Engine Oil and Trans. Fluid Change Intervals

Hello ALL. Happy New Year.

Subject: 2021 Toyota 4Runner ORP.

I'm sure this subject has been beaten to death in the past. But I wanted to run this by you all for your opinions. I retired from work in January of 2022. So I am now putting about half the annual mileage I did in 2021, my last year working. So my more recent experience shows I will probably log only about 6-7K miles a year. So just a couple questions:

1. I'm currently changing the oil and filter every 5K miles. But it will take me close to 3/4 of a year to get to 5K. Is that OK ? Or should I look at doing it by months ?

2. Transmission Fluid Flush/Change. I know what the owner's manual says. But I was planning to have this done anyway at 30K miles, which will be closer to the end of this new year. Would this be considered prudent ? Or should I wait ? I figure it can't hurt.

Thanks for any opinions.

 

Happy new year, Rick. Sounds like you already RTM, congratulations.

You're retired, and working on the car is probably a hobby, so I'd say do whatever makes you happy. I'm willing to bet the car wouldn't care if you went 18 months / 10,000 miles between changes, but what you're doing now is fine. The oil isn't going to break down from the car just sitting (think of how long it sits on the shelves, or how long it's been underground).

If you're dead set on 30k for the transmission, I'd suggest just doing a pan drain and fill each time. 60k is the recommended interval for a fluid change if you tow a lot (which it doesn't sound like you do), so anything at 30k is just gravy, so a drain and fill would be more reasonable on your wallet and the environment. Again, I bet you could get away with never changing it, but it's your time in the garage, not mine.

You can do damage with too frequent transmission services if you screw up the fluid level, so I'd say first and foremost, make sure you understand and are comfortable with the fluid level check procedure. Maybe even buy an UltraGauge or similar s you can see the exact temps, and also to geek around with for other vehicle measurements.

 

60K miles for the trans.

 

Oil in an operating engine is not the same as stored in containers on a shelf. Oil is hygroscopic for one thing. There is always some blow bye and water vapor is a bi-product of combustion. Then there are driving patterns. If you make a lot of short trips your engine runs rich on startup and oil can become contaminated by fuel if you don't take longer trips at temperature (which will also boil off water in oil).

I'm putting just under 5K miles on my 4Runner each year, change engine oil annually and make a point of min half hour freeway runs every couple of weeks if that didn't happen with normal usage.

I'd say 30K on the trans fluid is overkill but you aren't hurting anything.

 

60-100k on the transmission depending on use.

If you're running very high temperatures going for shorter intervals is not a bad idea.
I've got my transmission temp to 275 before. Came home and swapped the fluid out.
I was at 35k miles at the time, but that fluid was definitely burnt.

 

I would stick with the 5K oil change or once a year.
Changing the transmission fluid at 30K seems like a huge waste. I’m at around 115K and still on the original fluid without issue. I’ll change it in the spring along with the diffs and spark plugs.

 

I do engine every 4-5k. TC was ar 17k. Planning trans at 30k as well.

 

10k oci any brand synthetic oil drive it 500k miles

 

I’ve never gone by the months over miles for oil changes theory.

if you barely drive, change it once a year.

trans is 100k for me. No flushes. A true dealership or very trustworthy shop that has a fluid exchange system and will pump in 10-11 fresh quarts

 

Can I ask why 30K for the trans? Where is this info even coming from? I’ve never owned any vehicle that required anything even close to that.

 

It won't hurt to drain and fill tranny [severe use use to be at 30k], just do it correctly. Oil is cheaper than parts. I used to overhaul transmissions and fluid is a major failure causer [dirty/abrasive contamination]. If miles are going to be low annually, go by time and not miles on engine oil. I would personally do oil changes spring and fall. I would also throw in a coolant change now. Once you have tranny and coolant changed you most likely will never have to do them again, if you keep miles low. Coolant becomes acidic and causes a lot of gasket failures. In the past gasket material was better and seldom failed. In today's ENVIREMENTAL world the material has changed and not necessarily for the better. If you have time and want to, go to a major truck shop and ask where they get their PH strips for testing coolant acidity. Simple test; again coolant is cheaper than gaskets to maintain. Bottom line, it's your vehicle and maintain it how you want to.

 

Who is he and why do we care what he says?
If changing the transmission fluid that often was even remotely necessary then Toyota would say it in the service manual and the dealerships would be pressing people to get it changed. They would not want to miss out on that potential income.

 

I know a vast amount of Dealerships try to work this in on a 30k service. Maybe the Dealership attempted to push it on their "Scheduled Maintenance".

 

A lot of factory maintenance schedules are developed as a MARKETING TOOL. "Our vehicle only costs XX dollars every XX miles to own, our competitors cost XX more to own". Years ago they actually had commercials stating such. Many vehicles will make it with little maintenance; most people get rid of vehicle after 3 or so years because they want the NEWEST trend/color. If you plan on holding on to your vehicle for some time MAINTANE it.

 

Many people are interested in lowest cost of maintenance not what is best for longevity. Almost doing nothing will get you thru warranty. If your in the salt belt and it's going to rust out in 10 years it might not last long enough to justify it. The constant debate X maintenance not needed vs others planning on keeping 20 years it's cheap to do it yourself.

 

Have any of you seen any 5th gen’s with failed transmissions? I would imagine most people do no maintenance to their transmission at all.

 

I don’t think they are going to promote a maintenance schedule that is going to cause a mass failure in vehicles. That would be pretty bad for marketing.

 

In my completely unprofessional opinion, 30k (+/- 5k) mile drain/fill intervals are exclusively for CVTs of the variable pulley persuasion but I might personally push up my drain/fill to 50k for no reason but to make myself feel better or if I'm bored.

Either way, doing fluids too soon really only hurts your wallet, time.

 

You people and your silly ass drain and fills


Do you drain some of your engine oil and mix in new oil, too?

 

- keep going to 200K, and after that you don't have to change it EVER

 

Just to reinforce...

Go by mileage, not time. Changing your oil every 6-7000 miles is just fine.

Leave your trans oil until at least 60k. Mine was changed at 60k and my mechanics told me it looked good and didn't really need to be changed. Waiting until 100k should be no problem at all.

 

Do you know the difference between the purpose of engine oil versus transmission fluid. One is involved in explosions and one isn’t. Guess which one?

 

It will get a drain and fill in the spring and that will probably be it for the rest of the life of the vehicle. That will freshen up the additives in fluid but not remove too much of the particulates that keep the trans happy. Rust will most likely kill it before the trans or engine fails.

 

I don't think there is a one size fits all depending on mods and use. Total stock 4r only driven city streets by soccer mom will be totally different than one with mods and used off road or climbing mountain passes. Anyone wondering on how often to change should have an idea on what temperatures they are experiencing. Heat rapidly degrades ATF and is most common cause of failure.

 

I’ve heard the same thing about not changing the trans fluid out too frequently because the suspended clutch particulates actually help preserve the clutch linings or at least improve their performance.

 

Yes. The particulates help the clutch plates engage as they get older. If you completely replace all of the fluid you can create issues with slipping.

 

Well ackshually, there's still old oil running around in the engine anyway! (I know it's not half though! but if we get to high enough age where the engine is leaking consistently and being topped off, you could call that the perpetual oil change )

I'm just Ship-of-Theseus-ing it, choosing shorter intervals over flushes.

"Can you tell which is which?"

 

Well as a former master tech, service manager and vehicle warranty auditor, I have NEVER had an engine or mechanical failure due to maintenance issues. Fluids are cheaper than parts.....or as the INTERNET EXPERTS will say.....SAVE SOME MONEY and don't change them so often. I don't care which way others want to do it. I know what saves MORE money in the long run.

 

Is this an argument for drain/fill not full ATF replacement? I have always been told the drain/fill refreshes the additive pack.