I guess there's a first time for everything

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by Sharnold, Nov 23, 2025.

  1. Sharnold

    Sharnold Active Member

    Joined:
    Jan 16, 2019
    400
    126
    0
    Location:
    Alabama
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    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.


    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #1 Sharnold, Nov 23, 2025
    Last edited: Nov 23, 2025
  2. BiomedO1

    BiomedO1 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 27, 2021
    3,556
    1,843
    0
    Location:
    SacTown, Ca
    Vehicle:
    2021 Prius Prime
    Model:
    LE
    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
  3. Sharnold

    Sharnold Active Member

    Joined:
    Jan 16, 2019
    400
    126
    0
    Location:
    Alabama
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    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.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #3 Sharnold, Nov 23, 2025
    Last edited: Nov 23, 2025
  4. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 3, 2012
    12,727
    5,143
    0
    Location:
    Pacific Northwest, USA
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    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
  5. Sharnold

    Sharnold Active Member

    Joined:
    Jan 16, 2019
    400
    126
    0
    Location:
    Alabama
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    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
    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #5 Sharnold, Nov 23, 2025
    PriusCamper likes this.
  6. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 3, 2012
    12,727
    5,143
    0
    Location:
    Pacific Northwest, USA
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    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
  7. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 3, 2012
    12,727
    5,143
    0
    Location:
    Pacific Northwest, USA
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    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
  8. Sharnold

    Sharnold Active Member

    Joined:
    Jan 16, 2019
    400
    126
    0
    Location:
    Alabama
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Usually unless the car was overheating severely does the head need resurfacing or need replacement due to warping on these engines. So my answer would be just to clean the one you remove from the car after checking the surface area and checking the plane for warping and reusing it after checking for damage.
    The only times I've needed another head was when they didn't maintenance the engines oil change intervals and it gunked up and clogged the assembly when it didn't oil the cam/rocker assembly properly.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #8 Sharnold, Nov 24, 2025
  9. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 29, 2018
    7,568
    3,903
    0
    Location:
    Florida
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    You could possibly use the #3 cap from another engine. You could measure the tolerences of the cam
    and cap without the cam shaft.
    Or measure the broken cap and see how close they are to the used one.

    Are you sure you torque wrench was set correctly?
     
    #9 ASRDogman, Nov 24, 2025
  10. Sharnold

    Sharnold Active Member

    Joined:
    Jan 16, 2019
    400
    126
    0
    Location:
    Alabama
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Measured the caps after pulling another whole assembly for $50
    The caps are not the same with the wear pattern from one to another leaving more room for error than I'd mess with.
    Regardless it was still getting another whole assembly.
    I just measured the caps for scientific purposes and to answer the question for everyone else.
    The difference was by 0.002
    Makes you wonder why Toyota would sell just the cams though in all honesty.
    But I did take the rockers and valve spring caps just in case as well because why not right......

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #10 Sharnold, Nov 29, 2025 at 1:23 PM
    Last edited: Nov 29, 2025 at 1:35 PM
  11. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 29, 2018
    7,568
    3,903
    0
    Location:
    Florida
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    .001? I think that was close enough.
    The cams don't wear the same as the crank. They have constant pressure.

     
    #11 ASRDogman, Nov 29, 2025 at 1:34 PM
    PriusCamper likes this.
  12. Sharnold

    Sharnold Active Member

    Joined:
    Jan 16, 2019
    400
    126
    0
    Location:
    Alabama
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    0.002** I edited it.
    I was always taught 0.002 was borderline
    But still $50 for another whole assembly you cant pass up replacing the whole assembly.
    But your correct there's always force up pressure from the head assembly to the cams.
    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #12 Sharnold, Nov 29, 2025 at 1:39 PM
    Last edited: Nov 29, 2025 at 1:46 PM
  13. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 29, 2018
    7,568
    3,903
    0
    Location:
    Florida
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    If you replace the caps, and cam, then you only have the wear from the head where
    the cams sit.
    But even .002 was close...

     
    #13 ASRDogman, Nov 29, 2025 at 1:49 PM
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)