1996 TOYOTA TACOMA oil viscosity

102The 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 the fuel or moisture, making it
appear 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 as 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.
Failure to check the oil level
regularly could lead to serious
engine trouble due to insufficient oil.
NOTICE
For detailed information on the oil level
check, see Checking the engine oil levelº
in Chapter 7-2.
Your engine is fitted with twin ground electrode spark plugs.
Use only twin ground electrode
spark plugs for your engine perfor-
mance.
NOTICE
Twin ground electrode spark plugs (5VZ-FE engine)

11 2
CAUTION
Always observe the following pre-
cautions to minimize the risk of seri-
ous personal injury or damage to
your vehicle: Drive carefully when off the road.
Do not take unnecessary risks by
driving in dangerous places.
Do not grip the steering wheel
spokes when driving off-road. A
bad bump could jerk the wheel and
injure your hands. Keep both
hands and especially your thumbs
on the outside of the rim.
Always check your brakes for ef-
fectiveness immediately after driv-
ing in sand, mud, water or snow.
After driving through tall grass,
mud, rock, sand, rivers, etc., check
that there is no grass, bush, paper,
rags, stone, sand, etc. adhering or
trapped on the underbody. Clear
off any such matter from the un-
derbody. If the vehicle is used with
these materials trapped or adher-
ing to the underbody, a breakdown
or fire could occur.
The driver and all passengers
should fasten their seat belts
whenever the vehicle is moving.!

If driving through water, such aswhen crossing shallow streams,
first check the depth of the waterand the bottom of the river bed forfirmness. Drive slowly and avoid
deep water.
Take all necessary safety mea-sures to ensure that damage to the
engine or other components does not occur.
Water entering the engine air in-take will cause severe engine dam-
age.
Water can wash the grease fromwheel bearings, causing rusting and premature failure, and mayalso enter the differential, trans-
mission and transfer case, reduc-ing the gear oil's lubricating quali-ties.
Sand and mud that has accumu-
lated in brake drums and aroundbrake discs may affect braking ef-
ficiency and may damage brake system components.
Always perform a maintenance in-spection after each day of of f-road
driving that has taken you through rough terrain, sand, mud, or water.
For scheduled maintenance infor-mation, refer to the separate
Owner 's Manual Supplement/
Maintenance Scheduleº.
NOTICEMake sure you have ethylene-glycol
antifreeze in the radiator.
Do not use alcohol type antifreeze.
NOTICE
Check the condition of the battery and cables. Cold temperatures reduce the capacity of
any battery, so it must be in top shape to provide enough power for winter starting.Chapter 7-3 tells you how to visually in-
spect the battery. Your Toyota dealer and
most service stations will be pleased tocheck the level of charge.
Make sure the engine oil viscosity is
suitable for the cold weather.
See Chapter 7-2 for recommended vis-
cosity. Leaving a heavy summer oil in your
vehicle during winter months may cause
harder starting. If you are not sure about
which oil to use, call your Toyota dealerÐ
he will be pleased to help. Keep the door locks from freezing. Squirt lock de-icer or glycerine into the
locks to keep them from freezing. To open
a frozen lock, try heating the key before in-serting it.
Winter driving tips

152
Be careful not to scratch the glass
surface with the wiper frame.
When closing the engine hood,
check to see that you have not for-
gotten any tools, rags, etc.
Here is a list of parts and tools you will
need for performing do-it-yourself main-
tenance. Remember all Toyota parts are
designed in metric sizes, so your tools
must be metric. Checking the engine oil level Parts (if level is low): Engine oil API SH, Energy-Conserv-
ing IIº multigrade or ILSAC multigrade
having viscosity proper for your cli-mate
Tools: Rag or paper towel
Funnel (only for adding oil)
Checking the engine coolant level Parts (if level is low): Ethylene-glycol antifreeze
Demineralized or distilled water
Tools: Funnel (only for adding coolant)
Checking brake fluid Parts (if level is low): SAE J1703 or FMVSS No. 116 DOT 3 brake fluid
Tools: Rag or paper towel
Funnel (only for adding fluid) Checking power steering fluidParts (if level is low):
Automatic transmission fluid DEX- RON [
-II or -III
Tools: Rag or paper towel
Funnel (only for adding fluid)
Checking battery condition Non-maintenance batteriesÐ
Tools: Warm water
Baking soda
Grease
Conventional wrench (for terminal clamp bolts)
Maintenance type batteriesÐ Parts (if level is low): Distilled water
Tools: Warm water
Baking soda
Grease
Conventional wrench (for terminal clamp bolts)
Coin (for vent plugs)
Funnel (only for adding distilled water)
Parts and tools

156Engine oil selection Use API SH, Energy-Conserving IIº mul- tigrade engine oil or ILSAC multigrade en-
gine oil. Recommended viscosity (SAE):
SAE 5W-30 is the best choice for your
vehicle, for good fuel economy and
good starting in cold weather.
If you use SAE 10W-30 engine oil in
extremely low temperatures, the en-
gine may become difficult to start, so
SAE 5W-30 engine oil is recom- mended.
API service symbol
ILSAC certification mark
Oil identification marks
Either or
both API registered marks are
added to some oil containers to help
you select the oil you should use.
The API Service Symbol is located any-
where on the outside of the container. The top portion of the label shows the oil
quality by API (American Petroleum Insti-
tute) designations such as SH. The center
portion of the label shows the SAE viscos-
ity grade such as SAE 5W-30. Energy-
Conserving IIº shown in the lower portion,
indicates that the oil has fuel-saving ca-
pabilities. Oils marked Energy-Conserv-
ing IIº will have higher fuel-saving capa-
bilities than oils marked Energy- Conservingº.
The ILSAC (International Lubricant Stan-
dardization and Approval Committee)Certification Mark is displayed on the front
of the container.

180ENGINE LUBRICATION Oil capacity (drain and refill), L (qt., Imp. qt.):
Two-wheel drive models2RZ-FE engine
With filter 5.5 (5.8, 4.8)
Without filter 4.8 (5.0, 4.2)
5VZ-FE engine
With filter 5.4 (5.7, 4.8)
Without filter 5.1 (5.4, 4.5)
Four-wheel drive models
3RZ-FE engineWith filter 5.4 (5.7, 4.8)
Without filter 4.7 (5.0, 4.1)
5VZ-FE engine With filter 5.2 (5.5, 4.6)
Without filter 4.9 (5.2, 4.3)
Oil grade: API SH, Energy-Conserving IIº multi-
grade engine oil or ILSAC multigrade
engine oil is recommended. Recommended oil viscosity (SAE):
COOLING SYSTEM
Total capacity, L (qt., Imp. qt.):
Two-wheel drive models With manual transmission
2RZ-FE engine 8.0 (8.5, 7.0)
5VZ-FE engine
10.1 (10.7, 8.9)
With automatic transmission 2RZ-FE engine
7.8 (8.2, 6.9)
5VZ-FE engine 10.0 (10.5, 8.8) Four-wheel drive models
With manual transmission
3RZ-FE engine 8.3 (8.8, 7.3)
5VZ-FE engine
10.1 (10.7, 8.9)
With automatic transmission 3RZ-FE engine
8.2 (8.7, 7.2)
5VZ-FE engine 10.0 (10.5, 8.8)
Coolant type: With ethylene-glycol antifreeze (Do not use alcohol type.)
BATTERY Open voltage* at 20 C (68 F):
12.7 V Fully charged
12.3 V Half charged
11.9 V Discharged
*Voltage that is checked 20 minutes after
the key is removed with all the lights
turned off Charging rates:
5 A max.

181
CLUTCH
Pedal freeplay, mm (in.):
5' 15 (0.2 '0.6)
Fluid type: SAE J1703 or FMVSS No. 116 DOT 3
MANUAL TRANSMISSION
Oil capacity, L (qt., Imp. qt.): 2RZ-FE engine
2.6 (2.7, 2.3)
3RZ-FE engine 2.5 (2.6, 2.2)
5VZ-FE engine Two-wheel drive models2.6 (2.7, 2.3)
Four-wheel drive models
2.2 (2.3, 1.9)
Oil type:
Multipurpose gear oil API GL-4 or GL-5
Recommended oil viscosity:
SAE 75W-90 AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION Fluid capacity (drain and refill), L (qt., Imp. qt.):
Two-wheel drive models2RZ-FE engine Up to 2.4 (2.5, 2.1)
5VZ-FE engine Up to 1.6 (1.7, 1.4)
Four-wheel drive models Up to 2.0 (2.1, 1.8)
Fluid type: Automatic transmission fluid DEXRON [
-II
TRANSFER
Oil capacity, L (qt., lmp. qt.): 1.0 (1.1, 0.9)
Oil type:
Multipurpose gear oil API GL-4 or GL-5
Recommended oil viscosity:
SAE 75W-90
DIFFERENTIAL
Oil capacity, L (qt., lmp. qt.): Two-wheel drive models 2RZ-FE engine 1.35 (1.4, 1.2)
5VZ-FE engine 2.55 (2.7, 2.2)
Four-wheel drive models Front A.D.D. 1.15 (1.2, 1.0)
Except A.D.D. 1.1 (1.2, 1.0) Rear
Short wheel base
With rear differential lock system 2.65 (2.8, 2.3)
Without rear differential lock system
2.55 (2.7, 2.2)
Extra long wheel base With rear differential lock system
2.95 (3.1, 2.6)
Without rear differential lock system
2.05 (2.2, 1.8)
Oil type: Hypoid gear oil API GL-5
Recommended oil viscosity:
FrontA.D.D. SAE 75W-90
Except A.D.D. Above -18 C (0 F)
SAE 90
Below -18 C (0 F)
SAE 80W or 80W-90
Rear
Above -18 C (0 F)
SAE 90
Below -18 C (0 F)
SAE 80W or 80W-90