Maintenance Help

Morning, guys and gals.

I am very green when it comes to vehicle maintenance. Especially on a “high tech” rig like this. I did ok with my dad’s old 86 CJ7.

I am getting an oil change and they have their list of recommendations that looks like a foreign language to me. Most of it anyways.

Can someone with more experience give me some ideas on what to go ahead and do and what I shouldn’t be to worried
about?

I got this 2015 Tundra in 2022 with sub 16k miles on it. I now have 34k+ miles and oil changes have been done ever 3k. I of course would like this truck to run forever. No issues to speak of at the moment.

1st picture is their list of recommendations. Left column would be everything and far right is the minimum they recommended.

Second picture is of their pricing. I’m open to going elsewhere if these prices are unreasonable.

I appreciate any and all help deciphering this info.

Thanks,
Kamo!

 

At 34k miles, I don’t think there was much I even did.

3k-5k oil change min (I’d never go to 10k).

At 30k I did front/rear diff, transfer case.

Drain and fill transmission fluid at 35k.

You may have to also grease your drive shaft as well.

Were you planning to perform the services yourself?

 

Do you know if the fluids were changed out before? It wouldn't hurt to change out the coolant, power steering fluid and brake fluid, given the age of the vehicle. That pricing is high......not atypical of dealerships though.

 

Hey, guys. Thanks for the replies.

I wasn't planning on doing any of this on my own. I don't think I'm that comfortable yet but I'd like to get there in the future. I do not think the previous owner had done any of the fluids.

 

Tons of YouTube videos to build your confidence. I’d suggest you do it yourself. It’ll bring you better peace of mind.

 

Would you suggest any of the above that I give a try first? Maybe something that is easier than something else?

Thanks, again, for the responses.

 

Do an oil change, Youtube it, gather the tools and supplies and have at it
This is probably the most basic maintenance task to do, probably be a little messy the first time but it's a good learning experience and gets easier the next couple times as you figure out the best way for you
You got this it's not rocket science as they say

 

You said you worked on your father's CJ, you might just take the same basic approach to your Tundra as you did with the CJ. You have low mileage so don't overthink it. Change the oils and maybe the filters (air and cabin) and leave it at ..that would be my suggestion anyway. Do not let them sell you a 250 dollar fuel system cleaning, that is just ridiculous. Same for the crank case cleaning, don't do it.

 

Do the fuel system clean. Go buy a tank of gas and drive it normally. Wala! Fuel system cleaned.

OK, that's not all there is to it. Wash your hands if you get any gasoline on them.

 

OP, Pleeeeease do not let them change your cabin air filter for $60. All you gotta do is look up a how-to video of that and you'll understand why DIY(when possible) is something you really should get in the habit of doing. Tons of material from great folks on this forum will save you literally thousands of $$$.

 

If I had to pay extra for oil conditioners what the F?$k kind of oil are they putting in?

 

Toyota should've put them in the break in oil in the 3rd gens

 

OP - if you post where you live a member nearby may offer to show you stuff.

 

Easiest to do? Clean the battery terminals, go to Walmart and go to the battery section - at their end caps, they should have product shelving for NOCO anti-corrosion pads (it’ll be in a pack with a red O ring and a black O ring). Should look like felt-like material.

Get a 10mm socket or open ended wrench, disconnect both positive and negative terminal (negative first, then positive). Put those aside.

Boil some hot water, get a thrown out tooth brush, brush any corrosion like material around the battery terminal after hot water is poured on, add those NOCO felt pads you just bought from Walmart, replace the terminals, now positive then negative (red then black).

And you’re done. Fire up the truck again and you’ve just cleaned your battery terminals.

I think it’ll be either red/black or red/green. Doesn’t matter, but it’ll be by the battery section.

 

Depending on what you can afford it looks like you are due for coolant (Toyota LL pink only) and brake fluid (dot 3) if never changed, power steering change would be good also. Air/cabin filters would be good to change also, these are easy, don't worry about OEM, Wix is good (Rockauto). I would then go for the transmission drain/fill (no flush, Toyota WS only) especially if you live or travel in hilly areas or pull a trailer or heavy loads on occasion. After that I would do the differentials and transfer case. Given the mileage when you bought it, I doubt any of this has been done. You will save yourself a lot of future headaches if you do these and try to stick with OEM fluids where possible (power steering and brake fluid might be an exception but I'm only planning on using Toyota fluids in mine). Do not let anyone add any other cleaning fluids/additives to your oil/crankcase! Stick with Tier 1 gasoline or at least try to switch after a few times especially for trips and maybe add Techron fuel cleaner. As others have stated some of this you can do on your own. For the coolant you could just do a drain and fill yourself and then another in 6 months. The same with brake fluid and power steering using a turkey baster or extractor, repeating the process after a few months, but flushing is best. There are test strips you can buy for the coolant and brake fluid; this you can do yourself to give peace of mind. Keep service records! Write them down on a notepad.

 

All great info! I already have the cabin filter and know how to do that. I have a few pre-purchased oil changes still to come and once they are done I'll start doing those on my own.

I plan on doing a couple of the others (break fluid, power steering, coolant, transfer case, etc) in the coming months. Maybe not all at once

I really appreciate all the information!

 

I think the differentials (front and rear) and the transfer case would be good next steps on your learning curve to build up confidence to do slightly trickier jobs such as brakes, coolant, and transmission services.

 

Yea, there isn't anything difficult about the differentials other than it can get messy. Just remember to always open the fill plugs first.

 

I agree that the Diff's are a pretty easy thing to do at home.

On everything, there's youtube videos out there that will really walk you through them and you can get yourself comfortable by watching them first before you dig in.

Stay away from the conditioners or cleanings. That's just easy money the dealership likes to do. I wouldn't even think about the serpentine belt unless it was cracked or frayed (with your miles I highly doubt either)

 

As a former total newb when it comes to truck maintenance I found this forum very helpful. I now replace MOST of my own fluid and it gives piece of mind that its done to my liking. Haven't messed with transmission fluid yet. I would suggest starting with oil and the diffs. Also the transfer case. VERY easy to do. Happy hunting!