Maintenance Fluid Advice

Hello all,

I just recently purchased a 2015 4Runner Limited with 85,000 miles on it. This is my very first Toyota, and I am hoping to make it last a while. I am wanting to get some fluid maintenance performed, but was curious if some more experienced owners could give me some advice on which ones I should perform first. I am not a DIY'er, so I will be taking it to the dealership more than likely.

In order of importance, which fluid changes should I complete first..

Transfer case
Differentials
Transmission
Engine coolant
Power steering fluid
Anything I am missing?

I don't have the cash to get all of these changed out at once, so I was going to slowly chip away at them, in order of importance. I appreciate it so much!

 

Id start with the Engine, unless you know what was exactly put in there.

Transmission
TC
Coolant
Diffs

 

Thanks! I just had the oil & filter changed, and all other fluids checked.

I went ahead and stopped by my local Toyota dealership and scheduled fluid changes for my differentials and transfer case, as well as propeller shaft lubrication.

They told me not to touch the coolant until I hit 100,000 miles. Transmission fluid he said I still had time on. I am a bit confused on what to do regarding it. Some resources say change it at 60,000 miles, other say not too touch it. I only drive ~5,000 miles a year (mostly city/highway), so I am still deciding on what I should do regarding the transmission fluid.

Thanks so much for taking the time to leave me a reply!

 

You know they’re going to charge you like $150-$200 just to do the rear diff? It’s a 5 minute DIY job.

 

Yeah :/.
Believe me, I’m not happy about it. But I don’t own any tools, & never grew up learning how to work on vehicles. So I would have no clue what I’m doing. I wish I knew how, or knew someone personally I could pay to do it. But alas, here I am haha.

The guy told me it would be ~ $250 for everything. So maybe I better double check to make sure I understood him correctly.

 

Blue - invest some time into learning how to work on your truck, as well as a basic set of tools. Lots of good tutorials on this site. You'll save a bunch of money and be proud of doing the work yourself.

 

The transmission one is the interesting one for me also. I've always heard horror stories about fluid changes etc when it comes to automatics. I'm on the fence if I'll do mine or not, it has 74k km's on it.. But if you do decide to do it, the right one to do is the drain and fill, NOT FLUSH.

 

Thanks @TheSponge !
I’ve got a running log of notes, so I will definitely be sure to make that a point of emphasis. I appreciate the tip!