RocTaco's 03' Reg. Cab

I bought a 2017 4cyl 5spd Taco back in 2016 and absolutely loved it. I ended up selling it summer of 2020 for a myriad of reasons, but promised myself it would only be a temporary absence.

Well since then I went back to school, got married, got a new job, moved to a new state, bought a new house and sold my first house. Late this fall I decided it was time to supplement my civic with a truck, and ended up buying this gem!



It's a 2003 4cyl 5spd 4wd with a j-shift transfer case and as of today just shy of 303,000 miles. I bought it from the original owner who paid around 16k new for it back in 03'. It's been well maintained, the guy I bought it from is a big Toyota fan and changed the oil every 3k miles and fixed things when they wore out. The frame was replaced under the recall and has been fluid filmed every year since and is in great shape, but the body has some rust I need to attend to.

The main purpose of this thread is to keep track of maintenance and repairs and document what I change. I'm planning to keep it a fairly simple run-about and for commuting when the weather is bad.

 

Single cabs ftw. Any idea when valve clearances were last Checked? Ball joints?

 

Maintenance

301k/10.22 Purchase!
Replaced engine air filter
Changed engine oil and filter (5w30 syn. OEM filter)

 

Valve clearances are on my list, ball joints were done when the previous owner had the front end apart about 25k miles ago.

I'm definitely loving the size compared to my 3rd gen, it's so much more nimble!

 

They’re like parking lot ninjas, especially compared to the land barges that half tons have become.

 

Valve clearances definitely worth checking, that’s how I found my burnt valve Definitely has more power once I fixed it.

 

Good to know, from the little bit of research I've done it seems like checking them is fairly easy but adjusting is more involved?

Luckily it's running great right now, and it's not my primary commuter so I can dig into things without worrying about getting to work.

 

Yeah you can check it without pulling the cams, and technically adjust too if you have the right tool.

The pain part is getting shims to make the adjustments. I had the head at a head shop so they adjusted it with all the necessary shims for me, but some people buy a whole kit or collect them from motors at scrap yards.