Camshaft Tower Leak?

Hi y'all,
Long time Tacoma owner (same username over on Tacomaworld). Figured i'd ask this question here. Been thinking about upgrading to a Tundra, mostly for towing and room for family of 5. Tacoma does it, but cramped and getting up there at 197k. Had her since 27k. Never an issue. We tow a 19ft camper, think thats the size. Probably around 4k loaded. Again, she does it, but you feel it.

Anyway, to the question at hand. I found this Tundra that seems like a pretty good deal. Maybe, hard to tell with prices these days. 2014, 98k miles, for $25,998. Anyway, took a glance at the carfax and saw below. So after some googling, i'm guessing this was the dreaded Camshaft Tower Leak? Is this a TSB fix or can i expect it to develop again? Kinda spoiled from my 197k Tacoma with zero issues, lol.

 

Unfortunately this question has the same answer as most questions like it.

If it was fixed by someone who did a good job and did it correctly, it seems they are good to go after the repair.

Anymore, those are big "ifs"

But it was repaired at 38k, I'd be willing to bet if it wasn't fixed correctly, it would be apparent by now.

 

Considering it was done in 2017, I'd guess the chances are pretty good that the repair was done right... and like @Dukhnt said, it should be a one and done repair

Enjoy the new rig and welcome to the forum!!!

 

The sealant they use at the factory is gray, while the dealerships use black. If you see black sealant and there's no leaking then you should be fine. If there's gray sealant then it hasn't been repaired yet...If it's only leaking on one side, then they only repair the one side. I can only remember one person posting posting that their engine started leaking again after the repair. Don't remember the details, but everyone else that I've seen has gotten a lot of time and miles with the repair and they're GTG.

 

I have a 21. Is that a problem with all 5.7’s or is it a problem with certain years?

 

The 5.7 has the issue, not dependent on a certain year.

 

A prefect excuse to build the engine... just saying...like eleven birds with one stone

 

I am guessing this is the black sealant on the valve covers? Can you see both sides from the top, without disassembling anything? Last pics i found of where to look for leaks, cant tell if you can see that without taking anything apart. How much oil are they loosing due to this, on average. This guy said it would dry on the manifolds before it ever got to the ground, so he was unaware.

 

I still feel better about buying this, then a domestic. My wife had a explorer that was plagued with multiple issues. She now drives a highlander, last several years. No issues. I can deal with a little leaking, lol. Her transfer case or whatever they call it, constantly leaked. It was sealed and you couldnt add fluid to it. After multiple seal replacements, they finally replaced it. We traded it in on the highlander.

 

Yep, that’s the black sealant. Hard to tell in the second picture but it looks like that side was repaired too and is leaking again.

Oil usage seems to vary a lot, so no way to know how bad that leak is.

 

These are just some photos i pulled off the web. Second photo was before he had it fixed.

 

Turn the wheel all the way one way or the other and look in under the wheel well, that's the best and easiest angle to look. After you look at enough pictures online, you will know what you are looking for.

 

There's a difference between seeping, dripping, full blown leaking, etc... Some folks have spotted or been told they have the leak and just kept an eye on it. In other words, driven the truck for years beyond 'notification' of the leak and never had any issues beyond knowing it's there; not even having to add oil between services, etc. Their leaks just remained 'minor' as they continued to use their trucks beyond 200k miles. Every truck is different.

If you're not comfortable about the potential the Tundra has for this leak, then look elsewhere... But, regardless of make and model all trucks have their known issues/quirks. From my experience Tundra has proven to have the least amount of issues, but you have to purchase something that serves your needs and doesn't leave you concerned it's going break down every time you use it

 

Doubt it would bother me. My 197k Tacoma has had a chirping throw out bearing since 40kish. People replace them, just for it to just start doing it again. Stopped bothering me pretty quick and only hear it outside the cab if you are listening for it. Was gonna change it when i changed the clutch, but i am still on the stock clutch at 197k. Reason i am looking at a Tundra and not an f250. Parents f250 has been to shop half dozen times, went in to limp mode several times, screen gone out, etc... I had a Titan before the Tacoma, same kind of stuff.

Now i got to convince myself to let go out this thing, lol.



This one aint worth gettin rid of, lol

 

Yeah, there doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason regarding year of vehicle, all seem to be potential leakers. My 2018 Tundra (80k miles) and my wife's 2017 Sequoia (27k miles) are spotless and I inspect them regularly.

Even if one of them did leak I would want to experiment with super cleaning the junction and applying something like JB Weld or something to externally patch it.

Dan

 

An 18 i stopped and looked at yesterday, with 83k, didnt have a leak on either side and had the gray silicone. But felt like they wanted too much and only want to give me 12k for the tacoma. Buddy sold his 07 for that locally.

 

Just curious, what were they asking for the 18?

BTW, that is a darned nice looking Taco you have there.

Dan

 

Keep that ‘82, he’ll, try to keep the Taco too You won’t regret getting a Tundra.

 

$34k with 83,xxx miles. Previous owner looked to had been pretty rough on it. Was in worse shape then my 13' Tacoma with 197k.

 

Close, its a 1980. Little rust in the floor and top of cab i need to patch, but nothing major. Bed, fenders, and frame all solid. Which is hard to find, so jumped on it when it popped up. Not everything i wanted, but can get it there with time.

I am kinda leaning that way with the Taco. I even pull that camper in the background of the 80, with the Taco. Does it fine, but cramped with wife and 3 kids. But i have done so much with and to that Taco, to make it the way i want it. Steel bumper, winch, light bars, 2Lo mod, AAL, Air Bags w/cradles, TRD Pro springs/shocks, reinforced cam tabs, and bunch more i am forgetting. And i did it all myself, bad results from mechanics in the past. And love that its a stick. Always loved a stick. Shame you cant get them in full size.

 

My 2018 with 90k has had a slow seep for 3 years (only on steep inclines). Still under warranty and almost went through with the repair but got bad vibes from the stealership here in Edmonds Washington. Went as far as dropping the truck off. After seeing it sit outside in the parking lot for 7 days I went and picked up my truck.

Has anyone had this repair done in western washington Seattle area? If so, where? Looking to get it done before my warranty is up at 100k.

 

What model truck is it? It's just crazy to me a 10 year old truck. My 2021 is worth about that. I know mines 2wd but I'm not paying 20 Grand for 4x4.