3rd Gen DIY maintenance quick reference

I'm sure you could...I went with Ravenol to be safe.

$27 RAVENOL J1C1003 MTF-3 SAE 75W Full Synthetic Gear Oil - 1 Liter for Manual Transmissions, Differentials & Transfer Cases

https://amazon.com/gp/product/B00QPCL7ZE/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_3?smid=A3NWHGHN360KCD&psc=1

 

The new filter is correct. The used filter is for a 4Runner.

 

wow this is much cheaper. Thanks.

 

I used Ravenol too

 

I didn't make it through all the pages, but does anyone have any insight on spark plugs for the 3.5 l?

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/2016-tacoma-spark-plug-replacement.554468/

I used this as a guide for replacing mine.

 

Did you get this sorted? That dealer owes you some oil lab tests...

 

Thank you!

 

I got too busy and never stopped by the dealership. I figured it wouldn’t go anywhere and I’d just get frustrated arguing with them. I’ll continue to do it myself once a year and I could always send out an oil sample at work if I was worried.

 

I've researched this exact issue... well, too much, haha. I think people are playing it safe with the Ravenol, which is great.
That being said, I'm going to do the front/rear diffs and transfer with amsoil severe gear SAE

$29 75W-90 Synthetic Gear Lube - 1 Quart (Pack of 2)

75W-90. I believe it's fine and I'm not worried in the slightest. I do not believe that the contents of the above listed amsoil will eat away or soften any "softer metals", lol. I've never heard of that happening with ANY oil in ANY transfer cases or diffs and I don't even think it's possible.
Besided, I like the "1 size fits all" approach with the oil and I've seen countless people running the amsoil severe gear in their diffs with no reported problems.

 

I use this site when I work on my 4runner. It is very helpful: A gem.

 

Thank you very much for this thread.

 

Thanks for the info David. Two additional questions, if you will indulge me: Is the torque for the yoke flange nut 14 ft/lbs? You also mention the Pinion Nut. Where is this pinion nut?

 

Very useful thread, thank you all!

 

Thought I'd share my experience, if anyone was interested. Thanks again to all those who've posted/listed all the info in this thread. I used it for everything I did and it went great.

My 2016 TRD OFF ROAD DCSB just crossed over 38k miles. So I thought I'd go through everything and replace all the fluid, except the ATF, of course (only did a drain/refill, but more on that later).

I changed the cabin (Amazon) and engine air filter (NAPA GOLD), both looked pretty good except some leaves, smurf parts, etc. Both were at 8k miles/1year of use (yes, I've only driven it 8k miles last year thanks to working at home). Put about 15 drops of cinnamon oil on the cab filter, smells great! (also smells like cinnamon)

Has anyone removed that engine air filter screen with any results? Not sure how restrictive it is.


TORQUE SPECS:
Checked the torque specs on the propeller shaft bolts and leaf spring U bolts... all were tight!
FYI: When the truck was new, 5 or 6 out of 8 of the leaf spring U bolts were loose, a couple merely finger tight!

FLUID REPLACEMENT:
I signed up with Amsoil as a "Preferred Customer" ($20 for one year). Saved 25% on everything! They shipped super fast, too. One box arrived at my house the next day! If yours takes longer, they just like me better.

Here's what I bought:
-Signature Series 0W-20 Synthetic... It's the "1 year/25k miles" oil.
-Ea15K02 oil filter... it's rated for 15k miles/1 year, as opposed to Amsoil's Ea0 series that can go 25k miles/1 year under normal conditions. I don't think Amsoil makes an Ea0 oil filter for our trucks.
-Signature Series Fuel-Efficient Synthetic ATF... with the Toyota WS spec.
-Synthetic Multi-Purpose Grease, NLGI #2... for the propeller shaft.
-Severe Gear

$29 75W-90 Synthetic Gear Lube - 1 Quart (Pack of 2)

75W-90 in the "Easy-Pack" containers. Awesome containers, BTW. These are basically flexible bags of oil with little nozzles (oh my!). You can bend, roll up, squeeze, maneuver them into place without the need for the fluid pumps. Huge time/mess savings. I didn't need a fluid pump or funnel for the diffs or transfer case! Whooo hooooo!

ENGINE OIL CHANGE:
-Pretty straight forward. I still have the OEM plastic filter housing. Will probably switch to the aluminum one next change just cuz I don't like the idea of plastic.
-The Amsoil oil filter was supplied with this stupid screw in plug drain which is way too easy to cross thread. Mobil 1 oil filters have this same screw in plug. Luckily I had the Toyota version that just snaps in... awwww snap! (oh no you didn't!)
-The Amsoil filter was much more robust than the Toyota version. It looks identical to the Mobile 1 filter with the steel discs sandwiching the filter element. If you change your oil/filter every 3-5k, maybe the OEM is fine but I'd never let my truck go 10k with that chintzy OEM filter element.
-Weird thing, My truck took about 6.4 qts before it was at/near the fill line on the dipstick. Manual says 6.1-6.2 I think? I could have added more but it was close enough.
-Put everything back on and torqued to spec, including the OEM engine cover.

TRANSMISSION FLUID:
-Mine came from the factory about 1.5 qts low, if I remember right. I did the whole checking procedure back in 2016 when it was new (thanks TW!) and added the remaining fluid with the Amsoil ATF.
-Anyway, I drained the ATF and added extra back in with the engine cold. The drained ATF looked pretty good. A little discolored but still red"ish" and didn't smell burnt.
-I've been wanting to double check my previous ATF level check so I did it again just for piece of mind. It was 20 degrees out, maybe a little warmer in my open garage, and it took my truck 24 MINUTES to get to the proper temp to check, lol. At least I had a blast sitting in my truck and staring at the same spot for that 24 minutes, so, ya know, I had that going for me.
Anyway, I was nervous for a bit cuz it usually only takes maybe 6-10 minutes on average but it was blank were the little "D" indicator was so I knew I was ok.
-After all was said and done, I added a little more (1/2 qt) than what came out. I was very precise this time and I'm sure I'm at the exact mark. So, basically, the truck was probably closer to 2 qts low from the factory.
ME: "Thanks Factory"
FACTORY: "De nada"
-I used one of those $6 amazon fluid pumps to get the ATF up into the hole (again...oh, my). By far the most difficult thing of this entire post. Just irritating. I guess it's just more time consuming and awkward than actually difficult.
-Cleaned up and torqued to spec.

REAR DIFF OIL:
-This also came from the factory over 1qt low. I filled it to spec with Amsoil Severe Gear 75W-90 when it was new.
-Easy job. Looked better than I was expecting. Still had a gold hue to it (see pic below), which isn't bad for 38k miles but it had about 1/4th Amsoil in it, as stated earlier. Maybe why? I dunno.
-Magnet drain plug was gooey, as expected, no chunks (haha, "gooey" and "chunks")
-Bought the 6 piece washer kit off of Amazon. 2 pieces each for both diffs and transfer case. They were a perfect match.
-Cleaned up and torqued to spec.

FRONT DIFF OIL:
-Pretty easy job. Good access with my 3" SPACER lift!
Bro! I'm bringin' it with the cheap suspension, ya'll!
With the standard suspension, it would be pretty hard to reach without jacking the truck up. Especially when torquing the fill plug.
-I off road here and there and live in a snowy where I'm in 4 wheel alot but was really surprised that my front diff was WAY dirtier than my rear diff. Could it be the aforementioned Amsoil? We'll never know...
-Magnet drain plug was gooey, as expected, no chunks...
-Opposed to what I've read by a few people, the OEM front engine cover doesn't need to be taken off to change the front diff oil.
-Cleaned up and torqued to spec.

TRANSFER CASE OIL:
-Probably the easiest job, other than the air filters, lol.
-Both fill and drain screws were facing to the rear and easy to reach.
-Fluid looked nearly brand new.
-I've heard all the opinions about putting this or that in the transfer case but I'm 100% fine with the Severe Gear 75W-90. It's not going to eat away at any soft metals, lol. The 1.1qts in the transfer is probably the least stressed oil in the truck. You could probably put olive oil (virgin, of course) in there and it'd be fine.
-and... again... cleaned up and torqued to spec.

PROPELLER SHAFT GREASE:
-I have a 2016... so it has 5 zerks. I hear the 2wds don't have any and 2018 and beyond 4WDs don't have any either?
-Lots of air pockets popping and old, black, gooey grease came out. I doubt the dealer lubed it at the 30k mark as they said they did. Just kept pumping until it had clean, red grease purging from all the seals.
-I cleaned up what I could, went for a quick drive and got back underneath and cleaned up as much fling as I could.
- I just have a standard grease pump like the blue one at the bottom of this page. Has worked great for years.

Got as detailed as I could so it could help anyone who might need it. All in all, pretty easy stuff. The ATF check is the most specific, detailed maintenance procedure you will do with your Tacoma but once complete, never really needs to be done again. I'll never do it again until I change the fluid. I think I read if you drain into a measured bucket, add what was drained, drive and repeat 3x, it's considered a complete change?

If you've read this far, you're amazing... and probably OCD.

 

"Has anyone removed that engine air filter screen with any results? Not sure how restrictive it is."

If your question is about the Charcoal filter, watch this video. (If not, still watch the video, its good info.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1JmOKKAgyQ&t=1s

 

Great info! Worth a removal to me. Removing emission related parts that also add a little quickness? I'm down.

 

I feel the complete opposite. The "gains" aren't enough to remove something from the engine that the computer was programmed to run with.

 

The computer makes adjustments, not worried about it.

 

Not knocking you, just having a discussion.

Are we sure the computer makes adjustments? I've heard this from dealers on a few vehicles that I've heavily modified. "Just drive 500 miles and the computer will adjust itself". But it never has...