Changing your own oil

Got my 2019 that was a lease turn in with 23k. I'm at 100K. I'm a little sooner than @Static03 on the diff oil changes but like him do all my own work. Surprisingly the brakes that were on the 4Runner when I bought it are just under 1/2 material left. Lots of highway miles! Plus I'm a big believer in not riding the brakes. Need to get 250K like him before I buy another.

 

Same here. I always have to use the 1/2 drive breaker bar to get it off.. one of the few things I use that for!!!

 

When I bought it, time wasn't on my side. I had a 2018 Silverado that ended up dropping a lifter. Of course out of warranty. Once I got the truck back it never ran right. Had intermittent misfires that not I nor the dealer could seem to correct. Seemed like my truck was built on a Friday afternoon before someone's vacation. I needed something reliable so I went looking for a 4runner. Wanted 4wd which was very hard to find in FL. Thus the prior rental became the only option.

 

Another possibility is that normal oil pressure squeezes the o-ring more tightly into place, increasing the torque required to undo.

 

Could the oil cause the O-ring swell?

 

I use a torque wrench to tighten down my oil filter and drain cap to factory spec. Next oil change I will use it to take them off and see if the values are the same or if it is indeed tighter.

 

what are you torquing it down to?

 

For all those who were wondering Toyota genuine motor oil is actual made by Exxon/Mobil

 

Perhaps pressure is the culprit? Does the housing have a non-return check valve?

I forget what it was I worked on recently but it required pressure to be released before the component could be removed.

 

Well, presumably removing the filler cap, removing the oil pan drain plug, draining the oil from the pan, then removing the bottom cap from the filter housing and draining the filter would relieve the pressure.

 

I’ve had all 3 open and still had to muscle the filter housing off.

 

It was the bottom cap on the filter housing I was concerned with. If there was a non return check valve in the oil filter circuit, none of the other caps/plugs would relieve pressure.

 

Yeah, the bottom cap always comes off with about the same torque used to install it, and the filter housing drains normally. After that, the o-ring and threads should be the only things in play. I think the o-ring just gets firmly lodged by the oil pressure in normal use, perhaps abetted by any swelling. I'm a tad skeptical of the latter, since I'd expect it to be fairly impermeable.

 

Not sure if this is the right thread.

looking for a front skid plate with an oil filter access hole.

doesn’t need to be off road worthy, just trying to avoid removing the skid plate. Any recommendations?

 

I'm on RCI bare aluminum, not bad.

 

Here’s another choice:
https://cartrimhome.com/Bumper-Skid-Plate-Protector-Guard-For-TOYOTA-4RUNNER-2014-2021

 

I bought my 2022 SR5 Premium 4WD pre-owned / certified from my local Toyota dealer, last November 2023. …..also purchased the Toyota extended warranty for it, my choice, for my peace of mind.

I just changed the oil and filter in it myself for my first time as its new owner early in May. I am planning on changing the oil and filter myself every 5,000 miles or every 6 months, whichever comes first. In my case, I am retired and don’t drive it much, so the 6 months is probably always going to expire first in my case. I placed 3,3XX miles on it since I bought it in November and at the 6 month point when I changed oil and filter for my first time owning it.

I used and will always use the official Toyota brand filter cartridge, purchased from my Toyota dealer, and saving my receipts, “for the record”. My oil of choice is Valvoline 0W-20 synthetic. I go way back with Valvoline, so sticking with it on my new to me T4R.

I am documenting everything that I do- mileage reading and date, and also keeping receipts.

At first I was very tempted to go with Valvoline 5W-30 oil, as I had always used in my trusty 2006 Toyota Tundra. I perceived the

$52 0W-20 oil Toyota/ exxon mobil Case of 6 Quarts Full Synthetic TGMO SN 0W-20 Oil

0W-20 oil as being “too thin” for use in this brutal Texas summer heat that we have down here.

But, the Toyota service Manager here talked me out of the 5W-30 and said go with the factory specified 0W-20. Ugh, but, OK. So be it.

When I changed my oil for the first time as the new owner last month, I did have a bitch of a time getting that plastic filter housing cap off. I was cussing that thing upside down. I had already drained the oil from the oil pan, and couldn’t get the filter cap off. I was pissed.

I was home alone as wifey was out of town for a couple days on business, with her car, so I had no other vehicle. I had to re-install the oil pan drain plug, pour my new oil in to the engine, and went out shopping to pick up an 18” breaker bar, a torque wrench to use for properly tightening the filter cap to spec when re-installing it, and, for good measure, I stopped at my Toyota dealer to purchase a new filter end cap because I feared I was going to break mine during the removal attempt. Ugh….

Thanks to my new breaker bar, I was able to finally get the end cap loose, only after placing my one foot up against a front tire and using my leg as a brace as additional leverage to help bust the cap loose. How ridiculous. I was cussing out the King Kong ape who must have cranked that thing down previously.

Once I got the cap loose, I cleaned it and inspected it. It looked perfectly fine, but for good measure, I decided to just go ahead and use my Toyota newly purchased end cap instead. I lightly brushed on some graphite anti-seize paste on to the new cap’s threads for good measure before installing it with the new filter cartridge, then torqued the new cap to factory specs with my new torque wrench.

Other than that, the skid plate shields were a bit of a pain to remove and re-install, but I managed. I did purposely leave the shields off for a couple weeks afterwards. I was crawling back under there to re-inspect the oil drain plug and filter end cap to be sure nothing was seeping or leaking. All good, dry as a bone, no leakage. Satisfied, I finally re-installed the skid shields, lol.

As for my tires, I bought new tires at my local Discount Tire store shortly after buying the truck. Not that I needed new tires, but I just wanted them. Discount Tire offered me free lifetime balancings and rotations, so I’m going to let them do my rotations.

I’ll be changing my own oil and filter though on my T4R as long as I’m physically able. I’ll be 69 in August, so I’ll just have to see how long I feel like doing this on my own.

As for the truck itself, I plan on keeping it for a very long time. I love this thing.​

 

I Just changed my oil today for the second time - right at 10K miles. Dealer hasn't ever touched it as I'm afraid they'd screw something up. The oil filter assembly was super tight as others have noted above.

I torqued it to spec last time with a high quality torque wrench and it was a bitch to get it off this time - not sure why but could be the gasket swelling. I tried my largest 1/2" socket wrench with just about all the force I could get on it and it wouldn't budge. I don't have a breaker bar but I ended up using a 1/4" Milwaukee impact driver (with 3/8" extension) set to reverse and that was enough to get it loose. I tried a smaller Dewalt impact driver first - it wasn't powerful enough but the stronger Milwaukee impact driver did the trick. The Milwaukee also had a larger battery so that may have helped.

NOTE - if you do this MAKE SURE THE IMPACT DRIVER IS SET TO LOOSEN, NOT TIGHTEN!!!!!
And don't use it to reinstall of course.

 

The 'O' ring doesn't swell per say on filter housing installation. It probably gets some compression on it as the filter house is tightened and seated. Then there are heat and cold cycles, and whatever your oil change interval of choice is, the filter housing is hard to remove because the 'O' ring is "set" and there is friction all around the 'O' ring mating surfaces. Be happy it does this. It means your filter housing will not loosen between oil changes (assuming it is torqued).

I always torque my housing to spec just because it is my habit to do so. But installing the filter housing all the way up and giving it a little more in the tighten direction and it will be fine.

 

Coincidentally I did mine this morning. My son and the Mrs. Where up at 4am for an out of town sports event (my turn to skip one ) but I couldnt sleep so I got to it early.

15k service - oil, driveline greasing, tire rotation, etc. I did it myself the first two times and torqued everything to spec. The filter housing came off very easy this time using a 1/2 drive breaker bar and 24mm socket on the MotivX tool. If you don’t have one the breaker bar and 24mm is not expensive and a good investment, as that combo also works perfect for taking the rear diff plugs out.

Skid plate is pretty simple as long as a dealer tech never touched it, put a floor jack under it, unbolt and then use some anti-sieze and carefully hand thread all of them in before using power tools.

 

Was going to do first oil change on my 4R 5k odo.

however the tundra recall is making me reconsider.. I am at 2k on the odo right now.. I don’t trust these Toyota monkeys

 

Thank you so much for this! I knew how to change oil on my 1978 Civic in 1989-90, but I stopped doing it myself shortly thereafter. It's time to start again, and your checklist is a great starting point. I'll dig through the forums, but in case you see this: any recommendations on ramps? (2016 SR5 4WD)

 

Welcome to the forum @Jethro .

I use a pair of Rhino Ramps that I bought 20+ years ago at the flaps. I prefer plastic to steel.

$90 FloTool 11909ABMI RhinoRamp Vehicle Ramp Pair - Ideal for Stress-Free Home Garage Maintenance - Reduces Slippage - Works with Low Clearance Vehicles - 12000lb GVW Capacity - Extra-Wide Design

Look here.

 

Thank you so much! I won't miss dragging around those old heavy steel ramps. Just placed my order.

 

@Jethro as an addendum, you might also need a breaker bar to remove the filter housing, even if it was properly torqued the last time it was replaced. And you’ll need a torque wrench that spans 10 to 30 ft.-lbs. if you plant to torque everything to spec.

 

Gonnal
Makes life a lot easier for sure.

 

I am in the market for a pair of ramps. I was suggested Rhino Ramps.
Unfortunately, the pair you have is far superior to the ones they make now. I got one last year and it cracked within the return window.

I am looking at HF Pittsburg Ramps now according to Project Farms.

 

Sorry to hear about that.

 

!!

 

DIY ramps https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tMp_IBvlbo&t=456s
I built some and they work and store great. Be sure to look for the v.2 version with wheels, I think it's linked when the video finishes.