My taco has 83,000 miles on it. 4x4 01 SR5 Auto tranny. I have noticed lately while idle at stop lights the belt seems really scratchy sounding like theres a small tear or its really dry and needs replacement. I know the recommended mileage for replacement is 90,000, but could it just be an early one?

Also I am looking to get a little more punchy horsepower out of my Truck when taking off from stops, Its a V6 3.4 but it still doesn't have that tight hard punch that i'd like. Am I just wishing for something that Auto tranny's wont produce, or would an aftermarket airfilter or intake help?
Thanks for any input......

 

Are you talking about your timing belt or serpentine belt? If you can hear your timing belt you have problems. If it's your serpentine, twist it so you can get a look at the backside. Shouldn't have any cracks or chunks missing. Not a big deal to replace it.

As far as punchy hp goes, get a supercharger! "Hard punch" is hard to do on an auto (pun intended) but an intake would give you a couple hp. Or if your handy with code you could always rewrite your shifting characteristics!

 

Serpentine belt is what im talking about. BTW as if my Q didn't reveal that im a total newb about this stuff, i don't know anything about re-writing my shifting codes. what about starting off in the (2nd) gear setting from a stop or the L setting instead of just 'D', isnt that the same as a manual in 1st? As far as the Supercharger goes, what does that all entail? Thanks for any input.

 

Hey, no worries. Everyone was a newb at some point. And the comment about the shift codes was sarcasm. You'd have to be some sort of engineer magician to reprogram your computer!

As far as putting it in 2nd or L, your transmission is always gonna start in its lowest gear. Putting it in 2nd or L only tells the transmission not to shift beyond that point. So 2nd would keep it from going to 3rd or OD, and L would force it to stay in first.

A supercharger is gonna set you back 2 or 3 big ones (1 big one = $1000) by the time you're done. And then you really would have to mess with the fuel mapping to do it right. More work than it's worth for most people IMHO. Not calling you stupid or anything. You just really have to know what you're doing/getting yourself into. Your best bet would probably be to do an aftermarket intake and exhaust. Gives you a little more oomph and it sounds cool, too! Good luck and let us know how it goes!

 

I guess I never answered your question about the belt! To me, 90k seems like a long time for a belt! I don't think they are supposed to last a certain amount of time, you just check 'em once or twice a year and replace as needed. Sounds like it's time for a new one.

 

Open your hood and look at the belts while the engine is running to see where the noise is coming from. Turn off the engine and twist the belt to see if it is smooth or has wear.

You should get a good idea if it is the belt by now. You can spray some belt dressing on it to see if it will help or replace the belt. If the belt is good then you probably have a bad pulley and will need to get it replaced.

Hope that helps!