Help Quick--Location of Oil Drain Plug?

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cmj685

New member
Guys,
I am laying out under my 2005 V6 at my first oil change...and I can't find the oil drain plug. Anyone give some quick help on location? I guess I got surprised about two things--first, I thought there would be more room under there to manuever and look--the 4Runner sits lower to the ground than I thought, and second, I didn't expect having any trouble finding the plug. But wrong on both accounts. Help! Thanks.
 
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I can't help you with that, but I can suggest something else.

You sound like you change your own oil. I do it myself as well, mainly because I like to do it but also because I can use the oil I want, the filter I want, and I know it's done right.

Anyway, about three years ago I bought something called a PELA Oil Extractor, which keeps you from ever having to get under the vehicle again. It's a medium-sized plastic case with an attached pump. You remove the dipstick, insert a long, narrow hose that is attached to the plastic cylindrical case, and pump. It sucks all the oil out in a matter of minutes. You then add your oil and voila, finished.

This thing is just great and I highly recommend it if you like to change your own oil. I bought it for about 40 bucks or so from Overton's. I think the address is overtons.com.
 
Every drain plug is located on the bottom of the oil pan. Find the engine oil pan. If you have skid plates then look for a removable oval access panel. If you see none then remove the skids plates and get familiar with the bottom end of the engine.
 
coolpop said:
I can't help you with that, but I can suggest something else.

You sound like you change your own oil. I do it myself as well, mainly because I like to do it but also because I can use the oil I want, the filter I want, and I know it's done right.

Anyway, about three years ago I bought something called a PELA Oil Extractor, which keeps you from ever having to get under the vehicle again. It's a medium-sized plastic case with an attached pump. You remove the dipstick, insert a long, narrow hose that is attached to the plastic cylindrical case, and pump. It sucks all the oil out in a matter of minutes. You then add your oil and voila, finished.
Click to expand...
The concern I have with those is the unit probably does not get everything, especially the nasty sticky sludge stuff that may fall out by gravity when you use the plug.

I can see a few pluses, you don't have to worry about the skid plate, the washer on the drain plug and you don't have to put it on a ramp.
 
cmj685 said:
Guys,
I am laying out under my 2005 V6 at my first oil change...and I can't find the oil drain plug. Anyone give some quick help on location? I guess I got surprised about two things--first, I thought there would be more room under there to manuever and look--the 4Runner sits lower to the ground than I thought, and second, I didn't expect having any trouble finding the plug. But wrong on both accounts. Help! Thanks.
Click to expand...

There is an oval plastic snap in cover in the metal pan under the engine. Remove the cover, and you should see the bottom of the oil pan with the drain plug.

As for the clearance, I use a set of ramps. Very easy, and more room for checking out other tihings while under there.
 
Thanks Guys! With your direction I found it...and learned a whole bunch of things that I needed to about changing oil on the 4R.
Hey...one thing I am a little concerned with/confused about. The OEM oil filter I took off was slightly larger (longer) than the Purolator Pure One filter I put on. I didn't expect that and am a bit concerned about it...anyone else find the same thing? Have any ideas about why this would be?
Also, my thanks to the moderator for digging up old threads which were very helpful. I noted on one of the threads that the instructions were to change the washer on the drain plug. I confess to never have done that before with my vehicles and didn't have one to put on this time with the 4Runner--didn't realize it should be done. Any further info on that (as to why, what and where to get them) would be greatly appreciated.
 
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cmj685 said:
.... I noted on one of the threads that the instructions were to change the washer on the drain plug. I confess to never have done that before with my vehicles and didn't have one to put on this time with the 4Runner--didn't realize it should be done. Any further info on that (as to why, what and where to get them) would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...

They're really gaskets and you can get them from Toyota for about $1.00 apiece. They are there to provide a good seal without having to "crank" down on the crankcase bolt (spec is about 20 ft-lbs). Otherwise it may leak (drip).
 
cmj685 said:
Thanks Guys! With your direction I found it...and learned a whole bunch of things that I needed to about changing oil on the 4R.
Hey...one thing I am a little concerned with/confused about. The OEM oil filter I took off was slightly larger (longer) than the Purolator Pure One filter I put on. I didn't expect that and am a bit concerned about it...anyone else find the same thing? Have any ideas about why this would be?
Also, my thanks to the moderator for digging up old threads which were very helpful. I noted on one of the threads that the instructions were to change the washer on the drain plug. I confess to never have done that before with my vehicles and didn't have one to put on this time with the 4Runner--didn't realize it should be done. Any further info on that (as to why, what and where to get them) would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...

Just like you I started out using after market oil filters. At my last change I stopped by a dealership and picked up the factory filter. It was actually cheaper($4 + Tax) than most filters at wally world. Toyota makes a high quality filter and I am going to stick with it from now on.

As for the (Crush Washer) I have not changed mine either and I have 37k miles. I don't see much of a point in doing it. I have no Oil leaks. I know someone else will post a number of reasons to do it but I have never done it on any vehicle I owned either and have never stripped out the drain plug. Just my opinion. Take it for what is is worth.
 
Toyota Oil Filters

Actually, there are two Toyota oil filters that should fit your engine. Go here:

http://www.mkiv.com/techarticles/parts/toyota_filter/index.html

for an extensive analysis of the two. The lesser of the two is an unimpressive piece, that looks to have probably been made by Fram.

I bought a half-dozen of the good ones from a Texas Toyota dealer that discounts to on-line buyers. When they arrived, I noticed one of the boxes wasn't sealed and opened it to find the cheaper filter had been subsituted! Seems someone else felt the way I do about the merits of the two filters!
 
I bought a package of ten fiber washers from the dealer, instead of the metal crush washers. They work fine. I have also reused the metal crush washers 3 or 4 times before they leak. In fact almost any material will work with sealing motor oil. I have made washers out of a sheet of thin cork and other times I have used a sheet of rubber. I have a set of hole-punches, so it
 
Changing Oil


I did my first oil change yesterday at 5100 miles. (I had the first one done at the stealership when I hit 2000 miles, as it was a freebie.)

Anyway, I crawled under my 4Runner.....and no, it doesn't sit up as high off the ground as you might think. I looked and could not see the oil drain plug - but the transmission plug is right there in plain sight. Fortunately, from reading this forum, I knew that I should not open it and assume that it was for the engine. With it sitting so far back from the front of the truck, I knew it could not be the crankcase drain pan.

I looked fore and aft and finally found the oil pan drain plug. Trick is - as mentioned above - that you have to pry off the oval-shaped plastic thing (six prongs on it) before you can even see the drain bolt. It is about three or four inches up inside the skid plate. A long-size 14mm socket is required, but it is easy to access it once you find it. While this might seem like a pain, it is nice to know that Toyota designed it to be well-protected from scrapes and rocks in the unlikely event I ever take my 4Runner off the paved road.
:awais:

I gave it a good long time to drain (while I changed the filter) and then put in five quarts of Mobil-1 5w30 synthetic. Wal-Mart sells the five-quart jug for about twenty bucks - a fair price. I bought an extra quart of it (about $4.50) because I thought that I will have to put in a little extra. The owner's guide says it holds 5 1/2 quarts - with a filter change, but the dipstick shows it as full with just the jug. (Maybe it will go down a bit after a few days.....I'll keep an eye on the level every time I get fuel.)

Anyway, the way Toyota does the filter is very cool. It is on top of the engine, so you don't spill its hot oil all over the place when you remove the old one. Also, you don't have to "feel" your way around or burn your forearm trying to install the new one. The only bad thing is that there will be a few ounces of oil that comes out of the old filter. It kind of sits there in the receptacle. I know there is a little rubber stopper that you can remove to catch the oil below it, but that seemed like a pain and the engine was VERY HOT yesterday because I was driving it when the temperature outside was close to 100 degrees! Anyway, I just used an old shirt as a rag and blotted it up until there was none left. The new filter (which is the OEM type that I bought for $5 at the local stealership) went on with no problem.

I plan to use synthetic oil and the OEM filters as long as I have this vehicle (three-year lease). If I decide to buy it at the end (not likely), I will have peace of mind in knowing that it was well-maintained and will hardly be broken in. Otherwise, I will sleep better knowing that whomever gets my "second hand" T4R is going to be able to enjoy it for a long, long time.
:D


P.S. The dealership gave me one of those "drain plug rings" with each filter.
 
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I wish the prior owner of my 4runner was like you! Good Job! Doing the same except I purchased a mobil 1 oil filter. So I take it that the OEM one is just as good so next time I will go with that Japan one that everyone is talking about.
 
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