Simple way to flush the 4th Gen 4runner Transmission oil (5speed automatic)

[radlynx]

1. first, make sure the car is on level ground, (1 ramp on each tire).
2. I removed the oil level plug, drained around 1qt then plugged it back in.
3. I removed the drain plug, another 2 qts came out and then plugged it back in.
4. I then removed the 20 bolts to remove the pan and gasket, another 1 1/8 qts came out.
5. I removed the filter and replaced it with the wix on and cleaned the pan and the 4 magnets in the pan, there's a bunch of grease like fine metals. it's very important to remove those.
6. reinstalled the pan with a new bolt (old one was rusted enough that it's starting to break when loosening it, broke 2 bolts while removing it.
7. disconnected the transmission hose from the upper part of the radiator and filled with 4 1/8 qts of atf thru the radiator using an oil pump. (easy peasy this way).
8. connected another hose to the end of the hose and towards an empty container on the floor with a mark for each quart of oil. (used an empty wiper fluid container).
9. started the car until it filled up to at least 2 quarts and stopped the engine.
10. refilled another 2 quarts of oil then repeat item# 9 until you get a reddish color atf. (I used at least 14qts of oil)
11. put back the hose to the radiator and you are done with your flush.
12. all in all, my old atf oil has been used for 70000 miles and it still reddish in color but a bit darker. it seems like I could go another 30000 miles with the old one.

Here's the youtube link how simple it is to flush it. https://youtu.be/Q3fu0wiabFQ

 

[Montego Murph]

Questions:
What size hose and connectors did you use to drain the fluid to the clear bottle?

Why did you drain both the oil level plug and the oil drain plug? Wouldn't the oil drain plug have taken care of all the oil, or is there an isolated compartment around the level plug?

I noticed that during your engine-on cycles you didn't shift between the gears to purge the oil from the valves. Is this not required due to valve design, or more under the category of "it's such a small amount, it will just get diluted into the new stuff?"

Great writeup and video. I will be doing mine soon.

 

[radlynx]

I drained the oil level plug first and drain plug second just for me to find out how much oil will come out on each plug. that will just tell me during the refill if oil starts dripping in the oil level plug and how much more oil I need to add after that. that's just to make sure I did have the right amount of oil when refilling.

I don't remember the hose size but will update later tonight. I forgot to mention, I did shift the gears after each restart of the engine.

Questions:
What size hose and connectors did you use to drain the fluid to the clear bottle?

Why did you drain both the oil level plug and the oil drain plug? Wouldn't the oil drain plug have taken care of all the oil, or is there an isolated compartment around the level plug?

I noticed that during your engine-on cycles you didn't shift between the gears to purge the oil from the valves. Is this not required due to valve design, or more under the category of "it's such a small amount, it will just get diluted into the new stuff?"

Great writeup and video. I will be doing mine soon.

 

[matt922]

Its a lot easier just draining and refilling the pan. Removing the pan sounds like a mess.

 

[radlynx]

I really did not made a mess. I used a bottle jack to jack the pan to hold it in place, removed all the bolts and pry it a little bit to detach it from the transmission and lowered the jack.

just draining the pan will leave all those metallic parts from the magnet and will still have another 1 1/4 used oil left in the pan. mixing the used oil with a new oil is okay too but I think it's not worth replacing if you do it that way.

Its a lot easier just draining and refilling the pan. Removing the pan sounds like a mess.

 

[radlynx]

Just answering your hose question today.

What size hose and connectors did you use to drain the fluid to the clear bottle? the blue hose (flexible plastic I got from an old reverse osmosis) has an Outer diameter of 3/8. the clear hose connected to my pump is 3/8 inner diameter. I never thought I will be able to use that reverse osmosis hose. I just kept the hose when I got rid of my old reverse osmosis.

Questions:
What size hose and connectors did you use to drain the fluid to the clear bottle?

Why did you drain both the oil level plug and the oil drain plug? Wouldn't the oil drain plug have taken care of all the oil, or is there an isolated compartment around the level plug?

I noticed that during your engine-on cycles you didn't shift between the gears to purge the oil from the valves. Is this not required due to valve design, or more under the category of "it's such a small amount, it will just get diluted into the new stuff?"

Great writeup and video. I will be doing mine soon.

 

[AuSeeker]

Remvoing the pan is much easier on the V6 because you didn't have to deal with disconnecting the exhaust as you do on the V8 to get the pan off which is the main reason many with the V8 don't do the pan removal since the exhasut can sometimes be a pain due to rust and not to mention just having that extra step just to pull the pan and I'm assuming you installed a new pan gasket?

 

[TowMeOut]

That's very similar to the way I changed my ATF but I skipped the pan drop. From reading other threads I figured any material stuck to the magnets was welcome to stay there. The chance of me causing a leak or screwing something up removing the pan seems higher than just leaving that alone.

Pumping the fluid back in looks like a hassle. I made a "reservoir" from an old jug and a bulkhead fitting of some sort I grabbed from Lowes (or maybe the nozzle from a gear oil bottle). I ended up with a 1-gal jug upside down wedged in next to the battery tray. Pour in a couple of quarts and it gets pulled in the same time the transmission is pumping out the old.

I like the idea of jamming some pliers in the neck to hold the hose. That's simple genius. I had a hose pop out of a drain pan and go everywhere on the first shot....yuck. I wasn't expecting quite that much flow.

 

[mwebster22]

Can you give part numbers on the replacement Wix transmission filter and gasket? I want to change mine too but on RockAuto it appears that on the Wix filter listed it doesn't come with a gasket, and appears there are several other gasket options. I have a 2006 V6 2WD Sport if that matters.

 

[radlynx]

Can you give part numbers on the replacement Wix transmission filter and gasket? I want to change mine too but on RockAuto it appears that on the Wix filter listed it doesn't come with a gasket, and appears there are several other gasket options. I have a 2006 V6 2WD Sport if that matters.

the wix filter comes with a gasket. go to wixfilters.com site and you will find the part number and local store to buy it from.

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

 

[mwebster22]

the wix filter comes with a gasket. go to wixfilters.com site and you will find the part number and local store to buy it from.

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

Thanks -- got it sourced from O'Reilly now. Got my fluid from dealership this morning. Pan drained and down now awaiting filter and gasket.

Do you know the flow routing from the pan through the cooler? I'm just wondering if the new fluid I put in the pan will be the first to flush out into the container from the cooler line, or if it will show up last?

 

[SCY7H3]

Just saw this thread and wanted to add my .02. Dropping the pan, washing it out along with the magnets and replacing the filter is the way to go. Not to mention to replace the transmission fluid a bit earlier will lower the wear on the valves in the transmission.

Having those fine particles constantly circling through the transmission especially the valves will result in bigger tolerances, sticky valves, worn seals, etc. Toyota and the dealer will tell you to replace it at a higher mileage but that's because Toyota receives financial kickbacks from governments for being eco. Less oil changes results in less pollution. They save money, but you end up with a bigger bill later on or simply a transmission that isn't functioning properly.

Toyota used to sell oil made in Japan in those nice big metal cans but ended up switching over to locally sourced cheaper oils to keep everyone happy (politics). You can use most oil brands out there that will work in our transmissions but I would suggest using TOTAL (if available in your area). So far I've seen improvements in the shifts and a bit of a better gas mileage. Usually when you change any oil you get back some of the performance loss. With everything being eco now, there's not a whole lot of oils out there that don't start to degrade prematurely. TOTAL lasts much longer as it is a higher grade fully synthetic. I used it in everything that requires oil including the engine and at 9K miles the oil is still usuable.

Hope some of this info helps

 

[radlynx]

Thanks -- got it sourced from O'Reilly now. Got my fluid from dealership this morning. Pan drained and down now awaiting filter and gasket.

Do you know the flow routing from the pan through the cooler? I'm just wondering if the new fluid I put in the pan will be the first to flush out into the container from the cooler line, or if it will show up last?

the oil from the pan is flushed out last. old oil from the torque converter gets pumped out first.

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

 

[mwebster22]

Thanks for that. You inspired me to get mine done this weekend. And I also checked the level afterwards and glad I did, somehow was about a half quart low. And I tracked what came out and refilled with same so must have been low from the beginning.

So 13.5 qts new Toyota WS ATF, new Wix 58136 filter and gasket, about $180 total.

 

[mwebster22]

Do you know the brand or have a link to the quart bottle pump you used? The one I got leaked like a seive and made quite a mess...

 

[radlynx]

I got that pump from amsoil.com site. it was pretty good. I've had it for a few years now.

Here's the link. https://www.amsoil.com/shop/by-product/garage-accessories/bottle-hand-pump/?code=G2039-EA

Do you know the brand or have a link to the quart bottle pump you used? The one I got leaked like a seive and made quite a mess...

 

[Montego Murph]

Pumping the fluid back in looks like a hassle. I made a "reservoir" from an old jug and a bulkhead fitting of some sort I grabbed from Lowes (or maybe the nozzle from a gear oil bottle). I ended up with a 1-gal jug upside down wedged in next to the battery tray. Pour in a couple of quarts and it gets pulled in the same time the transmission is pumping out the old.

I have an older model with a dipstick. I'm trying to figure out if I can replenish the ATF by simply filling it there with a funnel, or if it's best to use the pump method. Sure would be easier to pour than pump, but depending on the path that the ATF takes through the system, that might end up being counterproductive. Anyone have a schematic diagram of the transmission?


EDIT: If I had actually paid attention, I'd see that radlynx already answered this very question above. Readers are leaders, Murph....

 

[radlynx]

if you have the older model transmission (4speed), yes you can pour the oil thru the dipstick instead of using the pump. the 5speed transmission don't have the dipstick so we have to do it the pump method.

I have an older model with a dipstick. I'm trying to figure out if I can replenish the ATF by simply filling it there with a funnel, or if it's best to use the pump method. Sure would be easier to pour than pump, but depending on the path that the ATF takes through the system, that might end up being counterproductive. Anyone have a schematic diagram of the transmission?

 

[AuSeeker]

I have an older model with a dipstick. I'm trying to figure out if I can replenish the ATF by simply filling it there with a funnel, or if it's best to use the pump method. Sure would be easier to pour than pump, but depending on the path that the ATF takes through the system, that might end up being counterproductive. Anyone have a schematic diagram of the transmission?

Yes you can, the fluid goes from the pan through the valve body then the torque converter then to the radiator/cooler and back to the transmission.

if you have the older model transmission (4speed), yes you can pour the oil thru the dipstick instead of using the pump. the 5speed transmission don't have the dipstick so we have to do it the pump method.

The 2003 year model V8s all had the 5 speed transmission and most if not all had a dipstick and uses the older transmission fluid that the 4 speed uses, then in 2004 all the V8s 5 speeds has the sealed transmission, 2004 V6s still had the 4speed with a dipstick, in 2005 and onwards both the V6s and V8s has the 5 speed sealed transmission.

If the transmission is a sealed transmission it uses WS type fluid, if the transmission has a dipstick it uses the older fluid, if I'm not mistaken it states the fluid type on the dipstick.

 

[radlynx]

good to know. never thought the old 5speed had a dipstick.

Yes you can, the fluid goes from the pan through the valve body then the torque converter then to the radiator/cooler and back to the transmission.



The 2003 year model V8s all had the 5 speed transmission and most if not all had a dipstick and uses the older transmission fluid that the 4 speed uses, then in 2004 all the V8s 5 speeds has the sealed transmission, 2004 V6s still had the 4speed with a dipstick, in 2005 and onwards both the V6s and V8s has the 5 speed sealed transmission.

If the transmission is a sealed transmission it uses WS type fluid, if the transmission has a dipstick it uses the older fluid, if I'm not mistaken it states the fluid type on the dipstick.