3.4 L V6 5VZ-FE Toyota 4runner, Tacoma, Tundra Valve Cover Gasket Tutorial

Did you have set gap on new spark plugs? What is it?

Man Timmy nice video. I have some serious leaks on my 02. It's hard to tell how much oil can leak out of the valve covers, the whole plate underneath is coated in oil. It looks like it's all running down the valve covers though.

Just gonna do mine when I do timing belt and water pump 😅 almost at 300k miles

The engine on mineis so rusted and crusted on mine the bolts were rusted off rounded and half broke off even after soaked it all down in pb . None of the other shops around me didn't want to touch it now I see why .but at least I can still drill and tap the bolts broke off there's enough room to do that on the flange were they bolt to so that's nice.

Audio is absolutely horrendous. I can barely even stand to listen to it. It literally hurts my ears and make them ring.

What’s the tourqe on the cam bracket by the cam cap

Awesome Video! My mass airflow sensor on my 97 Limited doesn't seem to have any screws. Does anyone know how to clean it? Also, I noticed my engine was very dirty and full of sludge. Any recommendations on how to flush it?

Torque specs for cam plug bolts?

Just today I went to Toyota and bought all the gaskets I needed for my Tacoma it cost me 225.00 dollars for everything.
The little washers for the cover bolts were kinda pricey at 1.95 each. But I’ve been saving up for this job so I got what I needed.

Best channel for Yotas! thank you for all the help. If not for this channel there would be a lot of frustration and cussing while doing the job. My 01 Tundra thanks you too! :)

Is buying a jdm engine a bad idea? Will all my parts off the engine I have work for the jdm engine

You are the MAN. THE MAN.

'01 Tacoma with 350,000 miles and your video is giving me the inspiration to do this myself in the next few weeks. One question tho, you never mention cleaning parts during this whole thing. My plenums are pretty dirty as well as the valve covers. Do you have any recommendations to clean them. I was thinking of using a brass wheel on a drill to clean the plenums once out but not sure what's best for the the covers. Should I just use de-greaser then clean and wipe dry. What are your thoughts? Awesome video, thank you for all the details and once I finish this job will definitely buy you some beer

so i have Question. Are you replacing the cam shaft plugs at the front of the engine? the parts list shows (4) of them, but I dont see you remove them or talk about the ones at the front, only the 2 (1 per valve cover) nearest the firewall.

Thanks for this! I must have watched it at least 4 times before doing the job, and three time while doing the job. Just started up my 1996 Tacoma 30min ago and all's well. The tip about that crumbling plastic really helped me to not fill the valves with tiny pieces of black brittle wiring loom. Whew!

Really appreciate this video, I'm in the middle of the job and could not have done it without this, thank you! I don't see any mention of torque specs for reassembly of the lower and upper plenum, which would be very useful. I searched through the FSM and for anyone later on the torque spec for all fasteners on the lower/upper plenum are 13 ft-lbs (156 in-lbs). If you're looking through the FSM the plenums are called the "Air Intake Assembly" and can be found in the Engine Mechanical service specifications.

Tim if you're able to add those in the description I think it would take an already very good resource to a comprehensive reference.Thanks again!

I’m bout to do this job in a couple days on my 2000 Toyota tundra. Not going to lie I’m nervous but I can do it I’m sure patience is key

Thank you for your informative videos! My 99 is just shy of 300,000. I'll be performing this soon and will attempt the timing belt at the same time. Question on the half moons. Are the originals rubber? Why the need for new metal ones? I looked through comments before asking.... I also used you door lock video to repair all of my locks. They were so sluggish! Love these vehicles! Thank you again!

If i dont have an inch Lb wrench how firm should the 8 rubber mounted cover bolts be? Im thinking pull it down till they are firm but dont crank them down..any recommendations?

Should grease or anything be applied to the new gasket or does it go on dry?

Does anyone sell a kit with all the parts I need to do this job?

I was planning on doing the valve cover gasket on my 97 but now believe I also have a bad head gasket or cylinder (rough start after it's cooled down a bit and steam that smells sweet from exhaust (also experiencing coolant loss). So the question is, if I was going to do the valve cover gasket anyway, how much additional work is it to replace head gasket or head, or is it even worth it! I paid $3500 for it about 6 months ago and it has a salvage title due to being hit in rear end about 5yrs ago, but was repaired and no frame damage Engine and transmission still operate well.

I did the timing belt and installed a used transmission on my following your videos (could not have done it without your guidance!). Is the head gasket replacement a whole different level of difficulty?

Thanks!

Timmy thank you so much for this video. Because of people like you and videos like yours you have encourage newbie like myself to DIY. I did this job on my rig. (2001 Taco) Took me 2 1/2
days😅.

Very detailed. Appreciate this video 🤙🏿

Where did you buy the 5VZ service manual?

Great video Tim. I have the FSM and referred to it but I used your video as my primary source. I did the full job with Toyota FIPG, half moons, cam plugs etc. Torqued the cover bolts to 53 inch pounds. Ran the car for a half hour or so. I did not drive the car, no plates yet. When I took off the valve cover all the bolts were VERY loose. I decided the other day to check the bolts torque and they were Way under 53 inch pounds, probably 1/2 to 1 full turn loose before I hit the 53 Ilb. What gives? The rubber gaskets under the bolt heads are obviously compressing and exerting less pressure on the cover flange. Is this the cause of leaking valve covers on these 3.4 engines.?All the other valve cover jobs I have done lack these rubber washers.

After watching this video (a few times) and reading 823 forums posts regarding the project I (almost) have myself talked into attempting to do this myself. Since I also intend to replace the radiator soon, would there be any benefit to yanking it out before doing the valve cover gasket?

Thanks man. I was able to successfully complete this project by following the instructions offered in this video. I had a check engine light upon first firing up my truck after completing the repair. I disconnected the negative battery post, waited about 30 seconds, reconnected it then fired up the engine and the light went out.

Timmy is so good. This early video isn't up to the quality of his later ones because of the shaky camera work but it's gud enuf to see the sequence, Tim is the mechanic's mechanic!

Great Video!
I took many cellphone photos along the way. It helped when reassembling, especially when it came to routing hoses and wires correctly.
Thanks for the work!

Hey man,
Can I ask - did you do the FRONT camshaft plugs as well? Or just the rear ones? The one one the front passenger side seems impossible to get out (due to clearance from the radiator mount in front of it). Just curious if you did the front ones as well, and if you didn't - was it for the same reason, or some other reason?
Anyone here have a response? Thanks!

I just finished up on my grandsons 2000 4runner, thanks to your video, it took me a few days to complete as i went very slowly. I had a slight huge delay as i was removing passenger side valve cover, one of the bolts fell off and went in camshaft. I had a very small space that i located it and did not think that this was going to be possible to get this out. Only a very small magnet extension , and a miracle from God that i was able to retrieve this, all of them are stuck on there, but one came off. My son in law who is excellent mechanic said it had to come out, or tear the engine down. Thank you again.

My '01 doesn't seem to have the wiring harness that breaks easily. It's a rebuilt motor so maybe it broke and was removed before I got it? Is this something I should look into replacing while I'm in there?

Man Timmy...thank you so much! You're the first channel i found when i bought my 4runner a few years ago, i caught a video of you talking about working on your own car and how you wanted to make these videos to help people so they wouldn't have to take it to the shop and spend lots of money, that's when my journey started all thanks to you. I worked on tanks in the military when i was younger so i'm pretty mechanically inclined but never really worked on a car until 2019 lol that's when i got the 4runner and it's a blast working on it, really enjoy it but it's all thanks to you! I've done front and rear shocks, lbjs, complete timing job ( replaced everything), and now valve cover job as well as a tune up while i was in there. I'm now confident i can tackle anything on the 4runner and i just wanted to say thank you very much for all the hard work and time you've put into these videos, keep on keepin on brother!

HUGE shout out to this video and creator, it is by far the most comprehensive detailed video on this subject. It totally helped me do this job. I offer one suggestion: when replacing the spark plug tube seals you can deform them and remove them without trying to get a grip on the tabs. Once they're out you can flip over the valve cover and use a punch to deform the tabs upward and outward to get enough clearance to insert the new ones.

Thanks for the walk through! You seem to have covered it all.

Another project done with the a big Thanks to you! I had 2 broken bolts that needed to be drilled out, and found an already rounded one that took a while to get out. Just Diff's and transfer case fluids and I am all caught up and good to go for a while!

I’ll be tackling this job in the next couple days…any new tips 6 years after this video was made?

Hi Timmy, I've watched this video, as well as the one on fuel injectors, many times before finally (and very slowly) attempting to mimic all of your steps on my '98 T100. I hit a wall this afternoon after unbolting the semi-circular holder securing the front camshaft plugs. How do I remove the plugs, which are sandwiched between the camshaft and the timing belt backing plate. Do I unbolt all of the holders securing the camshaft and then lifting the camshaft? Sorry, I can't seem to find this step on your video. Thanks in advance, and for all of your very helpful videos!

Can I use gasket maker for the moons

Just finished installing valve cover gaskets, cam plugs, half moons, etc. on my 2002 Tacoma. Thanks for another great, well detailed video. Even had time to paint my valve covers!

hey Tim, midway through valve cover gasket replacement , found out last mechanic lost a valve cover bolt! any idea what the part # is? I have 16 valve cover washers and 15 bolts. just my luck....Thanks for all the help and the video.

I’ll be tackling my 3.4 v6 next week over here in Australia, thanks for making this video. It explains everything well.

Did you label all the vacuum hoses? Or are they different sizes and hold their shape and turns etc to see where they go back on?

I'm no mechanic but this video inspired me to take on the job. It took 8 hours to complete and I'm happy to say no more leaks. Thanks again for this video!

Do you have to cover the exposed part of the engine if leaving it open for a period of time? Do I have to worry about dirt getting in there or will it all be caught in the oil filter eventually?

Timmy: so I taken off passenger side off and it was missing grommet in the center! What could this do to my engine!

Another great Timmy the Toolman video. I’m getting after this, the timing belt, radiator, and full rear brakes and e-brake this coming vacation week. All thanks to Tim’s parts lists and videos! Fingers crossed. I may even clean and test the IAC too!!

Hi Timmy,
Love your coverage, literally you R a Pro!! May I ask, what is the price$$ I will pay if I take it to get fixed. Any suggestions?