[Thundra]

I usually do my maint. by the book, every 5000 miles for oil changes, plugs at 30,000 as well as diff-fluids so I dropped my oil, put a new filter on and put new oil back in. No problem as I've done this 12 times now, then the plugs, easy, take the 10mm socket, take coil off, take old plug, put new plug in, easy as pie, easy to get to the plugs, beautiful.

Get under the truck to grease the drivetrain, have the gun with flexible hose and hit all the zerks in the u-joints and spider joints and sliding cardan joint(whatever the hell that is.) and my 60,000 mile maintenance is done. I changed my air filter not long ago and had new tires put on around 53,000 miles but I'll have to do my diff-fluid as I think I've been doing it every 15,000 miles, for the rear diff that is, maybe this weekend if I'm up to it even though it is easier than everything I did Friday night in under 2 hours.

Truck runs mint, not a single problem so far.

 

[Dana_15]

Truck runs mint, not a single problem so far.

Good, hope my 06 has no problems either.

 

[zerosleep]

04 tundra double cab limited

ha! dana, how the hell are you? now that I decided to upgrade myself, I
decided to return to the forum. I'll be picking it up sometime this week
from lia toyato in northampton...

I would welcome any pointers, comments, tips, or warnings???

-zerosleep

 

[Dana_15]

^^^Hey man what are getting? Tacoma? Tundra? I just picked up the Tundra last wednesday....don't plan on doin anything to the exhaust though :lol: . Lia Toyota is very good to deal with, in either Wilbraham or Northampton. You still work where you were last time I talked?

 

[Thundra]

I run my tires at 35 psi all the way around, I found out very early that the factory 26F 29R was way too low, I get better mileage and handling with a higher psi.

Not much else to worry about with these trucks. I always buy my spares when the 10% off coupons come in the mail and do all the oil/fluid changes myself along with greasing the drivetrain and checking the bolts for torque.

It has been one awesome truck so far with not much to worry about at all. Good luck, let us/me know what you got and give us some pics.

 

[Texas Convict]

Thundra, changing plugs...

Thundra, how difficult is it to change plugs on a 2005 tundra V8?
I've done it on Ford's, Chevy's and a small Nissan sentra. Any special tools or special procedure to do? I think I can do it. What exactly is the COil? an ignighter?
Thank you,
TC

 

[Thundra]

It is too easy changing the plugs. Take off the coil with a 10 mm socket, pull it and the plug cap that goes with it, put the spark plug socket with an extension on, loosen and pull the plug, put the new one in, put the plug cap/coil back on, tighten down the 10mm bolt and done, repeat 7 more times and you are done. I have changed my plugs twice now I think as I think it is at every 30,000 that Toyota wants them done. They are cheap anyway, Denso's. Let me know how you make out.

 

[forestertundra]

Dear thundra

Good to see you doing maitenance. However, save yourself some time and money and put Synthetic oil stem to stern. Changing diff fluid every 15,000? I changed mine over at 50,000 to Amsoil 75w90. My truck has 212,000 miles and I got to thinking, I ought to think about changing it again. So I did last week. I expected a lot of metal for going so long but the oil looked just like I put it in 30,000 ago. The drain plug with the magnet has so little metal stuck to it I was surprised.

Also, put it in the engine. I can't believe people will spend $30,000 plus for a vehicle and put dinosour oil. Amsoil is the best, but Mobile One is the next best. Go with the new one for one year or 15,000. The Amsoil is guaranteed for one year or 25,000 or 35,000 depending on which oil you use. I recommend the 0w-30. I change mine every 25-30k and It does not burn any oil and runs unbelievebly good. I live in Bowling Green Kentucky where every Corvette in the world is made here. They put synthetic oil in every one and recommend it.

Forestertundra

 

[nikita]

Forestertundra,

Are you an Amsoil dealer? I see posts like this from new users to automotive forums all over the internet, and most of them are similar. Amsoil is a good product, but I refuse to buy it because of the Multi-level marketing scheme, like Herbalife, Amway, etc.

The Corvette has syn as factory fill because that engine runs particularly high oil temperatures, due to the tight installation and lack of room for a cooler. The Tundra V-8 is particularly "easy" on oil, as proven by used oil analysis. Most API SM engine oils are semi-synthetic anyway. I do use synthetic gear oils (Redline) in all manual transmissions and differentials, and treat that as "lifetime" fluid.

Back on topic. A 2005 does not need 30,000 mile spark plug changes. The Denso Iridium plugs are good for 120,000 miles. Yes, changing plugs on coil-on-plug ignitions is a lot easier than it looks. Being a pickup truck and not a Camry, all of them are easy to reach.

 

[Thundra]

I agree with Amsoil being nothing but a different label. I don't fall for that stuff and believe that synthetic oil is going to make my engine indestructible nor would I leave any oil in for longer than 5000 miles. If Toyota tells me to change at 5000 and use any old 5W 30 oil, then I'll do that and be done with it.

I, too, am not falling for that Amsoil scheme. If it were the same price as what I normally buy, I'd buy it but I won't go out of my way to order it, that is for sure.

 

[forestertundra]

Nikita

Yes I am an Amsoil dealer but just so I can buy the product at cost. You are confusing their marketing system with the pyramid shemes of the 70s. Its above board. Also, as a dealer you don't have to sign up other dealers. You can sell to auto parts stores and commercially without making them dealers. Selling in barrels can be lucrative.

The reason the corvette started using synthetic oil was because they spun a few main bearings on some as they were running them hard at 30 degrees. It turned out to be some overly tight main bearings. As for high oil temps, its water cooled and hardly pulling any weight around.

The bottom line; all these oil companies said they would never make a synthetic oil and now they all do. Seems to validate what Amsoil knew back in 1972.

 

[nikita]

Im somewhere in between on the oil change subject. 5000 miles is the "safe" thing to do, especially under warranty, but may be wasteful, not in cost, which is small, but in time, waste disposal, etc. Toyota used to recommend 7500, then the Camry sludge issue came up and they reduced it to 5000 accross the board, not just on the troublesome engines.

Extended drain intervals are doable, and quite safe for the engine under the right conditions. Synthetic oil alone wont make the difference and that is one of the things I dont like about the Amsoil claims. The fine print tells you to do annual changes, regardless of mileage and intermediate oil filter changes. Used oil analysis is also recommended. Its not as simple as filling the crankcase with Amsoil and forgetting it for 25,000 miles. Also, similar to Mobil One EP, the extended drain type of Amsoil is not approved for new cars (no "For Gasoline Engines" Starburst symbol on the bottle). The reasons have to do with additive levels, cats and emissions warranties.

In my older vehicles I use Chevron Delo 400, which has an extra "dose" of additives, and change it annually, at a cost of about one-third that of synthetic and without an extra filter change. I have done used oil analyisis to prove that this is working.

The Tundra is getting 5W-30 Chevron Supreme, a modern severely hydroprocessed "dino" oil. Conoco, Shell, ExxonMobil, PetroCanada and others make similar advanced oils at relative bargain prices. One year or 7500 miles is no big deal with these oils. They rival synthetics in most properties, except pour points, relevant only for arctic conditions. The gap (except price) beween conventional and synthetic has narrowed so much lately, that the definition of synthetic is no longer clear.

 

[forestertundra]

Nikita

I have been using synthetics for 28 years and I'm only 43. I think you are making it more complicated then you need to. I will speak to Amsoil because I am so familiar with it. They warrant most of their oils for one year or 25k. If you drive 30k like I do you are on the highway a lot. My oil still looks good (not black) at that point. My wife drives about 10-12. They do not require analysis up to the 25k but recommend it if you want to go beyond a year. I change both oils once a year. Heck, if you are paranoid, change it twice a year.

You are correct that they use to recommend that you change filters at 6 months but now have a new filter with nanofiber technology that is good for a year also. I can tell you that not all synthetics are the same. They are better than petroleum but Mobile One and Amsoil have the most knowledge. Yes, some make bare minimum oils. Its a thing about profit-yet there bottles look good. There are many test (independent) that Amsoil has done and published. At least you see who makes a good oil and who makes a great oil.

The best way to see the difference in synthetic compared to dino oil is to run it in an air cooled engine like an atv or street or dirt bike. These motors get hot and you can feel the difference as well as hear the difference. I remember as a teenager how my dirt bike would get so hot that I could not find neutral. That stopped when I went with synthetic oil.

Also, Amsoil oil 0w-20, 0w-30, 5w-30, 10w-30 etc. will work in any new car. I am not sure what the starburst thing is but they are way above the minimum API. I am not trying to sell you on Amsoil per se but in terms of extended drain, 2% improvement in mileage, longer engine life, and less time taking out drain plugs. It really seems like a no brainer. You got to get past the sheme part since you can buy many synthetics at walmart. If there is a sheme, its so many people falling for the 3000-5000 mile drain intervals. Even dino oils are light years ahead of oils 10-15 years ago and they are still recommending the same drain intervals. Europeans use nearly all synthetics and go 12-15k on oil changes. Check out Amsoil.com and see if they have some more info. You obviously have a lot of knowledge about oil and vehicles.