3rd Gen maintenance intervals, simplified

I got tired of pouring through the tedious Toyota maintenance log to see what was due, and for me at least, its easy to miss the nuggets of important stuff between the endless bullet points of "align driver's floor mat," "adjust fluids," and "maybe shine a flashlight in the general area around your steering components, idk."

So I decided to chart it by consumable rather than interval. It helps me see that I have a big task list whenever I roll over 60k miles.

Both the manual and the warranty book are painfully vague on some things, so I filled in what I could and extrapolated the rest. Posting here because someone will surely correct it.




Edit, FYI the spark plug part number is for the 3.5 only. 4cyl owners gotta look up their own plugs.

Edit 2: @H6G has provided torque specs. Thank you sir. This is rapidly becoming a one stop reference thread.

 

Definitely helpful. Thx for your effort.

 

Great stuff Ryan. Thanks! For those who don't drive very much meaning it could take 10+ years to reach 100k miles it might be best to also place a max time limit on some of these things. i.e.
Engine coolant change interval 100k miles or 6(?) years, whichever comes first. Don't want the coolant get too acidic and eat-away at that plastic y-pipe at the rear of the engine. Don't want the fluid to eat-away at the water pump seals.
Brake fluid change interval 120k miles or 6(?) years, whichever comes first. Don't want the fluid to freeze-up the calipers.

 

Tnx . This is a sticky worthy .

 

Good point. I'll start looking into lifespans of fluids.

 

Brake fluid should be done more often than every 120k miles I believe. It’s hygroscopic and will absorb water over the years and lose effectiveness so I actually think you should be looking at something closer to every 36k/3 years (please fact check this I’m not sure of the actual interval).

EDIT: brake fluid is a safety item, it’s easy to change and not expensive. No reason to keep old fluid that’s less effective when new stuff is cheap and can increase braking power.

 

Automatic transmission should also be 60k/6years even though Toyota claims “lifetime fluid.” There’s a caveat with the AT if you skip your fluid change and hit 100k then the advice is to NEVER change the transmission fluid.

 

I agree with you. However, surprisingly the manual didn't even mention it (aside from the very generic "inspect fluids") until 120 when it says replace the vacuum booster. I waffled how to phrase that one.

 

Hygroscopic

 

You have really simplified most of it.
Brake fluid ideally should be tested when the brakes are serviced and replaced then as needed IMO

 

Updated thanks to above suggestions.

Caveat, some intervals are not specified in the manual and are therefore the best effort of my googlin' ability.

 

Very Helpful, thanks OP.

I would recommend updating the Oil types as such.

TCase fluid -- add 'GL-5, LF *Limited Slip'
Diff Fluid -- add 'GL-5, LF *Limited Slip'
MT fluid -- add 'GL-3'

According to the Car Care Nut, the GL-3 in the MT is critical. He's a certified mechanic with 20+ years experience and he's got a respected YouTube channel. He says, "if an oil is GL-5, then it is not GL-3 compatible". 2 cents.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3le9ZT5HUlk

 

Lucky for me I still had excel open.

Updated.

 

Ha. If I didn't already know you're a country boy from Texas, I know NOW you're a country boy from Texas.

"Rotate THEM tires".


Thanks for the list! This is helpful.

 

*Tars.*

 

Thanks updated

 

Rock, thank you putting this together. Here's a 'quick' Torque spec list. Not sure if you would like to include this:


Lug nuts - 83 lb.-ft (21mm)

Oil pan drain plug - 30 lb.-ft (14mm)
Oil filter cap - 18 lb.-ft (

$18 TOY640 Assenmacher Specialty Tools TOY 640 Oil Filter Socket Wrench for Toyota/Lexus

TOY640 with 15/16" or 24mm socket)
Oil filter drain plug - 10 lb.-ft (3/8" square drive)
Engine under cover sub-assembly - 22 lb.-ft (12mm)

U-joint bolts - 65 lb.-ft (14mm/17mm)
Center support bearing - 27 lb.-ft


Rear diff drain plug - 36 lb.-ft (24mm or 15/16")
Rear diff fill plug - 36 lb.-ft (24mm or 15/16")
Front diff drain plug - 48 lb.-ft (10mm hex)
Front diff fill plug - 29 lb.-ft (10mm hex)
Engine under cover assembly - 22 lb.-ft (12mm)

Leaf spring U-bolts - 52 lb.-ft (19mm)

Transfer case
Drain plug - 27 lb.-ft (24mm or 15/16")
Fill plug - 27 lb.-ft (24mm or 15/16")

Manual transmission
Drain plug - 27 lb.-ft (24mm or 15/16")
Fill plug - 27 lb.-ft (24mm or 15/16")

Automatic transmission
Drain plug - 15 lb.-ft (14mm)
Overflow plug - 15 lb.-ft (5mm hex)
Fill plug - 29 lb.-ft (24mm or 15/16")

Engine coolant
Engine Under Cover Sub-Assembly: 22 lb.-ft
Radiator Drain Cock: Hand tight
Cylinder Block Drain Cock: 9 lb.-ft

Spark Plugs - 13 lb.-ft

 

Looks good!
Here's mine:
Every 10K... Do stuff.
Every 30K... Do more stuff.
Every 60K... Do even more stuff.
Every 100K... Do the mostest stuff

 

Every 50k- do the stuff that you should have done a long damn time ago and forgot... aka, why did I start pulling the manual in the first place.

 

It took me a few decades to remember that word!