Time for a good service

[Ian.G]

This was originally on the oil thread but I figured it may be useful for 4AGE engine newbies (like me for example) to see whats involved in a service.

I am going to have to get a bit of a shopping list of bits together here.

Oil Filter - Nippon Micro filter. 20vWill advises that a stock Toyota filter should not be used on the 4AGE motor. Other alternatives are TRD High flow oil filters from Fensport.

Engine Oil - Castrol GTX 10W40 - I believe the engine takes a fill of just under 4 litres.

Coolant - Toyota Red Coolant - can this be obtained from the dealer ?

Spark plugs - This depends on the state of tune of your motor. Stand plugs are either NGK BCPR6EY11 or Denso Q20R-U11.

Maybe it would be useful to create a set of sticky HOW-TO threads in the technical section.

Cam belt - As a precaution I am also going to change my Cam belt because I have no idea how long its been on the car.

I guess I can still get this from a dealer ? or is there a source of heavy duty drive belts ? Do you also have to replace the belt tensioner at the same time (I know on some cars you do) ?

One of the other reasons for changing the belt is hopefully my car has a few new goodies coming in the next few weeks and it makes sense fitting them at the same time.

fidanza adjustable cam gears
fidanza lightweight drive pulleys

I also want to get rid of the aircon bits at the same time.

[Mux213]

Hi Ian,

stickies are good we're also trying to get people to write some how to's For the time belt replacement you may want to check the how to on the front page. I got an aftermarket belt and tensioner which seems to be perfect for the job. I did a writeup of the replacement. Its not fault proof but might be interesting

[Aico]

Why ain't the OEM oil filters good? Usually OEM is the way to go. And what is so special about the red coolant?

[Ian.G]

These nuggets of information have been provided by 20vWill on the Oil Thread

[Aico]

I see.....well I can only give a comment about the coolant. You should get as much water as possible. If the temp doesn't drop a lot below freezing point then you could go for a 20/80 coolant/water mix. Or some more coolant. 50/50 is too much unless it's freezing out there.

[Ivan141]

I usually put in ready made coolant, since that is what most petrol stations sell around here. Last evening after I switched my thermostat for a good one I filled it up with 1.5 liters of this coolant, 1 liter of tap water, and the rest I filled up with the old rust-brown coolant that had been in the engine for the past few months.
I to am interested in why not to use OEM oil filters, since I have stuck with those since I have the car. I dont see why they would not work properly on a stock engine.

[20vWill]

Ivan141 Wrote:I usually put in ready made coolant, since that is what most petrol stations sell around here. Last evening after I switched my thermostat for a good one I filled it up with 1.5 liters of this coolant, 1 liter of tap water, and the rest I filled up with the old rust-brown coolant that had been in the engine for the past few months.
I to am interested in why not to use OEM oil filters, since I have stuck with those since I have the car. I dont see why they would not work properly on a stock engine.

You put rust coloured dirty coolant back in the engine? You need to flush that crap out until the flushing water runs clear and fill with either a 50/50 mix or Toyota Red. If not, you will get severe corrosion problems inside the engine's and radiator water ways, and accelerated head gasket deterioration. You should also not mix different coolant types.

As for the OEM filters, if you read the post I put up, my Toyota dealer says that Toyota GB have switched filters for the AE86 filter part number. This filter states on the box "NOT SUITABLE FOR 4AGE ENGINE". I'm not sure if this is the case in Japan/USA/Europe etc, but if what's printed on the box is an issue to me. Plus the Toyota filters are far more expensive.

Therefore, I don't use the Toyota filters. The quality of the Nippon Micro filters is better anyway.

[Ivan141]

I put in old coolant because I didnt have any more new coolant.
I have flushed the engine about 5 times this summer, driving around with tap water for 10 mins after every flush, it was still not very clean.
You have to understand that the engine I had put in the car last spring had been standing still for over 1,5 years.
The rusty coolant that came out last week has been in the engine for about 4 months. I didnt want to dilute the new coolant too much since it
was meant to be used without adding water. A 5 liter container of the coolant sold at the Shell station costs 17 euro's..ridiculously expensive if you ask me. I need to flush the whole thing again anyway, but I'll do so with cheaper coolant.

About the oil filters, I have also returned one to the dealer before because it didnt state it was for 4age's, but have used them without problems. I believe the original filters for the 4age where longer that the current ones (which are meant for the 4afe & most engines of that generation).

[Plex]

you guys change your coolant...?

[s.bjelke]

HAHA LOL