30,000 Major Maintenance?

Yep.. when I had my 2011 the NGK's were worse than the Denso's. I suppose thats why they give you Denso's when you go get new one's at the dealership.

 

I suppose so. The NGK's wear "faster" yet they are more expensive compared to the Denso's.

 

So purchasing iridium plugs doesn't extend the changing frequency?

 

Dunno.... Some people use them but I go by what the manufacture calls for.

 

In my tacoma manual it states 30k for plugs because of emissions.

I still replace them at 30k with the recommended plug.

 

Yeah you don't have to change them as often based on the spark plug manufacture's suggestion. However, it doesn't mean they will perform any better compared to the Denso/NGK's. You'll probably still want to check them at the 30k to ensure they are wearing properly. If you ask me, it isn't worth the extra $15-$20 for the iridium plugs.

 

I've also read here and there that some people have swapped to iriduim/platinum, properly gapped and in the right heat ranges and seen a decrease in mpg. I'm just wondering if it is an overall design of the ignition system - maybe resistance seen by the coil on plug system or something. For $24 a set, I'm going to just do what the manufacturer says.

I mean, people tout Toyota for the longevity if you just do the basic maintenance, then everyone gets all pissy and want to ignore the recommended maintenance when they are asked to spend an extra 1.5 hours on their truck every 6 oil changes.

 

FYI - looks like the 3rd gens new motor moves to a 60K plug change interval on Iridum plugs And 10K on the oil/filter. (guessing synthetic is spec fromthe factory).

 

I changed plugs on my 2009 @ 30k and noticed a little more gap on the Denso's but both still looked good. I went longer on the next set and they still looked good without a much gap degradation. The emissions warranty requires that you change them at 30k. Once I hit 60k I go longer because the warranty has expired.

 

Grease up that drive shaft as well. It's one of the most overlooked pieces to maintain and its really easy to do besides one zerk on the front shaft next to the transfer case. Your dealer should have greased it for the 15K toyota care maintenance but when I went to grease mine at 30K the factory seals were still on it.

 

unless you have a prerunner and the u-joints are non-greaseable , even though the 4wd and 2wd use the same sizes.

I had to replace all 3 of mine recently and made sure the shop installed greaseable u-joints.

 

I replaced mine with NGK platinum and I swear the truck doesn't start up quite as fast as with the copper plugs. Will go back to copper when these wear out. Engine runs good though, no change in performance or MPG.

 

Maybe in retirement and when our boys are grown and gone from the house I will have a fraction of your free time....thats astonishing

 

I don't have a lot of free time I just stay on top of it.

 

The Iridium plugs are used due to their long life; up to 100K miles. They are used where it is a PITA to get to the plugs. On my Highlander I had to pull the intake manifold to get to the inside plugs. Which means I had to pull the throttle body, a bunch of vacuum lines etc., etc. Toyota wanted $450.00 US. to change the plugs. I did not pay that but a lot of people do.

 

True, but PITA is subjective. Some people think pulling the plugs from the 4.0 in the Tacoma is a nightmare. It requires some finesse, but I'm cool with it if I only have to do it every 30K.

 

Own or work on a Subaru and you will never think the plugs on a tacoma are difficult to swap. Its just frame of reference.