in the lce dual chain kit for the same price.

they have it for 399 which is what he was quoting for just a standard chain. i think he was buying the parts separately.

but toyota said 14 hrs and quoted 1900$ for the job. this guy is a lexus shop but he owns a few early 4Runners so ive beengoing there for maintenance. i cant do the work i used to do anymore cuz of my disc problems in my neck. =(

the guy is expensive but i think hes just used to ppl paying high prices for lexus labor.

this is going to cut my savings in half but i have to get my truck back on the road and i dont want to risk doing more damage to a motor w only 30k on it.

thank for chiming in though or i probably wouldnt have called to question it. its impossible to find reasonable help anymore. every shop ive dealt with in atlanta is either incompetent, expensive, or both. at least this guy seems only expensive. today i am bummed, but i keep trying to think "its only money". at least now im getting a dual chain upgrade for my trouble.

ugh.

Inferno451

I don't care if Donald trump himself is doing the work and they're putting diamonds on the timing chain, you're still getting screwed. If they haven't started tearing it apart yet, take it somewhere else. IMO a double row timing chain is a waste of money. You have to use proprietary parts you can't get anywhere else, it's more expensive, and even with bad guides a broken running chain is extremely rare. With 30k on them I'm sure your existing chain and guides are fine.

tj884Rdlx

yeah maybe i am. but apparently that's part of owning this truck when you can't work on it yourself.

ive been to many Toyota shops anywhere i could find in Atlanta and they all have been bad experiences where they can't fix it right the first or 2nd time, except this shop...which is why ive gone there. its just really expensive. but there's no where else to go that i know of.

I'm getting tired of it though, I should probably sell the truck. I've put more money into maintaining this thing than the dozen cars I've owned previously - combined. im just replacing the same parts over n over. its not fun anymore, its just stressful.

wyoming9

iTrader: (1)

Well just go buy a new one.

My costs per month would easy make a new truck payment.

You knew when you posted you were going to do this you just wanted to get sympathy .

I would think your paying for your disability Grin and bear it or go else where.

The cost of maintenance on a new vehicle is far cheaper .

Run it till it is time for a timing belt trade it get a another new one.

Just curious why did you think a two row chain is any better??

toyospearo

get out of there

85TurboRunner

What is the name of the shop so people can be warned never to go there for anything?

You are getting SCREWED!!! You are paying 2k for a slight timing cover oil leak. If it bothers you so much squirt some Permatex on it and you'll probably be fine.

I know this post is too late and you already are having that POS do the work but come on.

Hey since you like to throw away money so much I will PM you my addy and you can send me a few grand.

tj884Rdlx

yes yes the ball busting is expected.

WY9, i was asking what others had paid for same repair at shop they had been to, thats what i posted in bold.

i dont need sympathy, it is what it is. i dont trust anyone else to do it right. everyone ive tried has a story for why i chose not to return. so its either pick a new shop blind or bite the bullet, no?

i went with double chain so that at least now i know the quality of parts hes installing since hell order from lce now. and i shouldnt have a chain stretch issue ever again. plus it sounds HD if i ever sell it.

i DOnT HAVE money, i been unemployed since june and down to 5k savings. which also is what it is and im dealin w it.

i just was wonderin what others had paid for the job if they paid a shop

tj884Rdlx

if i knew an honest Toy tech i'd go. but that is easier said than done. i've been to supposed Toyota specialists in Carollton, Kennesaw, Marietta, Atlanta, Clarendon, and Chamblee.

and each one made me think, i just learned an expensive lesson and wont be going back there again. in fact, you can read about most of it on Yt, i used to ask for help a lot. but unless you can DIY, you're SOL, and my DIYing has really declined in this past year.

it's ok. i was upset thinking about how expensive it is. but here's what was up:

- i could hear a shrill sound on decel in 3rd gear, kind of like a chain on guides.
- i started hearing a groaning only on cold start up, like an oil-dry friction issue, like a dry GM p.s. pump. getting worse other last few months.
- this truck has always had issues with timing, and needs advance to like 13* to have any power. the last tech to adjust it suggested that chain stretch may be affecting it.

so if the original rebuild didn't have the tension tight enough on the driver's side, from the beginning, who knows how much slack has come up. or it may have been a cheap kit used on the complete motor i got. i never actually got the source's name from the installer, another shop that really hosed me (documented here too)

the first noise has continued without change. the 2nd noise has gotten worse, lasting longer. and then the oil leak started. so it's progressing and it's time to deal with it.

i just wish he wasn't going to soak me for full book time on the repair, but its too late to gamble on some new unknown shop to save what, 500 bux max? makes you wanna carry a spare tube of Kentucky jelly.

hopefully the end result is the new kit resolves a long standing timing issue and the thing can be set closer to stock. plus maybe some piece of mind that i'll never worry about a chain again. plus new water and oil pumps at 30k are nice to have right? silver linings?? Bueller???

i'll get over it. i appreciate being able to talk about it here though. no one i know cares about old yotas. i do.

this will help:

rokblok

iTrader: (1)

Have you checked in with he folks at ACC? Cruiser shop that is, I believe, ITP, on the S.E. side. Atlanta custom Cruisers? I think that their name. Mainly a Cruiser shop, but I believe they do trucks and Runners also.

tj884Rdlx

yes, I've been there. my experience is also documented here.

they are who reassembled my box of parts into an engine again. (this was after rescuing it from the Carrollton shop that installed my rebuilt fine, but then insanely disassembled it a few months later and removed my entire engine harness trying to hide their mistake of cracking my intake manifold with a hammer)

ACC had the truck for an excessively long time (because they went on a weekvacation while my truck sat), which can happen, but it ran like crap when they finally said it was done. So their expensive reassembly required another shop ( a subaru joint i tried) to set the timing, etc correctly so i could actually drive it.

After a second visit to ACC for a different repair, i just got the impression they werent concerned about keeping my business, particularly if it interfered with their vacation schedule, so i crossed them off my go-to list.

if you have an LC maybe you'll fare better than i did. but they burned up what faith i put in them so i moved on.

seems everywhere i go they keep it longer than expected, charge more than expected, and i drive away noticing the same problem still exists. this happened at Toyotech too. I've also tried sandy springs, Roswell, and Marietta Toyota. I'll let SS do oil changes at most.

in 8 yrs i have not been able to find a place i feel comfortable going to. and that is what is frustrating, not the truck itself.

at least this shop's repairs seem competent so far, just expensive as heck.

i miss my old buddy Kenny H. he was top Audi tech in the tristate area when i worked with him 20 yrs ago. honest, fair; wish i knew someone like that. i hope hes doing ok wherever he is. good people are hard to find anymore.

more beer.

rokblok

iTrader: (1)

We'll its good to have your experienced feedback. I don't live in Ga anymore, and have only bought a couple LC items from ACC. And it sucks that you have had such bad experiences with shops, and I feel your frustration. I'm a tech from way back, so I do all my own work when I can, because I know the expense and dishonesty that exists in the trade. I hope your current shop works out.