Ok, tell me like I'm an 8 year old. :)

[bigdaddy2021]

I'm very mechanically inclined - with a full shop and many tools. That being said, I'm new to the 5th gen.

What should my dash "maintenence required" light mean at 12.5k miles?

I'm thinking at least an oil change. It pops on every 5k miles, right? That's about right for purchasing it at 8k and Carmax either servicing it or just resetting the message...lol.

Tire rotation - My tires are brand new BFG's with less than 2k miles on them.
Air filter(s) - my filters are brand new (I checked them when we bought it).

Do you do anything else regularly?

 

[chester4Run]

Yep, that’s your oil change light.

 

[CajunMikeR]

Once upon a time, there were documents that came with vehicles that were called owners' manuals that had all sorts of information in them. In recent years, car manufacturers have included quick reference guides and electronic, searchable versions of these fabled manuals. It's believed, though it seems to be a fable, that owners were intelligent enough to look through these documents for themselves, but a rash of laziness and instant gratification has swept across the world. The result is multiple threads on forums, message boards, and Facebook groups asking the same questions over and over again.

 

[dezertbomber]

Once upon a time, there were documents that came with vehicles that were called owners' manuals that had all sorts of information in them. In recent years, car manufacturers have included quick reference guides and electronic, searchable versions of these fabled manuals. It's believed, though it seems to be a fable, that owners were intelligent enough to look through these documents for themselves, but a rash of laziness and instant gratification has swept across the world. The result is multiple threads on forums, message boards, and Facebook groups asking the same questions over and over again.

Lol, lots of effort to call someone lazy and then not answer any questions.

And either way, while new thread count might go down a bit, there'd still be pages and pages of posts on those threads bc ppl come on here to ask, comment and share regardless.

But I'm sure that felt great to type out and hit Submit.

Also, Owner's Manuals were/are not Maintenance Schedules, those were separate included documents. They included what to change and check at each mileage interval, which is what the OP is looking for.

For example: Attention Required! | Cloudflare.

Maintenance Index | 4Runner 4Ever

 

[bigdaddy2021]

Once upon a time, there were documents that came with vehicles that were called owners' manuals that had all sorts of information in them. In recent years, car manufacturers have included quick reference guides and electronic, searchable versions of these fabled manuals. It's believed, though it seems to be a fable, that owners were intelligent enough to look through these documents for themselves, but a rash of laziness and instant gratification has swept across the world. The result is multiple threads on forums, message boards, and Facebook groups asking the same questions over and over again.

Yeah, I detest those guys........

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so back to what I was asking, specific to 5th gen 4runner and their very non-specific "maintenance" alert.

oil, brakes, air filters, tires, wiper blades and of all things floor mats is what the maintenance schedule says, and then it lists like 15 optional tasks.

I listed my top three of oil, filters, tires and was asking, "What else do YOU (my charming, always fresh-smelling cadre of 4runner owners) check for regularly?"

 

[rageandlove]

Yeah, I detest those guys........

...
...
...
...

so back to what I was asking, specific to 5th gen 4runner and their very non-specific "maintenance" alert.

oil, brakes, air filters, tires, wiper blades and of all things floor mats is what the maintenance schedule says, and then it lists like 15 optional tasks.

I listed my top three of oil, filters, tires and was asking, "What else do YOU check for regularly?"

Bolts on sliders and skids. One or two of them decide to disappear every year.

 

[bigdaddy2021]

Bolts on sliders and skids. One or two of them decide to disappear every year.

Oh my gosh, I lost two off my skids and 3 off my sliders in Moab, before I started doing daily rig "wellness checks" . Had NO idea it would be such a prevalent thing!

 

[BobsTrail]

From my old 2013, but our T4s are going into year 12 with only minor changes.

 

[Ripper238]

The "maintenance minder" reminds me that Toyota was too lazy to update there ancient software for the new synthetic oil changes at 10k. Now after 5k I am reminded that if i had only used regular oil I wouldn't have to stair at the maintenance minder for 5k.

I generally do oil changes every ~8k, rotate tires every 10k and the rest as needed.

Bolts on sliders and skids. One or two of them decide to disappear every year.

Yeah, what's up with that? Somehow I lost a skid plate bolt too. lol

 

[honda250xtitan]

i'll grease the uppers and lube the kdss sway bar bushings and anything with a zerk every 10k miles on top of the oil change. every 5k i just reset the light.

 

[CajunMikeR]

You're the one that said explain it to you like an 8yr old. You got what you asked for and now you ***** about it. [emoji1787][emoji1787][emoji1787]

 

[Lexington]

I'm very mechanically inclined - with a full shop and many tools. That being said, I'm new to the 5th gen.

What should my dash "maintenence required" light mean at 12.5k miles?

I'm thinking at least an oil change. It pops on every 5k miles, right? That's about right for purchasing it at 8k and Carmax either servicing it or just resetting the message...lol.

Tire rotation - My tires are brand new BFG's with less than 2k miles on them.
Air filter(s) - my filters are brand new (I checked them when we bought it).

Do you do anything else regularly?

Unfortunately maintenance schedules aren’t all that simple anymore. They add too many variation which just makes it worse. Most people just want a simple schedule. I found this dealer made a very nice Maintenance Schedule.

https://www.toyotaofsantabarbara.com/4runner-recommended-maintenance-oil-change/url

 

[rageandlove]

Page 34 on does a good job at this, but you need to account for your actual usage. There is no "every 10k miles in all cases."

Also, page 34 gives you a list to look at every day you do anything "off road."

Best I've found. I'm going to turn it into a spreadsheet at some point.

Unfortunately maintenance schedules aren’t all that simple anymore. They add too many variation which just makes it worse. Most people just want a simple schedule. I found this dealer made a very nice Maintenance Schedule.

https://www.toyotaofsantabarbara.com/4runner-recommended-maintenance-oil-change/url

https://www.toyotaofsantabarbara.com/4runner-recommended-maintenance-oil-change/url

 

[jdm-v35]

These are the regular maintenance things that I do/check:

rotate tires every 5k
change oil/filter every 10k
grease driveshaft every 15k
change diff/transfer case fluids every 30k
check air filter every 15k unless I offroad through a ton of dust(then immediately after such a trip)

check tire psi if temps change drastically

everything else is on an as needed basis. ie brakes, cabin air filter etc.

 

[1jzgte]

12.5k maintenance lights just mean donate to your local dealer if you feel like giving

remove air filter and use a leaf blower to dust it out
invest in a tire tread guage and rotate tires when rears begin to show more wear than fronts (unless tire dealer requires rotations at certain intervals for warranty.)

 

[Saker]

12.5K maint light / reset your main light at the 15K and it will come on every 5 to remind you of regular maint.

Normal maint stuff as described above and you will be good-to-go.

 

[97BlackAckCL]

Once upon a time, there was little maintenance required light that would come on to remind people to change their oil. 4Runner drivers united to change their oil when or before the light came on, and they all lived happily ever after