Maintenance Question

[Canyon Monkey]

Purchased a 1997 TLC and budgeted for some preventive maintenance. The previous owners record keeping was not good so hard to tell when stuff was done. Any suggestions on what you would take care of first? 176,000 miles with no leaks or any odd issues that a can tell. Running well. Was considering changing all the fluids.

 

[Cruzerman]

You'll get all kinds of opinions here. I'm more on the "change the oil and drive it" side of the fence. Especially on such a low mileage unit. That is of course unless you are having problems or things are obviously in need of repair / replacement.

 

[inkpot]

I would look over all the fluids, leaks, tires, rust and prioritize based on what I see. Deal with the most urgent items first. Motor oil looks good but brake fluid looks solid black: do the brake fluid flush first.

 

[ccslider]

If you're unsure I would start with all fluids changed so you have a record. Check belts, brakes, slop in steering and driveline. Repack wheel bearings is pretty cheap and .good chance to see what's going on in there.

 

[Qball]

Change all fluids, check all robbers and ride!

 

[COYS]

I’m wound pretty tight when it comes to my vehicles in general.

Here’s what I did 1 week into ownership.

All new OEM parts where available with work done at a Toyota dealership.

Radiator. Thermostat. Modified Wits End fan clutch. Water pump. Coolant. New belts. Upper and lower radiator hoses. Pesky heater hose mod. Wits End constant torque clamps. Fuel filter. HVAC hoses. Heater valve. Water hoses. Power steering pump. Pressure hose. Reman starter. Full front axle rebuild kit from cruiser outfitters including birfs. Diff and transfer case flush after 4.88 gears. Wits End double cardan drive shaft.

I think that’s it for now. Keeping this thing around for a while. That’s why.

 

[midfat]

First thing you need to do is get a 19mm deep well socket and check the four lower knuckle studs on each front birf. Assuming all are tight, then you can check the oil and tire pressure. Everything else will happen naturally.

 

[sunrk]

Do all the basics - fluids (oil coolant ps gearbox transfer diffs), greases (swivel hubs, tailshafts and uni-joints), check drive belts, coolant hoses, battery (and remove it and tray to check under it/them for rust), tyres. That would be a basic checklist and then deal with whatever else you find as it shows up.

If you want to jack it up and take the wheels off you can then visually check brakes, caliper hoses, etc. but you could add brake fluid and clutch fluid bleeding to the top section under 'fluids' if you wanted to.

 

[Mr Cimarron]

Any vehicle I purchase gets all fluid and filters changed regardless of previous knowledge. Also a Blackstone analysis gets down on the engine oil.
After that interior comes out for a carpet cleaning. It’s amazing what comes out of the carpet and how well it looks afterwards.
Since you don’t have a leaker that saves time chasing the normal oil leaks. I would then move to the front axle and pull the hub to see how bearings look.

 

[sunrk]

Re carpet, my 80 is a DX which has vinyl flooring ex-factory. The horrible recycled fabric underlay is disgusting and I spent a long time removing underlay that had soaked up water, oil, dirt, muck and basically turned into a mouldy mess. For a long time I actually ran with no flooring at all in the front, and I also threw out the cargo area floor cover the floor under it was covered in rust.

Just last year I started into re-doing all flooring using Aussie made Tru-fit vinyl flooring, their Resomat product, and their premium underlay product. I've done the front seat area to to date as it took a long time to clean/treat/and paint the floor including time for that to fully set.

I forgot filters - glad that's been mentioned. New genuine oil, air, fuel, etc. filters are cheap. They are 'engine savers'.

 

[inkpot]

First thing you need to do is get a 19mm deep well socket and check the four lower knuckle studs on each front birf. Assuming all are tight, then you can check the oil and tire pressure. Everything else will happen naturally.

OEM knuckle stud nuts are 17 mm.

 

[graham5david]

I would register the bin on Toyota owners. You will be surprised at all of the maintenance records you will find .

Logged Out My Vehicle Page | Toyota Owners

 

[midfat]

OEM knuckle stud nuts are 17 mm.

You are correct. And I stand corrected.

 

[Irish Reiver]

I would register the bin on Toyota owners. You will be surprised at all of the maintenance records you will find .

Logged Out My Vehicle Page | Toyota Owners

Not so sure that Toyota owners site is reliable. It shows my truck as a 2WD and no maintenance records. Yesterday I phoned the local dealer to see if they knew if my truck had received the O2 sensors from the recall back in the '90's and the dealer gave me the date, and shop that did the work.. toyoTo knows but the website ain't got a clue....

 

[graham5david]

Not so sure that Toyota owners site is reliable. It shows my truck as a 2WD and no maintenance records. Yesterday I phoned the local dealer to see if they knew if my truck had received the O2 sensors from the recall back in the '90's and the dealer gave me the date, and shop that did the work.. toyoTo knows but the website ain't got a clue....

Found a ton of records with mine. New ps pump, oil pump, fuel pump, axle service, etc... Probably depends on the dealership.

 

[nickryan]

I would register the bin on Toyota owners. You will be surprised at all of the maintenance records you will find .

Logged Out My Vehicle Page | Toyota Owners

Does this work with a Lexus LX 450 too?

 

[TomH]

Does this work with a Lexus LX 450 too?

You could try the Lexus site.

Service and Maintenance | My Lexus

Easily schedule Lexus service, order parts and accessories, view your vehicle’s maintenance history, manage warranty information, and check for safety recalls.

drivers.lexus.com

 

[Azca]

As most have said, all fluids, front to back. "Cheap" and easy.

Clean the engine, this includes the underside and trans. Steam clean is preferable. Engine runs cooler, much nicer to wrench on and much easier to track down leaks as they occur.

Next, I would look at the stuff that will leave you stranded. Coolant hoses, fuel hoses, belts. If they haven't been changed, just do it. The hoses will, in some cases be hard as rock. Coolant hoses don't have a warning indicator, just replace them. Don't forget the PHH.

From there, I would replace the radiator. The transmission line runs through it, if that line corrodes, you have a pink milk shake in the trans and a major spendy repair. Cheap insurance. If the radiator is out, replace all power steering and trans lines in that area, trust me, you will thank me latter.