gear oil

G'day Jim,
I did alot of homework on the vehicle that would suit us for our retirement. I settled on 100 series L/cruiser. My brother-in-law was visiting us up here in the territory and he convinced me to regulary change the engine oil, which I'm now doing. Reading this forum has brought to mind wether I should attempt to change gear box oil, and if so is the process difficult or could I feel confident with trying to do it myself?
Peter

Peter, doing your own gear box oil-change is not hard - but can be messy if you don't get it right. All you need to do is find the drain bung on the bottom of your gearbox, and the filler plug which should be about halfway up one side and make sure you have a correct fitting socket or spanner to fit. (A tip - always undo the filler plug first; that way if you can't get the drain plug undone you have no immediate problems - as opposed to the other way around).

You can purchase a drain pan (or use a cut down 20ltr oil drum) and filler from places like repco etc.

It's handy to have the workshop manual so you know quantities etc, but not necessary.

I do my own gearbox, diffs, transfer case and engine oil changes to a regular schedule so that at least I have peace-of-mind that all the basics have been done, and done properly - unlike most services with Toyota!

Thanks Jim,
I'll print this off and put it in my owners manual.
Thanks again mate.
Peter

Just curious as to why did you gearbox need a repair under warranty?? Are you suggesting Twinkes use the same oil as you did???

I agree with you about buying manufacturers oils can be a good move - I've done that for years with Nissan. But with Toyota, you have to be a little careful - their diesel engine oil for example is 20W50, which is thicker than you want for a 1KZ-TE. Also, the workshop oil they use is invariably different to the stuff in the spare parts dept.

Problem with gearbox oils is that cold shift problems are common with this gearbox when you use many of the recommended oils. Theres been many a gearbox repair done because of poor shifting, when all that was required is a different oil.