I have a 97 V6 4X4 Limited with 171,000 on it. I have no idea if the fluid has ever been changed, but i'm going to either do it or have someone else do it. Is it pretty much the same principle? I wasn't sure if there were any 4cyl/V6 or 2WD/4WD differences. Also any tips, tricks, or warnings are appreciated.
It's still an A340 AISIN transmission, but slightly different from the 4cyl 2WD. You will have a transfer case bolted to the back of the transmission as well, so don't mistake that for the transmission. Be careful when tightening the drain plug, as it is easy to strip out.
As James Curl has mentioned, auto tranny should be checked when engine is running at normal temp, you run through all the gears stopping at each and return to Park (some cars return to Neutral). Parking brake up just in case, and be careful not to get burnt due to the weird locations of the dipsticks
I don't have the manual in front of me right now to confirm, but assuming the 4Runner follows standard Toyota fluid checking procedure (which I think it does), you check the fluid hot while the vehicle is running and in park. Note that Toyota typically defines "hot" fluid as having been driven at 50 mph for 20 minutes. Hope that helps, and thanks for watching!
+John Doe I live in Arizona so I don't have any issues with it, but when I had the truck up in Massachusetts for 4 years, I never had any issues. Snow tires and driving skill make a huge difference. Thanks for watching!
+redonKiLaus I got some of that fluid for my 06 Jetta 2.5 and I expect some nice results with it. I got mine from some business somewhere that deals mostly with stuff for Mustangs simply because of the free shipping. The key to shopping on sites that don't deal with your vehicle specifically is to already know the product you are looking for.
Man i have the same truck mine is a 2000 toyota 4runner it has 295.000 miles on it they didn't change the oil acasinally cause i had to have the valve cover gasket changed and there was alot off gunk so im using mobil1 high milage 10w40 weight it calls for 5w30 weight but my mechanic told me it has alot of miles and there is probably gunk in the engine and that 5w30 is to thin for a car that has been neglet on oil changes he told me if the engine was taken care of and oil changes were done correcly that yes he would just use what manufactor recommends and we are here in miami fla where climate is always hot do you think he is correct oh and also i will have to do at least 3 oil changes at 2000 miles for the engine to be at least cleaner he recommended.
I run 10W-40 Mobil 1 Full Synthetic in my truck to compensate for the hot temperatures here in Arizona as well as oil shear since my truck is turbocharged and the oil sees much more extreme temperatures than normal. In your case, you should be just fine running either 5W-30 or 10W-40 and doing the frequent oil changes to allow for the detergents in the oil to clean up your engine. Personally, I would recommend 10W-40 in the summer in Florida, and 5W-30 in the winter, although running the heavier weight oil won't hurt anything as long as you go easy on the truck for the first 5-15 minutes of driving. Thanks for watching!
Completely different, there is no pan, drain and fill plugs in different locations, etc. I'm sure there are some writeups on the 4Runner forum for the manual transmissions. Thanks for watching!
I have a 97 2.7l 2wd 4runner automatic, identical to yours. What gears are in it? I put bigger tires and it's noticeably slower in accelerating. Please help
It has 3.91 gears, which are pretty awful with the 31in tires, and would be even worse with larger ones. The general consensus is to regear to 4.56 if upsizing to a 31in or larger tire on a 3RZ 4Runner. You will lose gas mileage on the highway because you will be turning significantly higher RPMs, though, so be cognisant of that. I personally have left mine alone since my truck is turbocharged, but if I ever find a complete Toyota 4.30 third member for cheap, I will probably make the switch. Thanks for watching!
You can get gears from East Coast Gear Supply (ECGS). Many people prefer Yukon over Nitro, but I haven't used either so I can't say which is better. You can also find used complete third members on eBay, which would save you money on gear install and setup.
how in the name of Mary and Joseph is your engine bay so damn clean
Yep. We also recommend replacing the drain plug (PN 90341-10006) each time and just tightening it by hand as they strip out easily.
He’s the Bob Ross of Toyota
Haha, thanks for watching!
My god you're truck looks like it just came off the showroom floor.
+Miles McDonnell Thanks for the complement and thanks for watching!
That engine bay is clean.
Thanks, and thanks for watching!
You check it with the transmission in park and the engine running - correct?
I have a 97 V6 4X4 Limited with 171,000 on it. I have no idea if the fluid has ever been changed, but i'm going to either do it or have someone else do it. Is it pretty much the same principle? I wasn't sure if there were any 4cyl/V6 or 2WD/4WD differences. Also any tips, tricks, or warnings are appreciated.
It's still an A340 AISIN transmission, but slightly different from the 4cyl 2WD. You will have a transfer case bolted to the back of the transmission as well, so don't mistake that for the transmission. Be careful when tightening the drain plug, as it is easy to strip out.
As James Curl has mentioned, auto tranny should be checked when engine is running at normal temp, you run through all the gears stopping at each and return to Park (some cars return to Neutral). Parking brake up just in case, and be careful not to get burnt due to the weird locations of the dipsticks
Yeah, I forgot to mention that in the video. Thanks for watching!
Loop
Where did you purchase your ATF? It looked to be redline stuff.
How is the proper way to check the fluid in that model does it has to be with the engine off?
I don't have the manual in front of me right now to confirm, but assuming the 4Runner follows standard Toyota fluid checking procedure (which I think it does), you check the fluid hot while the vehicle is running and in park. Note that Toyota typically defines "hot" fluid as having been driven at 50 mph for 20 minutes. Hope that helps, and thanks for watching!
How is the traction with that? I keep having bad pictures of a one wheel drive truck when they are just rear wheel. That is awful in the winter time!!
+John Doe I live in Arizona so I don't have any issues with it, but when I had the truck up in Massachusetts for 4 years, I never had any issues. Snow tires and driving skill make a huge difference. Thanks for watching!
+redonKiLaus I got some of that fluid for my 06 Jetta 2.5 and I expect some nice results with it. I got mine from some business somewhere that deals mostly with stuff for Mustangs simply because of the free shipping. The key to shopping on sites that don't deal with your vehicle specifically is to already know the product you are looking for.
Man i have the same truck mine is a 2000 toyota 4runner it has 295.000 miles on it they didn't change the oil acasinally cause i had to have the valve cover gasket changed and there was alot off gunk so im using mobil1 high milage 10w40 weight it calls for 5w30 weight but my mechanic told me it has alot of miles and there is probably gunk in the engine and that 5w30 is to thin for a car that has been neglet on oil changes he told me if the engine was taken care of and oil changes were done correcly that yes he would just use what manufactor recommends and we are here in miami fla where climate is always hot do you think he is correct oh and also i will have to do at least 3 oil changes at 2000 miles for the engine to be at least cleaner he recommended.
I run 10W-40 Mobil 1 Full Synthetic in my truck to compensate for the hot temperatures here in Arizona as well as oil shear since my truck is turbocharged and the oil sees much more extreme temperatures than normal. In your case, you should be just fine running either 5W-30 or 10W-40 and doing the frequent oil changes to allow for the detergents in the oil to clean up your engine. Personally, I would recommend 10W-40 in the summer in Florida, and 5W-30 in the winter, although running the heavier weight oil won't hurt anything as long as you go easy on the truck for the first 5-15 minutes of driving.
Thanks for watching!
redonKiLaus Thanks man
is this a different procedure for the manual?
Completely different, there is no pan, drain and fill plugs in different locations, etc. I'm sure there are some writeups on the 4Runner forum for the manual transmissions. Thanks for watching!
I have a 97 2.7l 2wd 4runner automatic, identical to yours. What gears are in it? I put bigger tires and it's noticeably slower in accelerating. Please help
It has 3.91 gears, which are pretty awful with the 31in tires, and would be even worse with larger ones. The general consensus is to regear to 4.56 if upsizing to a 31in or larger tire on a 3RZ 4Runner. You will lose gas mileage on the highway because you will be turning significantly higher RPMs, though, so be cognisant of that. I personally have left mine alone since my truck is turbocharged, but if I ever find a complete Toyota 4.30 third member for cheap, I will probably make the switch. Thanks for watching!
thanks so much for the info. I have 31/10.50/r15. so where could I find 4.56 gears?
You can get gears from East Coast Gear Supply (ECGS). Many people prefer Yukon over Nitro, but I haven't used either so I can't say which is better. You can also find used complete third members on eBay, which would save you money on gear install and setup.
thanks so much for the valuable info.
hey redonkilaus, I was wondering where you can find out the gear diff info or how to decode it bc now my friend is interested.
I bought it on Amazon.