I guess there's a first time for everything

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by Sharnold, Nov 23, 2025 at 4:57 PM.

  1. Sharnold

    Sharnold Active Member

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    I've done countless headgasket jobs on these Gen 3s with a few issues here and there nothing major but I just broke a camshaft carrier bearing cap and its never happened before.
    And before we get into it this was the no.3 cap not the no.2 cap that the good ol shop towels hold the cams in position for you ( towels were already removed )
    I removed the shop towels and started the 20ft lb torque sequence then I heard the dreaded snap.
    My question is can just the carrier and caps be changed or should I pull the whole assembly from another ( camshafts included ) and replace completely
    I'm assuming since the bearing caps are numbered they was also machined to tolerance for those camshafts although Toyota sells just the camshafts separately it raises the question of does it even matter or is there a certain amount of tolerance and etiquette required.


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    #1 Sharnold, Nov 23, 2025 at 4:57 PM
    Last edited: Nov 23, 2025 at 5:05 PM
  2. BiomedO1

    BiomedO1 Senior Member

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    IMHO; you number them for a reason and put them back in the same order - wear pattern and fitment. If it didn't matter, why number them to begin with? I'd replace the entire assembly; if you want that repair to last. If you don't care and don't have to warranty the job; you can do whatever you want.
    I wouldn't be able to sleep at nights; but that's just me....
     
    #2 BiomedO1, Nov 23, 2025 at 5:08 PM
  3. Sharnold

    Sharnold Active Member

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    I did number everything from bolts to rockers to lifters to valve stem caps all separated out on a work station and still it happened.
    But like you I cant do it any other way than right because I'm honest and I'll also eat the labor and cost of that portion of the repair.
    I guess my best bet is to just pull another whole assembly and use it from a donor.
    But I'm still open to other input and opinions on options.
    I almost want to pull another cap and compare.

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    #3 Sharnold, Nov 23, 2025 at 5:19 PM
    Last edited: Nov 23, 2025 at 5:34 PM
  4. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    I wonder if there's a method to fit a brand new replacement? Like if you were working on race cars and you had an entire machine shop and the next race was too soon and you had to get 'er done? Of course that's not a situation where you'd be concerned about lifespan... But I wonder how they'd do it?

    And I hear 'ya... Peace of mind says start over with a set that's perfectly matched, but I bet a Toyota Stealerships mechanic wouldn't do that?

    What's the cost of replacing all the carrier bearing caps with brand new and how would that work or not work?
     
    #4 PriusCamper, Nov 23, 2025 at 5:36 PM
  5. Sharnold

    Sharnold Active Member

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    See but with some vehicles you can replace all the caps with new ones.
    But then again Toyota doesn't sell just the caps for a reason and probably with it in mind that the camshafts could be wore to a point there could be some slight tolerance indifference.
    And as for your other comment on what would the stealership do...........
    Well you see I used to work for them so the answer is you'd inform the shop forman and the service writer so he could go sell them a whole new assembly with the cams and possibly a new timing set because they are greedy imo
    I can get the whole assembly under $200
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    #5 Sharnold, Nov 23, 2025 at 5:49 PM
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  6. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    That all makes sense... Times like these I wish it was your own car and not somebody else's so you can experiment with doing it on the cheap and it'd benefit the PriusChat community to know how long it'll go before it turns into a problem. But that doesn't sound like the case.

    As always, having too many extra engines lying around would make this less of a hassle, despite all that clutter that would be way more hassle when it comes to keeping your workspace clean. If I were you I'd contact Drew at http://www.skimmilkhybrid.com and see what he says... He's probably done more Gen3 engine rebuilds, as well as engine swaps than anyone and he might have some ideas.
     
    #6 PriusCamper, Nov 23, 2025 at 5:58 PM
  7. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    Also another question... Because there's gonna be alot of Gen3 headgasket jobs in my life in the future, I'm wondering if it's realistic to have some already rebuilt heads ready to go rather than rebuilding the head the car came with? Seems like that could speed things up for the customer? But maybe for similar reasons as this thread it'd be a bad idea?
     
    #7 PriusCamper, Nov 23, 2025 at 6:19 PM
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