About to pull the trigger on a 2015 v6 6mt 4wd OR and need advice...

Man, so am I! I figure the first day I get it I'm going to hose every bolt down with WD-40 and let it sit over night so I can have an easier time the next day. I'll absolutely look up the secondary air pump, thank you!

 

I think you'll find a few write ups on the air pump filter if you search "Uni-Filter Mod" or something very similar.

 

Nice find. Invest in a good set of jack stands you trust completely, and make sure the ground, asphalt, or concrete you place them on is also sound and level.

I have the same truck but 2014 year, which is the same as the 2015. (2013-2015 are identical, AFAIK.) Picked it up with 62K miles on it, now at 78K, no issues, doesn't burn a drop of oil between 3-4K oil change intervals.

My only reservation about your purchase would be: I hope the previous owner at least had the oil changed every 5-7K minimum. Look down the oil filler cap with a bright flashlight, hopefully there is just a golden light brown sheen of oil indicating normal oil change frequency, nothing black or gunky which would tend to suggest the previous owner neglected regular oil changes.

I live in Calif. where there's no salt on the roads. If I lived in a rust-belt state I would woolwax/fluid-film/etc the truck every year, and do the insides of the doors/body/rocker panels at least every other year also.

 

If you’re lucky, it’ll come with detailed service records and receipts. Otherwise assume they only put gas in and drove it.

Find the maintenance thread in the stickies. Many of the links don’t work but there’s recommended intervals & how to info.

Gear oil, make sure you can get the fill plug off before draining. You could upgrade to Lexus plugs so it won’t cause future problems.

Brake fluid, DO NOT let the reservoir go empty. Getting air in the abs module is a headache.

Motor oil, most are happy using the d3 toyota filter. I like the Napa 1772. Many including myself are happy with the fumoto drain plug valve.

 

If you’ve built engines then the truck isn’t hard. Only thing I need to figure out that wrenching doesn’t teach is welding.

besides that just doing those things (fluids etc) makes more of a difference over not doing it at all

 

I’ve been spraying my truck with CRC Heavy Duty Corrosion Inhibitor the past few years. Seems like a waste because we barely get snow in PA anymore, at least in my area.

 

My buddy is a welder, and he's teaching me how to weld, so I have that going for me too.

 

Yeah, same here. I just travel farther north frequently. My parents life in the north west of the state, and I live in the south east of Pa.

 

I strongly echo the NO K&N folks. Those filters have no business in modern engines. This is not the 70s with poorly designed air intakes. Modern vehicles likely have lots of computer flow modeling to get the most efficient flow.

Also, cleaning the throttle body is an easy task. Remove hose clamps, remove 4 10mm bolts and pivot throttle body away to clean.

Plugs, filters, oils, drive it.

The joys of a well built vehicle that does not have a ticking time bomb of mechanical engineering = Priceless Toyota ownership.

 

Yep, I've pretty much ditched the K&K intake, and am going to clean the throttle body as soon as I get my truck. The anticipation is killing me.

 

Peace of mind. Back before I even knew it was a thing, I used to hose down the underside of my '98 T-100 with WD-40, or the cheap Dollar General equivalent. Even that, helped that truck survive. Last I'd heard, my nephew sold that truck a couple of years ago with 328,000 miles on it. Hopefully, it's still rolling around Des Moines somewhere.

 

Nice, thank you for the solid advice! I've had a fill plug stick after I'd drained the tranny fluid. Not a good day.
Lexus plugs? Are they made of a different material? I'll check the Napa 1772, for sure.

 

I'm an amateur welder w/ my little Hobart "Handler 210MVP" unit.

I've found that the 2 most important things for getting clean welds are good power, and correct/plentiful shielding gas.

Don't bother with "flux core" mig wire if you can possibly avoid it. Get a machine that has a gas port / solenoid & a tank of CO2/AR mix (or whatever is appropriate for your metal,) and if at all possible hook up to a 220/240V 50A (or more) power outlet.

Anyway, that was a tangent. Hopefully OP's new-to-him 2nd gen won't require welding any time soon. My 2nd gen certainly hasn't so far.

 

Rule #1: Always attempt to loosen/remove the fill plug first/before removing any drain plugs: Differentials, transfer case, automatic/manual transmission.

I made this mistake once servicing a front differential, and even though the fill plug came loose with minimal effort, I immediately recognized my error as the fluid slowed to a trickle and it raised my heart-rate and blood pressure a bit.

 

I’ve heard great things about 210MVP. Might even be better than HFT Vulcan MigMax given they don’t seem to be on the $750 sale anymore.

 

IDK about "great" but it's a good value for the price.

If you are forward-looking and want much wider capabilities I would look into a modern inverter-based welder that is capable of pulsed-mig / spray-transfer for easy, clean, strong welds in steel, aluminum, and stainless steel without a goofy MiG "spool gun." This is a technological quantum leap over plain MIG welding. For example: https://usaweld.com/collections/htp-america-pro-pulse-200

Of course this is closer to 3 grand out the door, whole different level of commitment & investment.

This guy is a welder's welder who knows his sh*t through and through, I recommend this & many of his other vids on welding:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJjMireC1WM