LexTund

Now that I've had my free oil change from my Lexus dealer, it's time for me to crawl under this baby and do it myself. I already found out about the filter removal tool and have ordered a TOY640...so I'm committed. I do have a few questions: I see that the initial step in removing the filter is to remove the plug in the bottom of the filter housing. When I do that, will oil immediately pour out or does it start to flow after installing that plastic gizmo that came with the new filter. After installing the new filter, 0-rings, and plug, what are the torque requirements for both the plug and the filter housing? Am I correct in assuming the oil gets drained from the oil pan and that it does not all drain through the filter housing drain plug? Am I OK using an STP oil filter as opposed to a Lexus filter? Also, I wasn't happy with the dealer using Toyota motor oil and plan to use Mobil 1 synthetic. Any thoughts on that?
I am a new member and this is my first post. I look forward to hearing and sharing information with all of you.
Marc

MD350

Welcome to the forum!

ESsearch

I just did my first oil change and learned a bit for the next time. The oil will not come out of the filter housing drain plug until the plastic fitting is inserted. It has a spring loaded flap in there that the plastic fitting pushes open. You still drain most of the oil out through the oil pan drain plug. I was suprised to find the car uses 6.4 quarts (6.8 with filter) so make sure your drain pan is big enough! I personally think any name brand filter would be fine. You will get all kind of opinions on dino oil vs synthetic. Just not from me!

Pete

kanu

Torques are 9.5 lb-ft for the drain and 19 lb-ft for the filter housing. (19 lb-ft is about what you get when you install the filter housing by hand, without tools.)

Doing your own oil changes is a good move. Not letting the dealer do the free one would have been a better move, at least in my case. The dealter torqued my filter housing to 42 lb-ft using a pipe wrench! I had to file down the resulting raised metal on the outside of the filter housing before I could use the Special Service Tool.

The dealer's parts guy told me they don't carry the SST because it's weak and breaks easily -- gee, I wonder why.

As for filters, I use the stock Toyota/Lexus filter kit 04152-YZZA1. It includes the filter element, the drain, and the two o-ring gaskets. There's a dealer (Sullivan Brothers Toyota) that sells them in case lots of 10 on eBay for $38.95 including shipping. Detailed installation instructions (including the torques quoted above) are printed on the box.

kanu

Yes, you need to drain the oil pan as well as the filter.

As for Mobil1, it's good stuff and it should work just fine. I've been using it in my ES350 (20K miles in 9 months) and I have no complaints. In fact, Mobil1 is widely recommended for certain Toyota/Lexus engines that are susceptible to oil gelling (not known to be a problem with the ES350).

YotaCarFan

Note that having the oil filler cap (top of engine) removed allows the oil to drain more quickly.

I've unfortunately found some dealers take a shortcut: They just pull off the filter, let the oil pour out the filter mount, swap the filter and reinstall. They don't remove the oil sump drain plug, resulting in old oil staying in there. I also highly doubt most of the mechanics go to the trouble of replacing the two O-Rings (filter assy) or the crush washer (drain plug), since it's inconvenient and no one can see the difference. So, yes, doing it yourself is the best way. However, since I find oil changes to be messy and time-consuming (when factoring in the trip to the oil recycling depot), I just take my chances with the dealer doing it.

dreyfus

I've been doing my oil changes for 2 years now using Mobil 1. They're really easy to do from in front of the passenger wheel and you don't need to raise the car.

The only thing I do differently is that I no longer remove the filter housing plug. I find it's difficult to push the plastic nozzle into the opening so I just unscrew the housing and accept the oil that spills out into my pan. It isn't too bad.

Remove the oil pan plug and drain the oil. Replace the plug. Reposition my oil pan under the filter housing and unscrew it. Clean the inside, replace the o-ring and filter and screw it back in. Add oil & check for leaks. That's it.

I use only Toyota filters from a Toyota source (not the more expensive Lexus source). The filters are identical. As kanu said, the part # is 04152-YZZA1.

LexTund

I received the filter housing removal tool and began the oil change. My first observation is that the tool requires a metric socket. I didn't have one, so my plan was to remove the filter housing drain plug, drain the oil from the oil pan and make a hardware store run. But.....in attempting to remove the plug, I had to use a big 1/2 breaker bar to get it loose, and guess what, the filter housing began to turn. I guess the Lexus service guy who did my free oil change didn't have all the right tools and just installed the filter housing using the drain plug fitting to torque the housing in....if he even torqued it. Oh well. I always say you get what you pay for....if you are lucky. The removal of the filter housing resulted in a small amount of oil spilling out..no big problem. I agree with Dreyfus on that and will not bother with the drain plug.
As for Lexus even having this drain plug; it's a nice little piece of fluff that may make the service guy happy, but 99% of the owners (you know...the folks who PAID for the car) could care less. They could have spent the money on some stuff that we could use and appreciate.
And by the way, the filter housing torque requirement is stamped on the bottom of the housing and is 25 +/- 5 newton meters. Thats about 19 lb-ft. Thanks for the translation Kanu.
I saw no gasket on the oil pan plug, so I just put a wrap of teflon tape around the back half of the threads and socked it down (not too tight, but nice and snug).
Thanks again for your help and suggestions

samathews

Thanks, I'll try not removing the plug next time - I didn't care for that anyway. Also I use the Pneumatic Oil/Liquid Extractor to suck the oil out through the dipstick holder. I find that easier and I get more oil out than by using the drain plug (tested on my previous car - a Solara). Griot's garage has these for $100.00.

rikkus256

hi do you have to use synthetic oil? thanks

LexBob2

No, either dino or synthetic are OK.

overclock

I love my Fumoto valve. Cleanest oil change in history. I have them on both my cars.