What Have You Done To Your 3rd Gen Today?

Easy day. Topper Tent takes 10 mins to install.

 

Changed the oil at 35k miles. Noticed that the last time I had the dealership service the truck at 30k they left the rear bolts in the engine skid loose. Once the warranty is up, I won’t be having Toyota service my truck anymore. Leaving 2 bolts loose makes me wonder what else they leave done improperly.

 

Hell no, oil filter or drain plug properly loose too. Can’t trust anyone these days. And why not just do it yourself?

 

Exactly! I normally do all my own servicing but with the warranty I wanted to have the minimum services done at Toyota to maintain the warranty. Maybe I should double check all their work.
Side note, took a sample to send off to Blackstone to see how the engine is doing. Anxious to see what the results are.

 

I allways denied the warranty and do everything my self. That away u kno it’s done correctly.

 

With just over 93k miles on the clock my Taco took its first ever trip out of Florida. Now she’s treked North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. Today she took my 9 year old and I up a steep unpaved mountain road to the top of Currahee Mountain. It was a blast

 

That’s probably not a bad idea. I have lifted the truck so they’d probably attribute any issues to that anyway.

 

Nope, no flat spots. I park on a lift...

 

I will be installing this product shortly to make self oil changes as painless as possible.

$50 ValvoMax Oil Drain Valve - Quick Twist Oil Drain Plug for DIY Oil Changes At Home in 10 Minutes - No Tools, No Mess, No Cleanup - M12-1.25 Thread Size - Made in USA

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077ZGZ39V?ie=UTF8

 

I did the same. We probably watched the same Classy video lol

 

It's been blazing hot lately down here too.
Looks real good. Be prepared to hammer up the top of wheel well where it folds and hammer back the area above the CMR. These are the common areas where I was rubbing when I ran 35s. 2lbs and 8lbs sledges did the trick.

 

What do you guys think about the difference?

I feel as though, now I can hear the music coming at me from the front of the cab instead of from below in that knee/leg area.
I don't know much about speakers, but what an enormous upgrade in sound they have been over the last couple days. I'm sure I'll get used to them soon.
I'm still running the stock door speakers, this has motivated me to change those out also.

On a completely different topic, this dude just cruised through the front yard.

 

I abandoned my Toyota care after my second tire rotation. I had some vibration and asked them to rebalance all 4 tires. I even offered to pay. When I looked they didn't actually remove any existing weights, they just piled more weights on top. They also busted my passenger side frame drain plug..I get it...that thing isn't in an ideal location, but its annoying.

Turns out my truck doesn't like 10k mile intervals, so I'm doing 5k oil changes. My mechanic passed away, so I'm just pulling any basic maintenance myself..

I've had plenty of experience with Toyota service over the past 20 years... It all seems the same no matter where you go .... Crappy...

 

I mounted a piece of diamond plate below the batt, to extend out far enough to make a good base for the compressor.
Also, I originally had the coiled hose (shows between batt & fender) in a nice nylon bag. Then I tipped too far off-roading, spilled batt acid on it, which ate it up and had to trash it.



Also installed a manifold and tank (tank is undercarriage):

 

I started with this philosophy...I quickly realized that if I have to double check and get down on my back then I might as well do the job myself. I've had several Toyota vehicles and I can tell you I've had nothing but problems at every Toyota dealership I've been to for basic and general maintenance.

Side note.... I had a 1st gen taco with 375k on the clock and Toyota did the frame replacement... It took a couple months and I was worried about the work and my truck disintegrating upon disassembly. They did a FANTASTIC job on that.. it drove great.. I got another 100k out of it before my son wrecked it ......

Toyota dealerships can do excellent work.... Just depends on what your going there for . If you can swap all your fluids, gaskets, filters, etc. on your own then that's your best bet ..

 

He was in Wisconsin...so I get it... He also said he regularly washes underneath.. unfortunately without some type of waxy or oily layer washing only does so much.. rust sucks........I learned this lesson the hard way.. id still be driving a 20 year old first gen otherwise.

 

You will have peace of mind @5k. I diy everything except my last freebie oil change.I told them not to rotate the tires, they like to use metal sockets that can rip the paint off the wheels. I have a set that is cased in plastic to protect the rim. I live in the rust belt… I requested the master tech 2 weeks in advance with an appointment. After he changed the oil and inspected everything I thanked him and noted I understood masters don’t appreciate doing oil changes. He was all smiles and said “ nonono, you’re way better off doing it this way”

 

Swapped out the Factory Fabric Trimmed Black & Gray Seat covers with Power Drivers Seat with all Black Leather & Perforated inserts from Road wire Leather Interiors.
I have the original covers that are all intact/Uncut and in like new condition that I’ll be selling.

 

Good to know, thank you sir! I had seen the lower part get hammered back but that's the first I've heard about the top. I'll cross that bridge when I get there though.

So what extra did you have to do for those 37's of yours??? ha

 

That looks excellent. Did you do the work? KUDOS.