1996 TOYOTA SUPRA maintenance

Publication No. OM14524U
Part No. 01999-14524
Printed in Japan 01- 9601- 00
Quick index If a service reminder indicator or warning buzzer comes on 51 . . . . .
If your vehicle will not start 125
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If your engine stalls while driving 126 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
If your vehicle overheats 126
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If you have a flat tire 127
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If your vehicle needs to be towed 133 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tips for driving during break- in period 107 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
How to start the engine 117
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General maintenance 144
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Complete index 187
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Gas station information
Fuel type: Premium UNLEADED gasoline , Research Octane Number 96
(Octane Rating 91) or higher
See page 107 for detailed information.
Fuel tank capacity: 70 L (18.5 gal., 15.4 lmp. gal.)
Engine oil: See page 154.
Tire information: See pages 157 through 161.
Tire pressure: See page 182.
7
I

Part 2Break-in period Fuel
107
INFORMATION
BEFORE DRIVING
YOUR TOYOTA
Break-in period
Fuel
Operation in foreign countries
Three-way catalytic converters
Engine exhaust cautions
Facts about engine oil consumption
Brake system
Brake pad wear limit indicators
Luggage stowage precautions
Limited-slip differential
Your Toyota's identification
Theft prevention labels
Types of tires
Drive gently and avoid high speeds.
Your vehicle does not need an elaborate
break-in. But following a few simple tips
for the first 1600 km (1000 miles) can add
to the future economy and long life of your vehicle:
Do not drive over 88 km/h (55 mph).
Do not run the engine over 4000 rpm. Maintain engine speed between 2000 and 4000 rpm.
Avoid full-throttle starts.
Try to avoid hard stops during the first
300 km (200 miles).
Do not drive slowly with the manual
transmission in a high gear.
Do not drive for a long time at any
single speed, either fast or slow. FUEL TYPE
Your new vehicle must use only un-
leaded gasoline.
To help prevent gas station mixups, your
Toyota has a new smaller fuel tank open- ing.
The special nozzle on pumps with un-
leaded fuel will fit it, but the larger stan-
dard nozzle on pumps with leaded gas will
not.
NOTICE
Do not use leaded gasoline. Use of leaded gasoline will cause the
three-way catalytic converter tolose its effectiveness and the emission control system tofunction improperly. Also, this can increase maintenance costs.
OCTANE NUMBER
Select premium unleaded gasoline
with a Research Octane Number of 96
(Octane Rating 91) or higher for opti-
mum engine performance. However, if
such premium type cannot be ob-
tained, you may temporarily use un-
leaded gasoline with an octane num-ber as low as 91 (Octane Rating 87).
Use of unleaded fuel with an octane num- ber or rating lower than stated above will
cause persistent heavy knocking. If se-
vere, this will lead to engine damage.

109
The three-way catalytic converter is
an emission control device installed in
the exhaust system.
Its purpose is to reduce pollutants in the exhaust gas.
CAUTION!
Keep people and combustible ma- terials away from the exhaust pipe
while the engine is running. The
exhaust gas is very hot.
Do not drive, idle or park your ve-
hicle over anything that might
burn easily such as grass, leaves, paper or rags.
A large amount of unburned gases
flowing into the three-way catalytic
converter may cause it to overheat and create a fire hazard. To preventthis and other damage, observe the
following precautions:
Use only unleaded gasoline.
Do not drive with an extremely low fuel level; running out of fuel
could cause the engine to mis-fire, creating an excessive load
on the three-way catalytic con-verter.
Do not allow the engine to run atidle speed for more than 20 min-
utes.
NOTICE
Avoid racing the engine.
Do not push-start or pull-start
your vehicle.
Do not turn off the ignition whilethe vehicle is moving.
Keep your engine in good run-
ning order. Malfunctions in theengine electrical system, elec-
tronic ignition system/distributorignition system or fuel systemcould cause an extremely high
three-way catalytic converter
temperature.
If the engine becomes difficult to start or stalls frequently, takeyour vehicle in for a check-up assoon as possible. Remember,
your Toyota dealer knows your
vehicle and its three-way catalyt-ic converter system best.
To ensure that the three-way cat-
alytic converter and the entireemission control system operate
properly, your vehicle must re-
ceive the periodic inspections re-quired by the Toyota Maintenance
Schedule. For scheduled mainte-
nance information, refer to theseparate Owner's Manual Sup-
plement/Maintenance Scheduleº.
Three-way catalytic converters

111
The amount of engine oil consumed
depends on
the viscosity of the oil, the
quality of the oil and the conditions
the vehicle is driven under.
More oil is consumed by high-speed driv-
ing and frequent acceleration and decel- eration.
A new engine consumes more oil, since
its pistons, piston rings and cylinder walls
have not become conditioned.
When judging the amount of oil con-
sumption, note that the oil may be- come diluted and make it difficult to
judge the true level accurately.
As an example, if a vehicle is used for re-
peated short trips, and consumes a nor- mal amount of oil, the dipstick may not
show any drop in the oil level at all, even
after 1000 km (600 miles) or more. This is
because the oil is gradually becoming di-
luted with fuel or moisture, making it ap-
pear that the oil level has not changed.
The diluting ingredients evaporate out
when the vehicle is then driven at high
speeds, as on an expressway, making it appear that oil is excessively consumed
after driving at high speeds. IMPORTANCE OF ENGINE OIL LEVEL CHECK
One of the most important points in proper vehicle maintenance is to keep the engine
oil at the optimum level so that oil function
will
not be impaired. Therefore, it is essen-
tial that the oil level be checked regularly.
Toyota recommends that the oil level be checked every time you refuel the vehicle.
NOTICE
Failure to check the oil level regularly could lead to serious
engine trouble due to insufficientoil.
For detailed information on oil level check,
see Checking the engine oil levelº in Chapter 7-2. TANDEM MASTER CYLINDER BRAKE SYSTEM
The tandem master cylinder brake sys-
tem is a hydraulic system with two sepa-
rate sub-systems. If either sub-system
should fail, the other w
ill still work. Howev-
er, the pedal will be harder to press, and
your stopping distance will be longer.
Also, the brake system warning light may come on.
Do not drive your vehicle with only
a single brake system. Have your
brakes fixed immediately.
CAUTION!
BRAKE BOOSTER
The brake booster uses engine vacuum to
power-assist the brakes. If the engine
should quit while you are driving, you can
bring the vehicle to a stop with normal
pedal pressure. There is enough reservevacuum for one or two stopsÐbut no more!
Do not pump the brake pedal if the
engine stalls. Each push on the
pedal uses up your vacuum re- serve.
CAUTION!
Brake system

122
Keep your vehicle tuned-up and in
top shape. A dirty air cleaner, improp-
er valve clearance, dirty plugs, dirty oil
and grease, brakes not adjusted, etc.
all lower engine performance and con-
tribute to poor fuel economy. For lon-
ger life of all parts and lower operating
costs, keep all maintenance work on
schedule, and if you often drive undersevere conditions, see that your ve-
hicle receives more frequent mainte-
nance (For scheduled maintenance in-
formation, please refer to the separate
Owner 's Manual Supplement/Main-
tenance Scheduleº).
CAUTION
Never turn off the engine to coast
down hills. Your power steering and
brake booster will not function with-
out the engine running. Also, theemission control system operates
properly only when the engine isrunning.!

Part 6Maintenance requirements
143
VEHICLE
MAINTENANCE AND CARE
Maintenance requirements
General maintenance
Does your vehicle need repairing?
For scheduled maintenance infor-
mation, please refer to the sep-
arate Owner's Manual Sup-
plement/Maintenance Scheduleº.
Your Toyota vehicle has been designed
for fewer maintenance requirements with longer service intervals to save both your
time and money. However, each regular
maintenance, as well as day-to-day
care, is more important than ever before
to ensure smooth, trouble-free, safe, and
economical drivings.
It is the owner's responsibility to make sure
the specified maintenance, including
general maintenance service, is per-
formed. Note that both the new vehicle
and emission control system warranties
specify that proper maintenance and care
must be performed. See Owner's Guide,
Owner 's Manual Supplement or W arranty
Booklet for complete warranty informa-tion.
General maintenance General maintenance items are those
day-to-day care practices that are impor-
tant to your vehicle for proper operation.
It is the owner's responsibility to ensure
that the general maintenance items are
performed regularly.
These checks or inspections can be done
either by yourself or a qualified technician,
or if you prefer, your Toyota dealer will be
pleased to do them at a nominal cost. Scheduled maintenance
The scheduled maintenance items listed
in the Owner's Manual Supplement/
Maintenance Scheduleº are those re-
quired to be serviced at regular intervals. For details of your maintenance Sched-
ule, read the separate ºOwner's Manual
Supplement/Maintenance Scheduleº.
It is recommended that any replace-
ment parts used for maintenance or
for the repair of the emission control
system be Toyota supplied.
The owner may elect to use non-T
oyota
supplied parts for replacement pur-
poses without invalidating the emis-
sion control system warranty. How-
ever, use of replacement parts which
are not of equivalent quality may impair
the effectiveness of the emission con-
trol systems.
You may also elect to have mainte-
nance, replacement, or repair of the
emission control devices and system
performed by any automotive repair
establishment or individual without
invalidating this warranty. See Own-
er's Guide, Owner's Manual Supple-
ment or Warranty Booklet for complete
warranty information. Where to go for service?
Toyota technicians are well-trained spe- cialists and are kept up to date with the lat-
est service information through technical
bulletins, service tips, and in-dealership
training programs. They learn to work on
Toyotas before they work on your vehicle,
rather than while they are working on it.

144You can be confident that your Toyota
dealer's service department performs the
best
job to meet the maintenance require-
ments on your vehicleÐreliably and eco-
nomically.
Your copy of the repair order is proof that
all required maintenance has been per-
formed for warranty coverage. And if any
problems should arise with your vehicle
while under warranty, your Toyota dealer
will promptly take care of it. Again, be sure
to keep a copy of the repair order for any
service performed on your Toyota.
What about do-it-yourself mainte- nance?
Many of the maintenance items are easy
to do yourself if you have a little mechani-
cal ability and a few basic automotive
tools. Simple instructions for how to per-
form them are presented in Part 7.
If you are a skilled do-it-yourself me-
chanic, the Toyota service manuals are recommended. Please be aware that do-
it-yourself maintenance can affect your
warranty coverage. See Owner's Guide,
Owner 's Manual Supplement or W arranty
Booklet for the details. Listed
below are the general maintenance
items that should be performed as fre- quently as specified. In addition to check-
ing the items listed, if you notice any un-
usual noise, smell or vibration, you should
investigate the cause or take your vehicle
to your T oyota dealer or a qualified service
shop immediately. It is recommended thatany problem you notice be brought to theattention of your dealer or the qualified service shop for their advice.
Make these checks only where
adequate ventilation can be ob-
tained if you run the engine. CAUTION
!
OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE
Items listed below should be per-
formed from time to time, unless other-
wise specified.
Tire pressure Check the pressure with a gauge every
two weeks, or at least once a month. See Chapter 7-2 for additional information. Tire surface and wheel nuts Check the tires carefully
for cuts, damage
or excessive wear. See Chapter 7-2 for
additional information. When checking the tires, make sure no nuts are missing,
and check the nuts for looseness. T ighten
them if necessary. Fluid leaks Check underneath for leaking fuel, oil, wa-
ter or other fluid after the vehicle has been
parked for a while. If you smell fuel fumes
or notice any leak, have the cause found
and corrected immediately. Doors and engine hood
Check that all doors including back door
operate smoothly and all latches lock se-
curely. M ake sure the engine hood secon-
dary latch secures the hood from opening
when the primary latch is released. INSIDE THE VEHICLE Items listed below should be checked
regularly, e.g. while performing period-
ic services, cleaning the vehicle, etc. Lights Make sure the headlights, stop lights, tail lights, turn signal lights, and other lights are all working. Check headlight aim.
General maintenance

Part 7147
DO-IT-YOURSELF MAINTENANCEÐ
Chapter 7-1 Introduction
Engine compartment overview
Fuse locations
Do-it-yourself service precautions
Parts and tools