Tackled my first maintenance job. Questions ensue.

[shanester]

Having never worked on a vehicle before, I tackled greasing up my driveshafts tonight. I did a good amount of research before I felt comfortable doing the job and now that I'm done, I have some questions.

Jacking Up the Vehicle:

I hope I did this right! I know I didn't need to do this to grease the chassis but I did it anyway because I just bought my first 3 Ton Floor Jack. I jacked up the front of the vehicle via floor jack using the circular area (don't know what else to call it) under the engine as my jack point. After jacking up the vehicle I placed two 3 ton jack stands near the manual recommended jack points. For the rear, I used the area directly under the rear differential and placed the jack stands where the manual recommends using the bottle jack. I also chocked wheels after the jack stands were placed.

This sound right?

Greasing the drivetrain

Please forgive me if I'm botching terms here but don't hold back on correcting me. I'd really like to learn as much as I can about my 100. There were 3 zerks per propeller shaft. For the U-Joint (technically the "spider" right?) I pumped until I saw the Mobil 1 Synthetic Grease I was using coming out of the seals which was about 3-4 times from my full size grease gun. For the slip yokes (right term?) I didn't see anything coming out of the seals but I did 3 pumps per slip yoke.

The old grease coming out was blueish in color and was put in by a very reputable LC & LX shop here in San Diego so I'm wondering if the red stuff I put in was not as good.

Would love some feedback and thanks guys!

 

[Nolan Sylvester]

Congrats, man! Working on your own car is so rewarding. I haven't done this yet but look forward to do it.

 

[shanester]

Congrats, man! Working on your own car is so rewarding. I haven't done this yet but look forward to do it.

Thanks! I had some serious fear getting under the truck with it behind jacked up. Still not comfortable with it haha. I might order some 6 ton jack stands or more for piece of mind.

I'm actually really looking forward to my first oil change on the 100! Will be my first oil change.

 

[OG 91 LC]

One way to learn and to get to know your truck is by doing it yourself.

Score some double locking 12 ton jacks and wheel chocks. I saw some 22 ton jacks and I was tempted. Safety first.

 

[larryt]

Sounds like a good first project! I've been using M1 synthetic grease on the driveshaft for the last 90k miles with no problems.

Assuming your wheels were still on, you had a pretty good margin of safety for that job.

 

[Sandroad]

Good work. Sounds like you did everything right. Some on this forum will say to grease the slip yoke until grease comes out of the seal, but I don't. If you ever get under it with wheels off, use heavier jack stands and at least one other support. My rule is to never get under without 2 different supports holding the truck up. (Wheels and jack stands like you had were fine.) Grease color is irrelevant, but it does help tell you when you've got new coming through.

 

[m3fan]

In this case and for oil changes a decent set of ramps is a big timesaver and a tool you'll use all the time. Drive up, put some chocks on the back wheels and git' er done.

As for jacking I've never used that center point. I jack the front using the front frame rails and set the jack stands just aft of the jack. The 12 ton "yellow" jack stands from Sears are great and have plenty of height. For jacking the rear I put the jack right under the differential/pumpkin and jack stands on either side under the rear axle.

 

[bctlex]

I used Mobil 1 synthetic too. I have put in a lot of pumps for the slip yokes, and still havent seen any grease coming out. It did cure the thunk when I let go the gas pedal. I am guessing previous owner never grease them.

I greased both U-joints and slip yokes without jacking up the car. My LC is at stock height. It is tight, but doable. Just fyi. I need to get new floor jack to make my life easier when doing these maintenance works.

Chris

 

[bucfl]

One way to learn and to get to know your truck is by doing it yourself.

Score some double locking 12 ton jacks and wheel chocks. I saw some 22 ton jacks and I was tempted. Safety first.

This! Please get stronger Jacks. There is a thread on here where the truck fell on a murder and hospitalized him. He had 3 ton jacks.

I used three ton jacks last weekend to replace brakes/rotors and the jack failed. Thankfully I was not under it and was using two.

I will be purchasing 6 or 12 ton jacks asap. Also, device the weight by two. Your 3 ton jacks will only support 1.5 each.

Good first project.

 

[spaber05]

Some good advice here, I'll add/reiterate:

1) Get some higher rater jack stands just to be safe, can't put a price on safety when it comes to getting your hands dirty.
2) Good ramps will make the oil change a lot easier, but for your first time be sure to have a spotter when you're pulling onto them to be safe.
3) Some say they grease the drive shaft at every oil change, in that case just do it again when you change the oil, doesn't take long.
4) Speaking of which, I think a lot of people in here use Mobil1 5W-30 Extended Performance (including myself).
5) Before changing your oil get a FREE used oil sample kit from Blackstone Labs (Blackstone Labs) They send you the stuff to collect the used oil, you send it back to them and they tell you how the internals are holding up, all for $25, hell of a bargain for an in depth analysis if you ask me.

Wrenching on your own car is incredibly rewarding and the bonus is that you save some money! Keep up the good work and always check back if you run into any issues or have any more questions.

 

[trizzo]

4) Speaking of which, I think a lot of people in here use Mobil1 5W-30 Extended Performance (including myself).

any thoughts on the "high mileage" variant of Mobil 1? it claims to be for vehicles over 75k miles.

 

[2001LC]

Remember to keep vehicle level when changing oil and change washer (seal). Easiest to just not jack-up.

Edited: One more tip: Put a little oil on rubber O-ring seal of oil filter, makes big difference next time you remove.

 

[arcteryx]

I use these if I am getting under a truck. Chinese metallurgy isn't something I play with when it comes to my life. Not the cheapest set but more than enough to handle a cruiser and, more importantly, Made in USA. These are super stout.

Amazon.com: Hein-Werner HW93506 Blue/Yellow Jack Stands, 6 Ton Capacity (Set of 2): Automotive

 

[spaber05]

any thoughts on the "high mileage" variant of Mobil 1? it claims to be for vehicles over 75k miles.

Don't have any experience with the high mileage version. I've only had the truck for a little over a year and have stuck with the Extended Performance based on what I read here and in a few other places.

Funny though, my old Subaru HATED Mobil1 5W-30, interesting how there can be two polarizing reactions to the same oil.

 

[PabloCruise]

Remember to keep vehicle level when changing oil and change washer (seal). Easiest to just not jack-up.

Edited: One more tip: Put a little oil on rubber O-ring seal of oil filter, makes big difference next time you remove.

Why would you keep the vehicle level when changing the oil? Unless you don't want all the old oil to drain out? I always ramp my vehicles so the oil plug is pointing downhill - think how to get the most drainage.

 

[2001LC]

Drains out just fine when level, and must be level to check dip stick while filling. Oil pans are designed with low spot at drain hole while level. I've never seen a shop tilt to drain, have you?

 

[arcteryx]

Yes there are low points but I don't think it matters given the volume that is being run through the I6 or V8s. Either will suffice so long as you give them proper draining time. Personally, I never jack them up on a cruiser as there is plenty o clearance to change the oil.

 

[2001LC]

any thoughts on the "high mileage" variant of Mobil 1? it claims to be for vehicles over 75k miles.

High mileage oils have added seal modifiers. These swell the seals to reduce or stop leakage. Some also have added friction modifiers. I find the synthetic M1 or M1 EP adequate.

Synthetic oils will clean old gunk from regular oil out, including off seals. This why many say don't use synthetics on high millage vehicles if not previously used. I've near had a problem switching to synthetic personally, even at 100k mile.

If using EP oil (extended performance) one must use a synthetic oil filter if going past 3K to 5K miles, like when going the 15K miles EP guarantees.

 

[2001LC]

Why would you keep the vehicle level when changing the oil? Unless you don't want all the old oil to drain out? I always ramp my vehicles so the oil plug is pointing downhill - think how to get the most drainage.

I'd be interested to see if any difference. After draining oil roll off ramps, see if you get more oil out. I'll try the reverse.

Yes there are low points but I don't think it matters given the volume that is being run through the I6 or V8s. Either will suffice so long as you give them proper draining time. Personally, I never jack them up on a cruiser as there is plenty o clearance to change the oil.

I love how easy Toyota made it to change Oil & filter.

 

[2001LC]

Having never worked on a vehicle before, I tackled greasing up my driveshafts tonight. I did a good amount of research before I felt comfortable doing the job and now that I'm done, I have some questions.

Jacking Up the Vehicle:

I hope I did this right! I know I didn't need to do this to grease the chassis but I did it anyway because I just bought my first 3 Ton Floor Jack. I jacked up the front of the vehicle via floor jack using the circular area (don't know what else to call it) under the engine as my jack point. After jacking up the vehicle I placed two 3 ton jack stands near the manual recommended jack points. For the rear, I used the area directly under the rear differential and placed the jack stands where the manual recommends using the bottle jack. I also chocked wheels after the jack stands were placed.

This sound right?

Greasing the drivetrain

Please forgive me if I'm botching terms here but don't hold back on correcting me. I'd really like to learn as much as I can about my 100. There were 3 zerks per propeller shaft. For the U-Joint (technically the "spider" right?) I pumped until I saw the Mobil 1 Synthetic Grease I was using coming out of the seals which was about 3-4 times from my full size grease gun. For the slip yokes (right term?) I didn't see anything coming out of the seals but I did 3 pumps per slip yoke.

The old grease coming out was blueish in color and was put in by a very reputable LC & LX shop here in San Diego so I'm wondering if the red stuff I put in was not as good.

Would love some feedback and thanks guys!

I understand your wanted to use your new toys (tools) .
Two suggestions:
One: Best done on ground. This keeps slip joint of rear propeller shaft (aka drive shaft) in neutral position. If rear jack stands where one is under each side of differential (I was unclear of where you put them) this accomplish same thing, just more work.
Two: Chock rear wheels first thing before jacking up front. Once in air on stands, presumably tires are off ground and chocks have been pull away, until needed for lowering in reverse order.