I bought my Tundra at about 60k miles in 2022. Was the service manager of a Honda Dealership's personal vehicle. It appeared to be in very good condition when I bought it (why I bought it). Since purchasing I've had a couple minor issues: needed a accessory belt idler pulley replaced (chirping - fixed with replacement) and it has a very slow weeping water pump seal. Haven't changed yet. I also notice some minor timing chain rattle for about 3 seconds on startup when temps are below about 0 degrees F.
I've also noticed that it must be leaking fuel somewhere. I don't smell it or see any the ground. But I put a lot in and don't drive very far before it's all gone. Not sure what to do on that issue. I just keep putting more in.
I tow a lot. Probably 70% of the miles are towing. Most of the towing miles are with my 5k lb travel trailer or a 16 foot enclosed utility trailer. Not huge stuff, but not small. Just kinda medium size. I also tow my UTV a lot - it's pretty easy towing.
So - I decided instead of a trans drain/refill I'd just do a pan drain every oil change going forward and put 3.5 quarts of fresh WS fluid in every 5k miles. I change oil every 5k miles since I'm towing most of my miles. This is my first one this weekend. Truck has 94k miles now. There are no records of the transmission having ever been changed. I can't say for sure on the diff and transfer fluids I changed when buying it - they looked used but not particularly dirty. Just changed as a baseline.
Fluid that came out looks pretty good to me for nearly 100k. I don't think it needs to be changed. Smells like fresh crayons - no smell of burnt fluid or really anything other than the aroma of what I would call wax smell more than the smell of oil. I'm not sure what's in WS fluid other than I would say it is very light weight oil. I was surprised how thin it was pouring it vs engine oil. I did not do a trans fill test, I just measure the drain amount in a graduated measuring bucket and replaced with the same 3.5 quarts. If I get any shift issues I'll do the procedure.
Anyway - just thought I'd share for a data point on fluid that's been used pretty hard for at least the last 25k miles, but probably the whole life of the truck. I also do not tow in S4. I normally tow in D with the tow/haul turned on and go.
A couple pics of the trans fluid. Cant' always tell a lot from just looking at it - but it's red in color and pretty transparent still. It's darker than new fluid for sure. But definitely not black like engine oil. Based on just smell and visual assessment - it looks pretty good to me:
I've also noticed that it must be leaking fuel somewhere. I don't smell it or see any the ground. But I put a lot in and don't drive very far before it's all gone. Not sure what to do on that issue. I just keep putting more in.
I tow a lot. Probably 70% of the miles are towing. Most of the towing miles are with my 5k lb travel trailer or a 16 foot enclosed utility trailer. Not huge stuff, but not small. Just kinda medium size. I also tow my UTV a lot - it's pretty easy towing.
So - I decided instead of a trans drain/refill I'd just do a pan drain every oil change going forward and put 3.5 quarts of fresh WS fluid in every 5k miles. I change oil every 5k miles since I'm towing most of my miles. This is my first one this weekend. Truck has 94k miles now. There are no records of the transmission having ever been changed. I can't say for sure on the diff and transfer fluids I changed when buying it - they looked used but not particularly dirty. Just changed as a baseline.
Fluid that came out looks pretty good to me for nearly 100k. I don't think it needs to be changed. Smells like fresh crayons - no smell of burnt fluid or really anything other than the aroma of what I would call wax smell more than the smell of oil. I'm not sure what's in WS fluid other than I would say it is very light weight oil. I was surprised how thin it was pouring it vs engine oil. I did not do a trans fill test, I just measure the drain amount in a graduated measuring bucket and replaced with the same 3.5 quarts. If I get any shift issues I'll do the procedure.
Anyway - just thought I'd share for a data point on fluid that's been used pretty hard for at least the last 25k miles, but probably the whole life of the truck. I also do not tow in S4. I normally tow in D with the tow/haul turned on and go.
A couple pics of the trans fluid. Cant' always tell a lot from just looking at it - but it's red in color and pretty transparent still. It's darker than new fluid for sure. But definitely not black like engine oil. Based on just smell and visual assessment - it looks pretty good to me:
