1996 TACO 4W 3.4L V6 Automatic Filter Change

First note that the recommended and purchased transmission filter ATP B-176 did not fit my vehicle. I called Toyota and for $78 I ordered the correct one, be sure you go by your VIN number for this part to insure the correct one is obtained. P/N 35330-22010 fit my vehicle. If you have a front sway bar it will block removal of the transmission pan the good news is you need only to drop it from the metal rubber bushing holders found on each side, it does not need to be removed. When disconnected at these only two points the sway bar will drop about 5 inches down giving plenty of clearance for transmission pan removal. The bad news is that the two screws holding each rubber bushing for the sway bar are introduced from above in these two fittings and are difficult to remove. Suggest using a flex head, 12 mm, 12 point wrench and a 12 mm 12 point socket with a small 3/8 ratchet to fit the screw heads in this small working area. A 12 point tool will give you more bit on the screw head, I tried a 6 point and had no luck, almost rounded off screw head and will install the bar using new screws, ordered four replacement screws from Toyota. The immediate working area at the screw head is limited and will not allow larger tools a secure placement over the screw head. Also since these screws are extremely tight I used a 12” long pipe to extend the small 3/8 ratchet handle to give me more leverage which made it easier to remove these four screws.See picture. Good luck.

 

I could be wrong here but i dont think Toyotas have an actual filter it's just a screen. When i used to own jeep XJ's they used the Asian AW4 trans which i think is the same trans behind the 3.4. I replaced one once and it was a bigger pain in the ass than any other actual filter i have ever changed. I was used to actual filter media on GM/dodge transmissions and the Toyota filter was just a screen. Later on i read that yeah it was just a screen and did not need to be changed.

Years later i forgot about it and ended up changing the "filter" on my 2wd tacoma and it was the same damn thing. Then i remembered back to the XJ's i owned with the Asian AW4 and i was put off that i wasted money replacing it instead of just spraying it with some brake cleaner and letting it air dry. But i ended up having to pull metal tubes out of the valve body and scraping old gasket off the filter mount.

Anyways.... i ended up putting a real Magnefine inline transmission filter on it. I spliced it into the tranny cooler lines under the radiator. The Magnefine filters have actual filter media and a magnet to catch metal. So now i dont even bother dropping the pan on my Toyotas (unless i clean the pan magnets). I just empty the pan fill it up, flush the converter and slap a magnefine inline filter on it.

 

Experience is always welcomed here on the forum, but I think you made this more difficult for yourself than it should've been.

The sway bar, unless for some reason is relocated on early models, does not prohibit the removal of the transmission pan.

I dropped my pan just last month.



If you really wanted to remove the sway bar though, an 18mm on each end of your LCAs, and a 12mm socket driven by a small ratchet is all it takes to remove it.

I removed my sway bar just earlier today.

The one gotcha is the dip stick tube, which is held by 1 bolt (10 or 12mm?). Easy to get to, easy to remove, but a pain to line up and get back on.

 

Thanks all for your help. Yes you do have lots of room on your 2001 between the sway bar and pan unlike my 96 TACO 4W 3.4L Auto. The picture shown is with the bar loose and dropped down about an additional 5 inches. With the sway bar in its normal position the transmission pan would not clear the rear ledge supporting the transmission and sway bar, partially because the service tube on this pan is fixed extending upward by the exhaust pipe and cannot be removed which limits the movement of the pan to help removal. The upper extension of the service tube can be pulled apart since the service tube is junction into two parts which simply pulled apart about midway by the exhaust pipe. The sway bar had to be dropped but as with any job always try the easiest first so I agree first see if this pan will drop without the additional work of dropping the sway bar. Looking at other utube vids on this topic I did notice that on other vehicles the screws holding the sway bar are inserted from the bottom making it a lot easier to remove if desired. Agallouch is correct once I did dropped the pan the filter was simply a screen and needed only rinsed off with brake clean and re-installed, so much for Toyota parts service advisor on this one. Woodcutter

 

Last summer when I had my pan off I was talking with a parts guy at my local Toyota dealership about buying a new filter. He indicated that unless the filter has been physically damaged, they just rinse them off with a parts/brake cleaner spray and reinstall them.

 

Changed the transmission filter on my '03 a couple of weeks ago, and like you, there wasn't a need to remove the sway bar.

 

One thing I did learn and I can't believe I never noticed before was that the Transmission Type Fluid is stamped on the OEM drain plug.

 

CS_AR, I included a link to when I changed my trans filter that includes some pics of the screen on the filter. Also included a video from TW Member Timmah. He actually cut his open and talks in depth on trying to clean one vs replacing.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/transmission-filter-change-lots-of-pics.636961/

https://youtu.be/tuGazNhuEtM

 

@Woodcutter unless your suspension is lifted (when the LCA drops, the back portion of the sway bar rises up), you should have enough room to take out all the bolts of the pan and "slide" is out while tilting down. The "anit-sway" bar is designed to never make contact with the transmission even when suspension is fully extended. (I will add even with my OME 2.5 I can still take the pan off without any issues so why you couldn't)

You made it easier to "drop straight down" but not really necessary (this goes for 96-02 4Runners as well) under "normal circumstances." Maybe something was off?

But you solved the problem and got it worked out so that's all that matters


When you do this next time, you can just disconnect the end links and put a bungy cord or string to hold up one end in the wheel well, will save you having to mess with main support bushings.

 

I bought my 99 with over 200k. The fluid was dark brown (original prob) ? For fear of something going wrong by dropping the pan, I’ve completed about 3-4 drain/refills with Valvoline max life atf and it still shifts great. I wanted to slowly introduce new fluid to it since that old stuff prob had a lot of clutch material in it. I had heard these trans only have the screen so I didn’t see any need in replacing mine being it still shifts smooth. Has 227k now, I plan on another drain/refill at about 250k.

 

How often do you guys change the fluid/gasket/strainer?? I changed the fluid, cleaned the strainer, new gasket in march 2021 and this morning I have a big leak in my driveway

 

Fluid?

Change if questionable.

If used for max capacity towing, change sooner than you would versus non-towing.

Strainer? Clean it whenever dropping the pan.

Gasket? No way, FIPG instead.

 

@Kwikvette cool thanks I didn’t know i could use FIPG on the transmission pan.. I haven’t towed anything.. just my tools and my camper shell

 

Yep, it's what was used from the factory.

That orange looking goop that took scraping to clean up off the mating surfaces, that stuff works great.

 

That screen does nothin.....maybe if the tranny is cratering it might catch the broken parts...

Much better to just install a mag filter on the return line from the cooler...and change it and the fluid every 30K..

 

O’Silver comments helped me big time when I changed mine few months back
That filter/screen is useless. I cleaned with BC anyway

Osilver linked some ‘flush vids’ too
Really easy, much easier than dropping T pan
But couldn’t afford the 2 gallons(-/+) needed tranny fluid to accomplish

In the works thou…..after ‘hot no start’ issue rectified (injectors came in today)

 

Yeah I dont even take the plug out anymore.....

I just use this.....it has a long rigid straw that goes down the dipstick tube..

so every other oil change.....I just pull 2 qts aft out.....and put 2 new back in..

so by 30K there is a complete change over.....

it is definitely bad ass...

12V 60W Oil/Diesel Fluid Pump Extractor Scavenge Oil Change Pump Transfer | eBay




I chance my oil every 2500mi....because 2rz is just 4 qts....almost 2/3 of any other vehicle......napa syn blend....$13 on ad slick.......dirt cheap insurance...

 

Naw, that one where u unhook tranny cooler line and have a 5gal bucket…..
And $100 of T fluid

It’s been a while
I hope to god I’m remembering right tht u posted O’Silver
Apologies if wrong

 

Yeah you must do that when you do a complete flush...

like going from the toyota sauce to Valvoline MaxLife....

definitely worth the effort....and investment...


I was kinda anal there...I ran 16qts thru it...twice the volume...
to make sure all the old nasty stuff was gone...

that torque converter is like a sponge...

$120 worth of ATF......ouch....



but it was worth it.....now its just 2 qts at a time....less than 5 min to do..

 

Thank goodness I remembered correctly