Thanks for the write up, I know I need to do this because I cant even see through the reservoir, its just black!

I wouldn't be too concerned about oem fluid vs. a good aftermarket fluid. The manual just says, "replace with Automatic Trans Fluid Dexron II OR III. It does not say to use Toyota fluid. And Toyota is very specific when they need to be, for example, here's how they handle OEM fluid vs any fluid throughout the truck:

motor oil: "use Toyota genuine motor oil or equivalent that meets API grade"

Coolant; "use Toyota super long life or similar high quality that doesnt contain blah blah blah..."

Trans fluid "use ONLY Toyota Genuine ATF fluid. Using any other fluid can cause vibration, locking up of the transmission" (pretty firm on this one)

brake fluid: "use SAE J1703 or FMVSS no. 116 DOT 3"

If it was imperative to use Toyota fluid in the steering, I would think they would tell you to use Toyota fluid.

yeah!, just did this
the write up was super helpful...undid the 3 bolts, and removed the reservoir, cleaned it thoroughly and its now clear.
jacking up the wheels helped the process, even the bleeding.

if you are careful n frugal...1quart is enough, i bought 1 gallon, and used roughly 2 quarts just for the heck of it.

I did this a year ago on my 06. When I did it I did not remove/clean the reservoir. I will be be removing the reservoir to clean it shortly... Nice write-up.

Thank you for the great write up! Did this and a transmission flush the other day. FWIW: Parts guy at the dealer told me not to use either the T-IV or WS as power steering fluid. Not sure how credible that info is but I figured I'd share. I went with Valvoline Maxlife. My old fluid was disgusting. Very noticeable improvement

I'll have to do this when it warms up. What other standard maintenance did you do when you bought your runner?

Depends what's on your trucks service history. I like to overhaul (fluids, plugs, filters, lube) as much as I can on used vehicles for peace of mind so I can monitor it moving forward .. but mine also just had 5k oil changes on the service history and nothing else.

I did plugs, F/R diff, TC, tranny drain and fill, PS flush, brake fluid flush, oil change, engine air filter, cabin air filter, greased zerk fittings, serviced brake pads (lube and grease). It helps to use discount codes to save on local purchases. Advance and Napa got to know me quite well the first week I had my truck. Walmart too.

Tell the family to leave you alone for a weekend and DIY away. Great way to get to know your vehicle intimately.

Thanks for the details. The hardest part was getting the return hose off of the nipple on the reservoir. Took a solid 10 minutes just to do that.

Pump hummed for a minute or two once restarting but all is normal.

No change in feel using M1 ATF synthetic fluid.

I have a 2008 V6 I purchased used off a local Toyota dealer with 50K on it - now 120K. I want to do this but my fluid is clear to amber. My manual says it takes ATF but now I'm a little afraid to mix. I think I'll call down to Toyota to see if they used something different before I purchased it. The fluid looked new (freshly changed) when I purchased it a few years back.

Resurrecting an old thread to urge anyone on the fence to do this. I bought my '07 Sport almost 3 years and 28K+ miles ago. I put this service on my list when I ran across this thread and finally got it done a couple of days ago. The result was a pleasant surprise.

The fluid was a kind of brownish/clear and I'm wondering if somebody topped off the original ATF with PS fluid somewhere along the line. In any case, mildly loose steering was really the only thing I found a little bothersome about driving the truck. That's gone. The steering is noticeably tighter and more responsive (even allowing for the placebo effect).

Obviously any system works best with clean fluid of the proper kind, but I'll admit I didn't realize it could make this much difference.

One practical tip. Had a messy and spectacular fail on my first attempt at sealing off the reservoir nipple after the hose was off. Thought I had it closed off and filled the reservoir. Yeah, no...out came most of the ATF. Fortunately I had laid down cardboard and had my trusty emergency hazmat fluid uptake kit (aka bargain-basement kitty litter) standing by.

Next I wrapped the nipple's end with a ziploc bag held by a zip tie, then wrapped it a second time with a different part of the ziploc bag and added another zip tie. Not a drop leaked after that.

Used about 1.5 quarts of Supertech Dex II/III ATF from Walmart and that includes the reservoir full that I spilled.

Just wanted to add that if you have some clear tubing laying around that fits tightly into the return - run that down to the catch pan and after you start it draining, it remains in auto siphon so you just need to keep adding more new fluid until it's running red. Once you have good color coming through pull the tubing out of the return line and the siphon stops. Viola!

c'mon man lol, everything was clearly spelled out for you on how to do it the right way and obviously you didn't follow those instructions so that is why you had those issues.

you just simply didn't follow the instructions that were given

thanks for the write up, mine looks just as bad as yours so I will be doing this flush and refill very soon.

I know this is an old thread, but I have the same questions.

Why jack the truck and why should the engine be turned off?

Ooops, never mind. I did not see the OTHER 3 pages of posts! Thanks for the great post, I'll do it this week.

Great guide, thank you for taking the time to write this. Was able to flush and fill today!