'New Truck', New Forum Member (2002 Tundra 4.7 V8 Limited 4x4)

Good evening all,
I recently joined the ranks, purchasing a 2002 4.7 4x4 V8 Limited access cab.

Thanks to Shifty's extremely in depth and useful post, I knew what to be on the lookout for and I feel like I got a solid deal. $5k with 210,xxx on the odometer.

We're in the midwest so I spent 30+ minutes under the frame with a headlamp, powerful flashlight, and a screwdriver for poking. No real rust to speak of, other than superficial. The frame seems like it was replaced at some point in the truck's life, there are no open recalls or warranties with Toyota. It smelled a bit like fluid film under there, which I took as a great sign. As you can see in the photos, it looks to be in pretty fine condition for being old enough to vote.

4WD Hi/Lo works fine, no lights on the dash, it's just a generally solid truck as to be expected.

My only 'concern' is the timing belt, and the dealer I bought it from.
Someone loved this truck for 20+ years - it came with a stack of maintenance records as thick as a phonebook. Those records end a few years ago, though. So maybe the original owner...got old? Passed away? It's unclear, but their truck ended up at a dealership that did not inspire confidence.
The dealer said they had replaced the timing belt and water pump, which gave me pause. I know how crucial the timing belt is to these engines. They wouldn't have replaced it out of the goodness of their heart, so I wonder what prompted them to do it. Maybe the belt miraculously broke at low RPM, or maybe they were doing other work on the engine and noticed that it was looking ragged.

I know that Aisin is the 'preferred' OEM style replacement kit - what I have is a 'Gates T298'.
It says 'Made in USA' but I don't know how it compares, does anyone have opinions on that brand? The belt does look and feel basically new.

There is room in my budget to have my trusted mechanic put in a new Aisin kit and just give me peace of mind for the next 10 years. Or will the Gates belt hold up just as well?

I am also trying to get more info on the lower ball joints - is there a way to tell what brand those are just by looking? They definitely seem a little tougher to ascertain the condition of.

My intention is to keep this truck going for hopefully another 20 years and 200k miles; it has been a pleasure to own so far. I have an undercoating gun and 5 gallons of fluid film on the way as
we speak.

Any further suggestions to keep things running smoothly would be appreciated.

Sorry for the long first post, and thanks for your time.

 

Welcome from Texas!

 

Welcome! If it were me, and it was not too long ago, I would replace the TB, water pump, tensioner, and idler pulley with the Aisin kit. Yes, that TB looks fairly new, but did they do the rest? I think for peace of mind and to know exactly what has been done, it makes sense to do it. You plan on owning it for a long time, so why not start at "zero" (as in worries). Might want to go ahead and change out the rear diff fluid and transfer case. Have a good look at the trans fluid also. Should be nice cherry red and at proper fill level, checked at operating temperature, with the engine running. Brake fluid looks a little brownish, maybe consider a flush on that as well.

 

Welcome from NY.

 

Welcome , sweet truck. So they did not write or note mileage when belt was done,? That alone is cause for concern. I would buy Aisin kit. Do all your maintenance and fluids and install the whole kit as mentioned above whenever you have tine for peace of mind. Welcome to forum, they are great mid size trucks.

 

Two tone! Welcome brother! And a 2002. Starting to wonder about two tones vs years...