Breaking in a new Tacoma

Didn't quite read everyone's comments, however I'm sure they all have some great input.

My wife and I are in Fairbanks, we just bought a new car. The dealers "winter" package costs 700. I purchased the exact same parts from the dealer and it took less than an hour to "winterize" the car and it only cost me 160 bucks. SO, if you can my advise to you is winterize it yourself and save some coin.

As far as your question, keep in mind the negative temps here. Ensure you plug your truck in, and allow the fluids and metal to warm up as best as possible before driving it. Only drive it if you have to, and ensure you drive it smart. No joy rides or negligent habits if possible. Stay on top of maintenance and don't be afraid to look, listen and feel around the truck. It's a machine, if you pay attention to it, it will tell you what's wrong with it.

Your already looking to preserve your investment so I'm sure you'll be okay. If any questions ever arise I'm sure you'll find some answers on here. TW is a great place, just don't get sucked in too fast.

Welcome and enjoy.

 

Thanks for the input. Just curious. What exactly is the winter package they tried to sell you? What did you do to winterize your truck? Are you talking about the block heater? Typically when I store it for a few months I just disconnect the battery and throw some stabilizer in the fuel tank. Anything else you might do?

 

Both vehicles I have are equipped with heating pads to the battery, oil pan and trans pan. The taco has a cartridge block heater, the honda a coolant plug heater. During winter months I wrap a blanket around the batteries - as it's important to let heat escape them during warmer months.

For vehicles that will be sitting outside 24/7 or for greater than 48hr periods between starts I would highly recommend a trickle charger for your battery.

Other things to consider are fluids. Oil, coolant, wiper fluid, etc. Pretty much all your fluids should be Swapped or partially drained to introduce an additive into them to prevent freezing at negative temps.

Other things you can do is regrease and lubricate mechanical functions of your truck to prepare for the cold. Always make sure whatever your introducing is rated low enough and will bond with what your using it on. Be very careful with electric motors, they require special lube. Items such as Windows, door locks, hinges, struts, locks, etc.

It sounds like an undertaking... but could be a fun afternoon in the garage with some beer. Worth it in the end.

 

Thanks for the heads up. Will def consider. Luckily hear in Seward we average about 20-30 + degrees in the winter so we don't get that interior cold. However for us down here this summer isn't really feeling like summer pretty cold still. Snowed in the yard last week... its June!

 

Nice. This will be our first winter in AK.. heard -50 last year here.

My experience comes from upstate NY mostly, basically Canada.

We saw -20ish there. Lol when I was installing my suspension actually... that was miserable.

Looking forward to No salt on these roads.

 

It's great! Does everything that I need it to and is plenty capable during both summer and winter. I wanted it to be my weekend fishing truck but it's the family hauler until we get a second vehicle.

 

Rodger the no salt! Welcome to AK!

 

i'm moving up to fairbanks. don't see too many 3rd Gens in that area... i'm getting a TRD OR DCLB... Driving it from Orange County, Ca up to The San Francisco Bay area.. where i will be for about a week visiting family and finally making the trip up through Canada and into Alaska. I heard i have to winterize it.. can you Alaskans shed some light on this?? and when should i start making conversions for this? being a brand new truck i won't drive it that much besides to work.. about a 15 minute drive.. and to UAF.

 

Most important thing? Don't over think this. Just drive it. Millions of new vehicles are sold every year....with the vast majority of owners doing nothing special concerning break in. They turn out fine.

Just enjoy your new rig when it arrives

 

I've driven mine like I stole it since day 1.
I have 3600 miles on my 17 with zero issues.
Transmission is coming along nicely and is getting more drivable the more miles I put on her. Gas mileage is also increasing more and more. My 2cents, drive it like you normally would drive your truck. Only thing I would break in alittle is the brakes.
I've owned more vehicles than most will in a life time. Believe me I've tried all the breakin procedures. I haven't noticed any differences and I've never had any problems.

Just my 2 cents though.

 

same here..... at times I feel like I bought a different truck
than so many others here.

 

When in doubt, go by the manual. There's only a few things to follow. Finished my break-in last week - no issues.

 

The forums sometimes have a way of ruining people and the experience they should be having.

 

truth man! I have no issues with shifting, the tranny, speed and merging
into traffic....none of it. Truck rides & looks much better than the 2011 I traded in for it.

 

I think it's 10,000 miles or 6 months, whichever comes first.

 

Longer drives allow the heat built up in the engine to cook out moisture that the engine absorbs when it is cooling down. So short 5 mile trips might not get the engine temp up high and even enough to make this happen. You might not have much option though. Just keep it in mind and you might be doing more frequent oil changes (when compared to mileage).

 

where's smitty?

 

See the first post on this page. It's a different kind of cold up in Fairbanks (born and raised, although I live in CO now). If you're driving up this summer/fall, it's something you can get done once you're up there (either by a pro or diy, as said it's not that crazy). But definitely do it, it's a miserable morning when your car won't start (also reduces wear and tear long-term).

 

How should I know? Scottsdale Arizona?

@smitty99, @kgilly is looking for you.

 

Since you're going to be in Fairbanks, you'll have a lot of winterization to do. Mostly that just means adding electric heaters. You'll need a block heater, battery heater, and oil pan heater. Most of that you won't be able to get down in the Lower 48, so plan on setting it up once you get to Fairbanks. Other than that, you will have some options like light bars that will make life easier but you won't necessarily need them.