Changing your own oil

2nd the motovix tool. Sucks when I forget to use it. I also have the aftermarket trd skidplate with the oil drain access. Super easy for me

 

I have 2 floor jacks and lift the entire front and rear for tire rotations.

 

My local dealer doesn't sell "Toyota" branded oil anymore. Told me to go get Mobil 1 from WM. Said it's the same thing. Are they FOS?

 

Great time to check the spare. I drop mine and use it to hold the place of the first tire I remove.

 

Sounds like you guys are making it harder than it needs to be. High lift Jack {edit to clarify I mean high lift rolling floor jack, not an offroad jack} and 4 heavy duty jackstands. Lift the front by the center jacking point, put two stands under frame behind front wheels. Then roll around to back, lift rear with Jack under differential, and place the rear jackstands.

now the whole truck is in the air, doesn’t have to be high, just get the tires an inch or two off. Now you can rotate them however you want (front/back or full criss cross) and do the oil change and grease all the zerks with a ton of working room.

 

Btw if you guys are playing with multiple jacks or the spare tire as a substitute for jackstands. PLEASE go buy some jackstands. You really should not be working under any vehicle that’s not on jackstands

 

Sorry if I wast clear.

I take my spare down from under the runner, I then jack up the runner rear passenger wheel, remove that then put on the spare where the rear passenger tire was, then I lower the runner and take the tire I just removed and start the tire rotation.

 

I've done my own since new with OEM filters and Mobile1 0w20. 125k trouble free miles. I made this as a reminder to myself and others of the tools and quantities.

https://youtu.be/qSILlvdkV18?si=coWoy4WkDbjCCtzi

 

I haven't done oil/filter R&R on this 4runner as it only has 2247 miles. My question is the AMAZON ad has 6 qts, my 2018 W/filter (always have since I was 16yrs old on all my vehicles, never believed in the "every other oil change to R&R filter") took 6.5 qts. I always wondered why the engineers made sumps by .5 qts, either round up or round down. Now a days it's no bigggie for .5 qts W/window on plastic containers BUT before W/qt cans was a PITA to guesstimate?

 

Are those quick drain Oil pan fittings worth it & do they Not leak?? I've been thinking of installing one. Which ones are recommended by current users. Thank you in advance for your input.

 

Reminds me of the time I showed my girlfriend how easy it was to change the oil on my old Tacoma, lol.

That involved a trip to the store to get a new oil filter wrench, and I still ended up hammering a screwdriver through the old filter to get it off. Basically two hours of our lives gone and a freakin mess.

 

Easy: once at break-in (no more than 500 miles, because I'm an enthusiast), then once more right before I sell it.

 

I wouldn't characterize any of the aftermarket oil drain devices as "quick drain" - they all are slower draining than the oem plug. Their claim to fame is they don't have to be removed and they eliminate the mess when draining the oil pan, not their drain speed. Any of the 3 most popular will work. I've not heard of any leak issues with any of them.

 

I'd sure like to see how to jack up a rear differential using a high lift jack...or any other point on a 4R. Unless you have aftermarket full bumpers.

 

Rci?

 

Sorry maybe bad choice of wording - I wasn't referring to an offroad bumper jack. I meant high lift rolling floor jack.

 

Got it.

 

Poor choice of wording, I meant Quick release of the oil draining vs OEM plug. The oil still takes longer then I would of thought when up to operating temp.

 

Why?

 

Same. I think I've done that maybe once in 25 years of doing my own oil changes lol. I also don't mess with the silly little drain plug in the oil filter.

 

Yep, I just use whatever is on rollback at Wally world and also has the single quarts available. Last few times has been Pennzoil Platinum, which I have no problem with.

Around 7K miles I start thinking I should change it soon, I picked up the Toyota filter a few weeks ago, but now at around 8,200 I still haven't changed it because I haven't had a nice day.

I do mostly highway driving, I really don't stress about the 10K interval.

 

Interesting TQ vs OEM Drain Plug .I'm thinking about getting the

$40 F103SX M12-1.25 Sx Series Drain Valve, Bronze

F103SX M12-1.25 Adjustable.

 

Aftermarket TRD plate. Not RCI. It is from CarTrimHome

https://cartrimhome.com/Bumper-Skid-Plate-Protector-Guard-For-TOYOTA-4RUNNER-2014-2021

 

For $60 I may let the dealer change it IF the following happened, which probably won't-
-Drive in, no appointment
-Less than 60 min wait to complete
-NOT Strip any of the skid plate bolts
-NOT grease up my steering wheel, headliner or any part of the interior
Include free car wash

 

Do you get oil spilled on the topside(engine side) of the skid when removing filter?

 

My dealer quoted $110 for an oil change and $30 for a tire rotation and said if I drop off in the morning, after waiting in the incredibly long line at 8:00 a.m., I could have it back...probably that afternoon. Seems like a pretty good deal since the dealer is only 30 minutes away and if I want an Uber home it's only another $40 (each way). I figure for about $220, if they don't find anything else that needs to be done, I can have it done every few months and it only wastes a day or so at a time.

 

What do they say? It's cheap insurance?

 

I stick to 5K miles. It's just a personal preference.

 

Prob not. Many dealers also use bulk oil for oil changes. You could be getting Mobil, Valvoline, etc. during a change.

 

That doesn't sound good to me at all. For that price I would change my own-I do-and rotate my tires-I do.