First oil change on '04 V8

[Ian]

I gave our 4Runner her (my wife seems to think it is a "she") first oil change yesterday and shot some pics in the process so I figured I would post them in case they could be of use to anyone.

My first observation is what others have posted, Toyota put a lot of thought into the little details that made the oil change easier than I thought it would be when I first took a look under the truck and saw all those metal splash guards. This pic shows the open access panel for the oil drain plug. It's an oval plastic piece on the rear metal splash guard. There is a small notch on one end of the plastic panel where a screwdriver can easily pop the panel out of place.

 

[Ian]

Oil plug access panel

See pic below:

 

[Ian]

Oil filter splash guard

The oil filter is also nicely placed, at the front with little obstructions around it, except for the front splash guard. The splash guard mounted with 4 12mm bolts, two at the front and two at the rear accessed through oval holes in the splash guard. Don't worry about it falling, it's on two hinges on the front--nice touch by Toyota.

 

[Ian]

Oil filter splash guard

see pic below

 

[Ian]

Oil filter

The oil filter has a nice open area blow it so when it is removed the oil doesn't go all over cross-members (like on a my Grand Cherokee 5.2L V8).

 

[Ian]

Removing the oil filter

Apparently our oil filter was installed by a factory gorilla. I did the oil change without lifting the truck, so I couldn't get much leverage on it and resorted to other methods. The first was trying to turn it with rubber gloves--that didn't work. Then I tried one of those rubber mats that is used to open jars of pickles and such--that didn't work either. I then dug into my box of tools and tried to fit two oil filter wrenches on it, but neither fit (there's a picture below). The "G" was too small and the "H" was too big.

 

[Ian]

The wrench that won the war!

The pic below is of the wrench that finally loosened the oil filter.

 

[Ian]

Oil filters

I bought my oil filters from PartzNet (Conicelli Toyota), including the small washers. I think they were $4 or so with the usual 20% discount (ask for it). The 90915-20004 is the factory 4.7L filter and the 90915-YZZD3 is the "Lexus" filter that has a check valve in it--some say the check valve keeps oil up in the engine for restart lubrication.

 

[Ian]

The OEM washer

The OEM washer (composite of some sort) was really stuck to the bottom of the oil drain plug (14mm IIRC). I used a chisel to separate it from the plug (the factory gorilla probably caused this bond).

 

[Ian]

The new washer

The new washer that I got from PartzNet is made out of a different composite and is about 2mm bigger in outer diameter, the middle diameter is the same. In the pic below you can see the slight differences.

 

[Ian]

The oil

Here's the oil that I used for the refill. It's Mobil 1 5W-30. The 4.7L takes 6.5qt., so I had to use this 5qt. bottle, then added a full 1qt (still too low), then added 0.5qt. to get it to the middle of the dipstick (after running it in the garage for a few minutes).
That's my usual approach: I tight the oil filter by hand (snug), make sure the plug with a new washer is on there snug. Add almost all the oil (6.25qt of the 6.5qt) and then start the engine to check for leaks and oil pressure. I let it run for about 30 seconds, shutdown, and check the oil level after about 10 minutes. 6.5qt. looks like it brings the level to about halfway between the two marks on the dipstick, that's after letting the old oil drain until it was only dripping once every few seconds.

 

[Jim]

Ian, great thread and pics. I just did the 5K service on my V6 yesterday. Interestingly, the factory had installed a filter with part nmuber 90915-YZZD3. My parts guy said that this was for the V8 and that the V6 filter is 90915-YZZD1. Your filter picture shows what looks to me like "D3" in the part number, not "03". Since the factory put the D3 on my V6, that's what I used to replace it. My thought was that the larger filter area is better. Good to know that it also has the check valve.

 

[sharp4runr]

This is a great thread and should be made a sticky... it's got my vote anyways...

 

[testrider]

Great thread.
After I changed my oil the very 1st time, I installed a Fumoto valve (http://fumotovalve.com/) and I never have to remove the drain plug again. Check it out. I have one in every cars and trucks I own.

-mike-

 

[Ian]

Ian, great thread and pics. I just did the 5K service on my V6 yesterday. Interestingly, the factory had installed a filter with part nmuber 90915-YZZD3. My parts guy said that this was for the V8 and that the V6 filter is 90915-YZZD1. Your filter picture shows what looks to me like "D3" in the part number, not "03". Since the factory put the D3 on my V6, that's what I used to replace it. My thought was that the larger filter area is better. Good to know that it also has the check valve.

Thanks. You're right, it is "D3". I must have had oil in my eyes. I'll make the change above so I don't confuse anyone.

 

[Ian]

Great thread.
After I changed my oil the very 1st time, I installed a Fumoto valve (http://fumotovalve.com/) and I never have to remove the drain plug again. Check it out. I have one in every cars and trucks I own.

-mike-

That fumotovalve sounds interesting. How many miles and oil changes do you have on it?

 

[Jim]

I must have had oil in my eyes. I'll make the change above so I don't confuse anyone.

I don't know what's worse - oil or dirt in the eyes. At least if it's dirt, you probably had some fun along the way!

 

[testrider]

That fumotovalve sounds interesting. How many miles and oil changes do you have on it?

Before I bought my 03 4Runner,
I had a 1990 Bronco that I bought it new in 1990. In the 1st oil change I installed a Fumoto valve. I took it offroad from time to time and it never leaked a drop and I never had to retighten it in 13 years. I sold it in 2003 with 156,000 mi with the Fumoto valve still on it after 13 years. I'm a believer so I put one on my 03 4Runner in my 1st oil change (I'm on my 4th oil change now). My wife's car got one too. I highly recommend it.

-Mike-

 

[Biff]

That fumotovalve sounds interesting. How many miles and oil changes do you have on it?

Ian

How many qt's oil did you put in your V8? I heard it was eight, I think my friend put eight in his. What would happend if you put to much oil in your rig?

 

[Ian]

How many qt's oil did you put in your V8? I heard it was eight, I think my friend put eight in his. What would happend if you put to much oil in your rig?

I put in 6.5Qts. That's how much the owners manual specifies and that is how much I gradually added until the dipstick reading was just below the high mark (see my earlier post in this thread for how I gradually added the oil).

I can't image putting 8 Qts. in my truck. That's 2.5 Qts. over the specification...not even sure that would fit in the engine without overflowing the filler. Maybe your friend has some external oil accessories that are taking that additional volume, for example: a remote oil filter, an aftermarket oil cooler, blower that is supplied with crankcase oil, etc.

If significantly more oil is added (say .5 to 1Qt or more), then I would think several things could happen: higher oil pressure (more oil, less air to compress), leaks at seals due to higher oil pressure, blowing out the dipstick tube, etc. Also, I think the oil pump can have issues at higher volumes/pressures causing frothing and cavitation--both leading to poor oiling (ironically)...IIRC.

Biff, do you know if your TRD supercharger is lubricated by the same oil as the crankcase. I have to admit, I don't know a lot about superchargers, but a turbo car is lubricated by the same oil that is in the crankcase so this adds oil volume. Maybe you need more oil when you add a supercharger?