Timing Chain Possibly Getting Ready to Grenade?

Just heard back from the dealership again, they heard the noise, confirmed definitely coming from drivers side chain case area. They Don't know what to think, where to start, nor have any guesses as to what it could be. They are going to call Toyota in the morning, possibly order parts and keep the truck for the foreseeable future.

Glad they heard the noise, not excited to be truck-less for a while, but hopefully it'll get fixed. I asked about it possibly being oil filter related and they kind of shook that off, they seem to be under the impression that it's a pretty significant job so.. I'll keep you guys updated.

 

Heard back from the dealer today, apparently Toyota will not agree to cover anything under warranty until they tear the engine down and measure the chain to ensure it is out of spec... So I had to give permission to proceed with that understanding. That really pisses me off - I feel like I have to take a gamble that this pile of shit truck will be covered under warranty because Toyota won't authorize it? Has anyone heard of this?

 

I had a 2006 Tacoma, 6 speed. It would grind into 3rd and 4th gear. Brought it in and replicated this with a tech in the passenger seat on a lengthy test drive. Brought it back in and the service manager told me the same thing. Said they would pull the tranny, pull it apart, check bearings, syncros, tolerances, and then provide all of their findings to Toyota. Then Toyota would make the call. They probably wanted to make sure that I had the proper gear oil in it, that I didn't modify it in some way, or that it wasn't something that was easily fixed.

I took the gamble because I knew I had my bases covered and I knew it was internal. He called me back 2 days later and said that the bronze syncros were corroded and sticking. New Tranny on Toyota.

 

Been a few days, still haven't heard anything. I'm assuming no news is good news. If they don't cover it under warranty I'll never see the truck again, and I'll call Toyota Motor credit and tell them where their newly acquired pile of parts is - I'm really that pissed off. The fucking piece of shit has 73k miles on it, there is absolutely no reason I should be sitting here without a truck right now. The dealer can take me to court over the labor costs if Toyota chooses not to cover it, they honestly will not see a dime from me so... Good luck. And I told the guy this on the phone.

I'm really disappointed. Taking a lot of heat at work from the guys who all own GMs, and I'd be lying if I said it wasn't starting to actually piss me off. Anyways, hopefully I'll have the truck back soon and won't have another issue.

 

Heard from the dealer today, cam gears, all four timing chains, guides, and both hydraulic tensioners are being replaced under warranty. Apparently, as I had initially thought, one of the hydraulic tensioners failed and ruined everything.

 

That’s nuts. I’ve never heard of any issues with these engines besides the cam tower leak. I’m glad they are fixing it for you.

 

This. Oil/hydraulic pressure is used for timing chain tension. It causes the chain to rattle against the guides when cold if oil is too thick, tensioner is loose, or plastic guides are worn. My guess is a tensioner rebuild kit would replace the culprit, but be a large pain.

Timing idler pulley will sound like a supercharger. It will get louder and louder over time and grenade once it starts rattling and/or is subjected to extreme loads over a duration. Experienced this on my FJ.

 

Hahahaha I don't hate chevys, actually wish toyota would make something with the power of the 6.2l...

 

What is the underlying cause leading to this issue?

 

My bad. I hopped into this thread and got tired of reading. Didn't notice you figured out the issue before my post. Glad you sorted it and that warranty had you covered.

My timing chain tensioner, guides, and pulleys were replaced (engine needed to be pulled twice) at only 45k on my FJ. Cause for failure "unknown" after Toyota told me the noise was normal operating behavior for 25k.

That being said, I have my 20k oil results from Blackstone labs showing high wear after my filter was likely left in service. I trusted a Toyota dealer to do my first oil change and it appears I had 20k on the same cartridge filter. I believe that led to bad pressures, incorrect tension, and eventual excess wear and slop. I pushed for an extended warranty and then traded it in. Whoever owns it now has that warranty and all the documentation. I hope they don't need it, but it was the only way I'd have a clear conscience trading it.

Lesson learned. I let the dealer change my oil every 10k and I do my own changes at a 5k in between.

 

I was just thinking about hitting Toyota up for an extended warranty past the 100k I currently have. When you got yours extended, who did you talk to? Dealer or Toyota corporate?

 

If the tensioner failed its very likely that was the root of the issue (no foul play at work) but its good they replaced everything else to ensure it all beds in evenly. I'm sure there was premature wear on those system components. I can tell you that if they don't get the work done on this replacement properly, you are going to know very soon (as in hours not days). If they get it right you are probably out of the woods.

My extended warranty was from the dealership on the drivetrain only. I was out of my platinum warranty coverage, so Toyota wouldn't do an extended platinum or basic drivetrain warranty extension.

I had unique circumstances that forced the service manager and GM's to put extended coverage through their dealership on it. Knowing I was moving away from their dealership I decided it if ran well I'd trade it in as soon as my 60k drivetrain coverage expired. Sorry I can't be more help.

I do know that the 125k warranty's are outrageously expensive, but that there are some third party warranty's that are actually well regarded who will go much further on reliable vehicles like Toyota's and Honda's.

 

Since these tensioner failures are so rare I did want to throw another thing out there: I highly doubt you had an oil issue like I did - but if you are worried about the longevity of the motor check around on the warranty and put some miles on your engine. After you put 5-10,000 miles on the current oil send in a sample and have debris analysis done. That $30 analysis will probably save you from committing to a very expensive, and unnecessary warranty.

 

Sounds good, I'll definitely have Blackstone labs do an analysis of the oil before I change it after I get the truck back. Like I said, I'm only at 73k miles so I have probably another year left on the powertrain warranty before I'd be up the flagpole on any big repairs. Because it's so rare and such a big job, I was going to contact Toyota and try to get them to extend the powertrain to 125k, do you think I'm being petty if I do that? I just couldn't imagine being over 100k and having to pay for this right now, it's a multi-thousand dollar job, even at my non-toyota garage... Pretty disappointing.

 

+1 on additional warranty. I would ask for a flat out extension to 150k on powertrain. If that doesn't gain traction I would settle for 150k on anything directly related to the repairs made at this time. I could see Toyota's side on not wanting to cover the transmission, diffs, transfer case, etc....to 150k since they wouldn't be directly affected by this failure. Don't even waste your time calling a dealer, talk to the warranty reps or customer care.

 

Yeah that's what I was thinking, not gonna waste time at the dealer, can't stand the service advisor I've been dealing with, going back to my last tundra. I'll give Toyota customer care a call and see what they're willing to do.

 

Well shit... I’ve been looking for a thread like this for years... my 2011 started making this sound at 120k and I’m now at 172k... I initially thought it was a exhaust leak so I installed long tubes and all and still had the issue... did they mention how much the total cost was?
Btw I’ve had 3 oil analysis done by Blackstone during that time period and everything was perfect each time, and because of that didn’t think it was an internal issue...

 

Time to put that warranty to work!

 

Mine had a sound like that as well that really freaked me out. Turned out just to be one of the engine stickers flapping in the wind created by the fan. Might want to make sure thats not the issue.

 

No it’s not normal, I’d throw a fit over that shit. Since they gave you hard time on your Tacoma, might be worth taking it to a different dealer this time around.

 

I can see oil, and that's not normal. But what's that small metallic triangle shaped bit on the ear/tab of the filter housing?

 

Mine does not have that tab. That also does not appear to be an OEM filter housing. Did you buy some kind of aftermarket?