Wife Alert! Maintenance Question...

My husband recently bought a 2006 Tacoma (V6, double cab - use to tow boat). I'm trying to convince him to perform our own maintenance....and have been using this site to research.

I've found most of the information that I need from this website - great for bringing it all to one place:

http://sites.google.com/site/tacomamaintenance/Home

We're young and inexperienced (i.e. don't know anything about cars or trucks). But I'm of the mind that you can figure out how anything works if you play around with it enough (I'm an engineer....although not a mechanical engineer).

I don't even know where to begin for the following items - any help or guidance would be appreciated:

1) Inspection - where are these, which are important, what am I looking for?
- Automatic transmission fluid
- Ball joints and dust covers
- Brake lines and hoses
- Brake lining/drums and brake pads/discs
- Engine coolant
- Exhaust pipes and mountings
- Fuel lines and connections, fuel tank band and fuel tank vapor vent system hoses
- Fuel tank cap gasket
- Radiator condenser and/or intercooler
- Rear differential oil
- Steering gear box
- Steering linings and boots

2) How do I tighten the nuts/bolts on the chassis? Where are all these located?

This website is as close as it gets to being a "Tacoma Maintenance for Beginners" - but these were the only steps that weren't discussed (probably because they're so basic!).

Thanks in advance.....

 

Welcome to TW! It sounds like you're more than ready to begin vehicle maintenance. If your husband joins you, that's cool too. In your owners manual, there should be a checklist/calendar section that tells you what maintenance procedures to do and when to do them. Many of the things you mentioned don't really ever, or at least almost never, need to be worried about.

Once you know the maintenance that needs to be done, there may be a write up on here specifically for the Tacoma. If not google it. You'll find generic write ups and videos explaining what to do.

Also go to alldatadiy.com and sign up for your truck. It's like $25 but will tell you how to do nearly everything on the vehicle step by step.

 

Thanks for the reply!

The info I posted came straight from the manual. I know how to do everything else listed (thanks to this website) EXCEPT for the two questions I asked. And I'm embarassed, since those seem like the two easiest on the list!

Just trying to figure out what's important....

 

Awesome. Thank you for taking the time to write this out for me! We'll be tackling the job of all 30K maintenance (hopefully) this weekend.

This definitely will help us out......

 

Good, enjoy the rewards of DIY. Either post up for the public or PM me if you run into problems.

 

BirdTRD,

Great advice ( another reason this place is so popular ) and taking the time to explain all of the details ..

everetse, only thing I would ad would be a Haynes book specifically for your Tacoma.....I purchased one of these for my daughter and son ( Camry,4-Runner) when their "Rides" were new so they could "SEE" what they were doing before they had to ask DAD.....

Welcome to Toyota ownership and as birdTRD has shown.this place can be a GREAT resource for information.....

S

 

Another helpful reference: That's the complete factory service manual. And Welcome to you and your husband!!

 

Dude, I never knew that was there. I'll have to bookmark it. I have a subscription to alldatadiy.net for the manual. I guess I'm learning too.

 

Yeah...I have it downloaded locally. So I take my laptop with me when I work on the truck.

Works great!!

 

So our first couple activities didn't go so well.

1) installed new engine intake filter (AFE Pro Dry S, after much research). created a new rattle, I believe it's the same as described here

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/performance-tuning/42780-k-n-intake-rattle.html

Tried to readjust, no luck. Tried to put some foam in different spots in the engine. Still rattles.

2) couldn't get plug off on the limited slip differential fill/vent plug. used the correct wrench/socket as desribed here:

http://sites.google.com/site/tacomamaintenance/limited-slip-differential-oil

and even tried liquid wrench. no luck.

Any suggestions on these problems?

This didn't help in my quest to convince my husband to do our own maintenance.

 

I dont know about your first question but did you try to use a breaker bar( a tube that will slide over the end of the ratchet or wrench) to get you more leverage. Or is the bolt trying to strip?

 

1) I've never actually heard of the air filter rattle before. I just changed mine for the first time last week. I just hit 10,000 miles. I just used a cheapo Fram filter. It took 5 minutes and I had no problems. Do you have the filter seated properly? Did you try taking it out and putting it back in? Did you get the back "hinge" seated all the way before you clamped the front? Maybe try some more of the tips they mention in that thread.

2) Like Mondwa mentioned, if it is too tight to loosen, you just need a breaker bar. Go buy a 12"ish long 3/8" drive breaker bar and a 18"ish long 1/2" drive breaker bar. They're as practical as a screwdriver. If you're working on your cars, you'll use them all of the time and get your money's worth. If you only want to buy one now to save some money, get the 1/2" one and get a 1/2" to 3/8" adapter so that you can use it on 3/8" sockets. Buy the 3/8" bar next time. When you use liquid wrench, try tapping the bolt lightly with a hammer to help it penetrate. For something that is really frozen, I've heard of it taking a day or two to penetrate. Definitely get the breaker bar though. You'll be surprised how strong leverage can make you.

If you stripped the plug's bolt head, well, that's another story.

Don't give up! Speed bumps are common in DIY. Especially when you're new. You'll get better. I promise.

 

everetse,

Try to turning that filter ,when I put my K&N in ,it settled in only in one direction( same exact shape as OEM) ...not sure why BUT it does....

LEVERAGE is your friend....My wife and I recently installed my reciever and taking the bumper off was a "CHORE" even though the hardware has only been there since my re-frame in June '09.....She even broke my 1/2" drive Snap-on rachet ( teeth rounded inside )....I had to use my "Cheater bar" along with my 1/2" drive breaker bar for 3 of the bolts.....PB blaster or WD-40 might have to "Sit" for more than a few minutes on some hardware....

DIY maintainence saves you $$$ and gives you "Pride in your ride",plus it can build a "Tech circle" of friends via the "Net" ,clubs,"Mod Days" and that "built in" set of hands ( spouse ) can be a great $$$ saver...at $65-85 an hour for labor,those 3-7 hours together just paid for Dinner & a movie ..

S

 

Thank you Thank you Thank You

This is exactly what I needed to know concerning my EVAP system, great stuff here! I've got the p0441 code and my tank leaks a lil bit when its completey full at the gas station. Its hard to see the top of the tank so, this is great to help me know what to look for and which hoses and/or gaskets to check: