Front Engine Seal Replacement Costs - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

Fred_G · 03-06-2011, 05:29 PM

I bought a 2002 4 cyl Camry. The purchase was 'as is'. Love the car, but now I have an oil leak. The car has around 130K miles on it, but the engine was replaced with one from a wreaked Camry with around 60K miles on it. The car runs great. But, the oil leak seems to be coming from the front engine seal(s). By front, I mean the side, where the belts are. It is not the valve cover gasket, if I remove the tire, I can clearly see oil on one the pulleys, and dripping down onto the side of the oil pan.

What will I be looking at labor wise to replace the front seals? I did some research, and it seems to be a good idea to replace the belts, and the other front seals when I get this done. Any estimate on cost, or even shop hours for it would be good to know. Also, as I am guessing this is a pretty labor intensive job, are there any other gaskets or parts that I should replace? Gaskets are cheap, labor is high. With my luck, I would get one fixed, and 2 months later have a different one spring a leak. Would rather cry once.

Thanks.

AlmightyCamry777 · 03-08-2011, 01:55 PM

Maybe $500-600 labor i am guessing?
Change the timing belt while you are at it. Even if it got changed recently it's oil soaked.
Change at a minimum the front crank seal, and the front camshaft seal. You may want to change the oil pump seal too, ask the mechanic's opinion.

profuse007 · 03-08-2011, 04:34 PM

two hours of work. $80-100/hr. Try to negotiate w/ that or call Toyota, honda, or other dealer and see how many hours does it takes to replace those seals.

Seals cost couple of $tens for all front seals, not much. Check your local autoparts.

Fred_G · 03-08-2011, 09:37 PM

Well, that is promising. If it is just $500 to $600 for labor, would be nice. And yes, plan on replacing all the front seals, the timing belt, and the other belt(s) as well. I think I will call the Toyota dealer Wednesday, see if they will give me a quote over the phone. I just want it fixed, would rather cry once than try to go cheap, fix one leak, then spring another 3 months later.

Thanks.

AlmightyCamry777 · 03-09-2011, 02:01 PM

I was quoting California prices, everything is expensive here. Profuse 007 may be right, in your section of the country you may find a shop willing to do it for less, maybe a lot less.
You are doing essentially a timing belt and seal change, the parts for this are timing belt ($30-40) and 2 or three seals ($30-50 for all three) plus the labor (at least half a day i am guessing).

And if you want to have it done while everything is apart, have them change the water pump and idler pulleys too (another $200-300 for parts). If you can't afford the water pump and/or the old one seems ok, i'd recommend to change the idler pulleys at least (maybe $50-100 for both).

Fred_G · 03-09-2011, 09:07 PM

Thanks for the info. Shop rates are pretty high here, I know the Nissan dealer is charging $100 and hour for labor. And also, thanks for the info on the water pump and idler pulleys. I would rather add oil for a few weeks while I save up and get a bunch of potential problems solved. I plan on stopping by a shop to get an estimate Thursday or Friday.

I changed the oil Sunday, and have been driving it more than normal to get an idea on how much oil is leaking, and as of this morning, a few drips on the carport, and the oil level is pretty much full, no noticeable oil loss on the dipstick.

profuse007 · 03-10-2011, 11:54 PM

I remember looking at a ASE book saying non-luxury labor is 80-100 in USA. In houston here, toyota and honda near me charge 90-95/hr. Hondas around here have a lot of coupons for parts and repair you can use but Toyota sucks at that. It seems like it's cheaper to repair honda than toyota around here.

bdy0003 · 03-11-2011, 08:03 PM

OP says he has an 02 I4 Camry. These engines (2AZ-FE) don't have a timing belt, but instead have a timing chain. Its def more complicated to replace a timing chain than a belt, but YES, I would replace the gaskets, seals, other belts, etc...while you're in there.

Fred_G · 03-11-2011, 09:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bdy0003

OP says he has an 02 I4 Camry. These engines (2AZ-FE) don't have a timing belt, but instead have a timing chain. Its def more complicated to replace a timing chain than a belt, but YES, I would replace the gaskets, seals, other belts, etc...while you're in there.

Hmm. I was told it had a timing belt. How do I tell if it has a timing belt or chain? The engine actually was replaced. I am not sure exactly what year the engine came from.

Thanks a lot for the info so far.

bdy0003 · 03-11-2011, 09:31 PM

I have two Gen 5 Camrys (03 and 05) and they both have the 2AZ-FE engine. This engine has a timing chain, and I believe the manual recommends it to be replaced every 90k. Here is the manual for the 2AZ-FE section just to let you know you have a chain.

http://highlanderclub.ru/files/manua...0e/x040001.pdf

Whether you replace it is another question because I don't really know where your leak is located. IF it is near the timing chain and the mechanic is replacing the seals around that area, I would go ahead and replace it. Might as well do some preventative maintenance. Sorry for not giving you clear cut answers as I work on my older Camry and these newer ones haven't had a problem yet.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fred_G

Hmm. I was told it had a timing belt. How do I tell if it has a timing belt or chain? The engine actually was replaced. I am not sure exactly what year the engine came from.

Thanks a lot for the info so far.

Fred_G · 03-11-2011, 09:37 PM

I guess I may have a mutant Camry. The guy that owns the shop that replaced the engine advised me to replace the timing belt. I don't know how to tell if it has a timing belt or chain. I think I found someone who has a lot of experience working on Toyota's who will do the work for around $300. Will get him to check out the engine to see what it has.

bdy0003 · 03-11-2011, 10:07 PM

Ehh, my guess is the mechanic doesn't know Camrys, at least not the 2AZ-FE engine. Either that or he doesn't distinguish a belt from a chain, but thats really not the point. Change it if he will be replacing stuff around there, it doesn't hurt.

Just for your reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Camry_%28XV30%29
The 02 Camrys do have the 2AZ-FE engine, unless the replacement engine is a 1MZ-FE in which case is a 6 cylinder.

Fred_G · 03-11-2011, 11:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bdy0003

Ehh, my guess is the mechanic doesn't know Camrys, at least not the 2AZ-FE engine. Either that or he doesn't distinguish a belt from a chain, but thats really not the point. Change it if he will be replacing stuff around there, it doesn't hurt.

Just for your reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Camry_%28XV30%29
The 02 Camrys do have the 2AZ-FE engine, unless the replacement engine is a 1MZ-FE in which case is a 6 cylinder.

I must admit, I am a bit confused now. But that is normal for me and cars, I do very little work on them, and my days working in a shop are over. Is there any way I can identify the engine that is in the car? It says it has 16 valves, so I am guessing not a V6. But I have no idea what year model engine they put in the car. Surely the engine is stamped somewhere.

And thanks for the info!

Fred_G · 03-15-2011, 08:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bdy0003

OP says he has an 02 I4 Camry. These engines (2AZ-FE) don't have a timing belt, but instead have a timing chain. Its def more complicated to replace a timing chain than a belt, but YES, I would replace the gaskets, seals, other belts, etc...while you're in there.

Thanks a lot for the info! Had it checked out today, my car has a 2003 engine, that has a timing chain, not a timing belt. So, I am told there is only the crank seal and belt(s) to worry about, so it will be a lot less cash to get it fixed!

I am not a mechanic, and know that. I will change my oil, plugs, disc brake pads, hoses and simple stuff. When it comes to real repairs, I am clueless.

Thanks again for the info on the timing chain.

bdy0003 · 03-15-2011, 09:29 PM

Glad you got it resolved and good luck!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fred_G

Thanks a lot for the info! Had it checked out today, my car has a 2003 engine, that has a timing chain, not a timing belt. So, I am told there is only the crank seal and belt(s) to worry about, so it will be a lot less cash to get it fixed!

I am not a mechanic, and know that. I will change my oil, plugs, disc brake pads, hoses and simple stuff. When it comes to real repairs, I am clueless.

Thanks again for the info on the timing chain.