Gents,

You've seen me posting in rapid fire fashion and it'll quiet down soon as I get my new-to-me 07 GX sorted.

It's at 80K now and I just got the interval service completed at my local L dealership. For peace of mind, I actually like to swap out all the fluids with new so I have a baseline under my stewardship.

I'm going to be taking it to my Toyota dealership instead as I have a friend who works there that's taken care of my 4Runner in the past which had the same engine/tranny as the GX.

I'm planning on flushing and replacing the following fluids:

-Diffs
-Trans
-Coolant
-Brake
-Steering

Anything else I should consider? I'm assuming the 4Runner and GX use the same spec fluids?

Thanks!

 

Read above...

 

is the transmission lifetime? typical for enthusiasts to leave this oil alone?

aren't you supposed to replace brake fluid annually since it absorbs water?

thank you!

 

Per Toyota, the transmission fluid is good for the lifetime of the vehicle.

Important Information:
100,000 Maintenance Interval — Inspection only; ATF-WS does NOT require any flushing or changing during the life of the vehicle.

 

Reading the TS above makes me wonder what type of fluid we have in 2003 model GX?
Mercedes made the same mistake in 1998 calling the fluid lifetime fill and replacing dipstick with plastic lock cap. Then they quickly (I believe in 2005) refrased the owner's manual with 100K fluid change intervals.

 

dropped off the truck w/ my toyota advisor (buddy) this AM

new fluids for:

-front and rear diff
-transfer case
-power steering
-coolant flush

not touching:

-transmission
-brake (looks clear)

$500

 

$500? I thought he's your buddy.

 

thanks, man

 

And you buddy (the Toyota advisor) did NOT advise you to wait another 10,000 miles to replace your coolant at the same time with the timing belt

With friends like these, who need enemies...

Ask him to give you a BIG discount on the 90K miles service.

 

Both local dealers are recommending transmission drain and refill (not flush) on WS fluid trannys at 80k. When I did mine, the fluid was dark and smelled burnt. Since then I have done another drain and refill at 120k(and again very dark and smelled burnt)

 

I guess until someone drains at say 10,000 miles, we have nothing to compare to, smell and looks on automotive lubricants is not an exact science . Drain your oil after 1000 miles, doesn't look like it just came out of a new jug.

 

look fellas i understand that you guys are trying to e-lookout for me but i'd appreciate a lil bit less of the commentary bordering on personal. i've been in this car game for a while so pls have trust in me as your cl friend that i'm being taken care of just fine.

i actually typed out the original price as it served as an initial estimate. it's not what i actually ended up paying. i was typing in the very nice lobby of this dealership that also gave me a loaner. i had a hard time even getting this type of service back when i bought my M3 new in 2004!

a lot of the things 'im doing aren't by the book. bigger wheels. blacking out. AT tires when i 99% drive on pavement. i wanted a clean sheet since someone else put 80K miles on it before me and i really do love this truck. i feel good about the fluids swap and am actually looking forward to the timing belt, water pump work in short order.

thanks.

 

It still shouldn't change all that much after 1000 miles...what came out of my transmission however looked extremely dirty. Considering drain and refill on WS fluid transmissions doesn't cost that much, i'll play it safe.

 

Actually, I wonder at times if drain and refill will do more harm than good. Now you've opened up the transmission, and the fluid may not be exactly at the proper level as it's a bit of a complicated routing to get the level correct. Even at the dealer, I don't trust the tech to get it totally correct. I've decided to let it be, even though I expect to put way more than 100K miles on my GX.

 

yup. i'm sure the toyota engineers thought this thru. lifetime tranny oil!!!!!

just because it's "extremely dirty" means absolutely NOTHING.