If you plan on doing your own oil changes

Make sure to ask the service writer to write down for the technician to please use a torque wrench and the proper values on the filter housing and filter drain plug on the last dealer change or you may have a bit of knuckle busting fun on your hands down the road. Coming up on 30k I did my own oil change (along with other maint. items) today and had decided to replace the filter housing with an aluminum one as part of this service. I had purchased a Motiv Tools special service tool for the housing which I am glad I spent the extra money on the well manufactured tool because a ratchet was going no where, breaker bar wasn't even anywhere near enough, I had to use a large box end wrench to extend my leverage further and even then I don't know that a smaller person would have been able to break it loose. I did suspect I was in for some fun because the little filter drain cap was exceedingly tight but a breaker bar popped it loose. This is exactly why I prefer to do my own maintenance and use the proper tools (a la torque wrench). So if you plan to do this yourself at some point making sure you can actually get things apart in a reasonable manner is the first step.

 

I performed my first Oil Change at 4900 Miles. I wanted to do it myself then, for a couple of reasons. First, in my old way of thinking, break-in engine metals will be contaminating the oil in the first few thousand miles, and flushing that out was how I've always done my new vehicles. Second reason is that "I" wanted to get my hands on the components as they were shipped from the factory and see how they were assembled. I felt that knowing this aspect of my new Taco, would help me in the future if some Oil Jockey at the Stealer-ship didn't assemble correctly the filter housing and drain plug, etc. I'm no genius car mechanic, and I don't do a lot of my own maintenance, but I am pretty detail oriented about most things and just wanted to know how the system on my Taco mated and see the parts before some kid got in there, thinking "Hell! I don't have a dime In It!" Anyway - "Toyota Care" will take care of the 10,000 Mile Oil Change and I'll do the one I want done at 15,000. Then let Toyota do the second freebee at 20,000. Now I know how the parts came and can determine if the guys at the Quickie Place hose me Up or Down some way!

 

That' funny Im a mechanic and just wanted to do the same with my first new truck. Toyota takes care of the oil and maintenance, they gave me 2 free oil changes after 2 big warranty repairs!

 

This is the kind of stuff that persuaded me to buy a spin-on filter adapter. Hard to over tighten a spin-on, but will still do my own oil changes going forward.

 

I just don't tighten it too much.

 

After cleaning and drying the stock plastic filter cup it shows no outward signed of damage besides a little marking where the special service tool was biting in a little so I put it in the box the aluminum one came in an put it on a shelf. Having assembled things properly with a torque wrench I will have nobody else to blame but myself if it is a bear to remove next time. As a side note I also did a tire rotation and I'll assume the same ham fisted ape secured the lug nuts as a few I couldn't break with an impact gun so a long breaker bar and me standing on it resolved the few stubborn ones.

 

You're lucky it was just an oil change. Now imagine what will happen at the 60k mile spark plug replacement interval, or the plastic pcv valve R&R, just to name a couple. I see why some folk choose lease over purchase.

 

You guys are hilarious! When I retire, . . . I'll do more of my own maintenance, just to keep me busy and to hopefully have the peace of mind that I did things to my satisfaction. Keep posting! Enjoy your Taco and all the fun stuff you have to do with it! I don't care what consumer reports says . . . I like my Tacoma Sport this far in! RodeDog!

 

Any of you guys use the fumoto valve? Comes in pretty handy!

 

The housing is sealed by an o-ring not a gasket. So there's no need for it to be too tight....the housing or the drain.

A light snug is all it needs.

The Toy 640 wrench is a must-have IMHO

 

Link to the adapter? What filter did you use?It

 

Ironically the drain bolt was not excessively tight. The silly washer with the "sealant" on it was stuck enough to need a metal scraper to remove but that's a minor trouble. I have a whole bag of them to use at each change. I had a fumoto valve on a 7.3 diesel Ford because I took regular samples for analysis since I was doing extended drains with a bypass filter setup, very handy little piece of kit.

 

Baxter Performance, google it. Filter I use is WIX 51348, the same filter used on 2nd Generations.

 

Dealer said spark plugs are good for 100,000 miles.
I do my own oil changes and instilled a Fumoto drain plug.

 

It's funny because the housing has the torque stamped right on it.

I like the thought of one, but with the location of the drain bolt, the valve might not be the best choice given how exposed it is. Maybe with a good skid plate?

 

Those dealers can't be trusted, I believe the maintenance book in the glove compartment says 60k which is double the 30k on the 2nd Gen.