30K Service question

Hello all - first post but long time reader here on Tacomaworld! I just hit 30K on my Taco and took her in for the 'routine' service. I have been going to a dealer in TN since I have been leasing but will starting going elsewhere now that I have bought out my lease.

Main question - I opted in for the usual oil change and tire rotation. I'll change the air filters myself. But the tech mentioned changing out the 4x4 fluids (front/rear Dif fluids and transfer case fluid) and quoted about $600.

Considering I have only had a couple off road trips, and nothing intense, how often do I really need to change that fluid?

Thanks

 

It's too early for that. And way to expensive. You can wait till 100,000 miles and get it done for under $200 at an independent mechanic.

 

Thanks for the info! I figured that was the case.

 

Plenty of people neglect these fluids till 100K or more, but it doesn’t mean that’s best for your truck. It’s definitely not a bad idea to change them at 30K since you’ll be getting rid of the initial break-in oil in those components… I personally would not wait anywhere near 100K, especially for the rear diff because it gets used all the time. I’ll be doing my rear diff at 30K for sure, and checking the t case and front diff fluid at that time (and probably doing those at 60K).

 

I just refer to the owner’s manual, bring it in next time to go over with service writer, they seem to forgot at times.

 

For less than $100 and a couple of hours (and beers!) you can do it yourself. The rear is super simple so start there.

 

It’s very easy to do yourself. $100 in oil if you buy the premium synthetic.

Do it now, the gears are broken in and break-in is hard on the oil.

Put in some premium synthetic, then forget about it for 100 000 miles.

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/3rd-gen-diy-maintenance-quick-reference.406712/

 

Im waiting until 50k for that. I personally think 30k is a little too early. If you're truck is <2018 then maybe consider it. idk how those fluids are after a few years

 

100k miles to do the diffs?! Where you getting this info from? Do you read your manual?

 

I did mine at 30 000 and they were pretty black from break in. I replaced with the expensive synthetic and after 60 000 more miles I changed it again and the oil was still golden.

I personally think it’s good to get the original fill out in the first 20 000-30 000 miles. After that it can go a long time on synthetic. Unless you do a lot of water crossings of course.

 

After seeing the condition of some of the people's oil who changed it earlier than I am (will be doing it next Saturday...30k miles as well) I'm convinced it should have been done earlier.

Take a look here to see how black the oil was after only 10k miles. https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...-manual-transmission-6mt-fluid-change.481719/





PS - you can see the Blackstone results too.

 

there are tons of tutorials, just change the 2 diffs, transfer case fluid yourself, if crawling under the truck is too tight for you, you can try to find a DIY shop with a lift that charges by the hour, I pay $30 an hour for a lift bay.

IMO, one can screw up engine oil change by reading the dipstick wrong, but there's no way to really mess up the diffs, transfer case, manual gear box etc that only need drain and refill to the brink, unless you willfully pump too much and immediately seal the fill plug.

 

Wanted to post an update here - went ahead and changed out the rear fluid today. Glad I did! Thanks for the tips

 

I’ll be doing both diffs next weekend. If the rear is anything like the color of my engine oil at 6k it won’t be too soon. Front gets used pretty often and I try to stick to the recommended minimum 10 miles a month in 4x4 to keep it lubed. 25k on the clock as of today.

 

How tight were the drain and fill plugs on the rear diff from factory? Did you use a breaker bar to loosen them?
I'll do mine at 5k miles

 

They’re pretty tight, I didn’t need a breaker bar but wished I had one it that makes any sense. On mine torque specs were 36 ft/lbs for both drain and fill. Make sure you have the crush washers. You can buy them from the dealership for about a dollar each

 

How much you care about your investment is what it comes down to. I recommend changing every 30k mi . I would stick to that changing interval

 

while its a toyota and will probably run forever without doing it, I couldn't fathom the idea of a fluid lasting that long.

 

Plenty of Toyotas running around the middle east, africa and the like where nobody cares about maintenance. If the low oil idiot light goes on they add a quart. Us westerners have it so good we argue over wasting engine oil at 5k or 10k despite what the Toyota engineers say regarding warranty. YMMV