Had an ’07 HSE that I bought at 170k, as a third car / toy, and it ended up being the family go-to road trip car, my DD, and also had fun offroad with it. Great! But it also left us on the side of the interstate twice in two years plus some nearly towed incidents around town… so that’s sold and the newer, much younger unit is in the driveway.
2011 HSE, 27k miles. Bought sight unseen and it’s generally as advertised. Please don’t haze me for the sight-unseen part. Aside from some minor scuffs it’s like new, in and out. Underside and engine bay look new. No mechanical/ electrical/ performance issues at all. Water pump recently replaced.
I read as much as I could find about the timing chain tensioner/guide issues prior to buying, and ended up with a low mileage example, with the idea being that if I do 7k mi oil changes and flush any sludge with BG oil treatment, there’s a decent chance it’ll go past 100k mi on the original tensioners. BG was recommended by a LR tech and it makes sense. Tech said there's a one way valve on the tensioner and it gets gunked up, which leads to extra slop in the chain, which leads to the tensioner wearing into the guide, which leads to bigger issues.
Now that the new beast is in the driveway, I’m pretty sure I hear the timing chain rattle… ugh. Not as severe as some I’ve seen on youtube, but still. The ’07 with 200k mi sounded like a well worn engine, vs the new one that sounds like a new engine, with occasional, clearly audible knocking (at idle). Even driving it around town I can hear a bit of a diesel-like sound. Granted I've only had it a few days, but the worst I've heard is on hot start.
My question is this: should I attack the tensioner/guide issue right away, while the motor is still young, and *only* install two tensioners and the two updated guides? Or shut up and put up, live with the rattle until I see some sort of CEL/code, and then do the chains etc too? Put differently, how much easier is the job if I’m only doing the two rails and tensioners?
Can anyone list a very basic, high-level DIY for just the tensioners/rails? and, I’m sure it’s a lot of wrenching… what are the really hard steps?
Thanks!
2011 HSE, 27k miles. Bought sight unseen and it’s generally as advertised. Please don’t haze me for the sight-unseen part. Aside from some minor scuffs it’s like new, in and out. Underside and engine bay look new. No mechanical/ electrical/ performance issues at all. Water pump recently replaced.
I read as much as I could find about the timing chain tensioner/guide issues prior to buying, and ended up with a low mileage example, with the idea being that if I do 7k mi oil changes and flush any sludge with BG oil treatment, there’s a decent chance it’ll go past 100k mi on the original tensioners. BG was recommended by a LR tech and it makes sense. Tech said there's a one way valve on the tensioner and it gets gunked up, which leads to extra slop in the chain, which leads to the tensioner wearing into the guide, which leads to bigger issues.
Now that the new beast is in the driveway, I’m pretty sure I hear the timing chain rattle… ugh. Not as severe as some I’ve seen on youtube, but still. The ’07 with 200k mi sounded like a well worn engine, vs the new one that sounds like a new engine, with occasional, clearly audible knocking (at idle). Even driving it around town I can hear a bit of a diesel-like sound. Granted I've only had it a few days, but the worst I've heard is on hot start.
My question is this: should I attack the tensioner/guide issue right away, while the motor is still young, and *only* install two tensioners and the two updated guides? Or shut up and put up, live with the rattle until I see some sort of CEL/code, and then do the chains etc too? Put differently, how much easier is the job if I’m only doing the two rails and tensioners?
Can anyone list a very basic, high-level DIY for just the tensioners/rails? and, I’m sure it’s a lot of wrenching… what are the really hard steps?
Thanks!