All About the Oil Filter in Your Toyota Tacoma

Like any other vehicle, your Toyota Tacoma needs regular maintenance to keep it in good running order. One of the most important things you can do to take care of your Tacoma is to routinely change its oil and oil filter. Here's an overview of the oil filter in your Tacoma, what it does and how to make sure you are taking care of it the right way.

Why Does Your Car Need an Oil Filter?

Regardless of whether you're driving a Tacoma pickup truck, a supercar or a minivan, all vehicles use oil filters to protect their engines from damage. The oil in your engine, as you probably know, helps to keep its moving parts lubricated so that they can work without suffering damage. The engine, however, also produces very high temperatures when it's running. In higher temperature ranges, your oil can burn slightly, producing solid material that can clog up your engine. The oil filter is in place near your oil pan, through which all oil must circulate, in order to remove this solid debris. Without it, your oil would become dirty and poor at lubricating your engine parts, eventually leading to engine problems of all sorts.

Why You Need to Change Your Oil Filter With Every Oil Change

As you probably know, regular oil changes are key to keeping your Tacoma in good shape. Each time you do an oil change, you should also be replacing the old oil filter. As your oil filter removes more and more solid debris from your oil, the material of which it is made begins to fill up. Past a certain point, the filter will become clogged and no longer remove new buildup. If you change your oil without changing the filter, it's like replacing your old furnace filter with one that is already dirty. The new oil, when passing through a dirty filter, will itself become dirty, and new solid debris won't be filtered out. Do that enough times, and your engine is sure to become clogged up with solid matter and suffer damage and loss of performance as a result.

Using Synthetic Oil to Extend Filter Life

If you want to get more use out of your Toyota Tacoma's oil filter, there's a simple way to do it. Rather than using conventional oil, start using synthetic oil in your engine. Synthetic oil can last up to 10,000 miles, as compared to about 5,000 for conventional oil, between changes. This is because specially formulated synthetic oils are less prone to burning than conventional oil, meaning they produce fewer solid by-products in the engine. The lower level of solid material produced by synthetic oil also makes it much easier on your oil filter. By using synthetic oil, you can extend the period of time between your oil changes, which by extension will extend the life of your oil filters.

Can Additives Support Your Oil Filter?

If you've ever visited the chemical aisle of your local auto parts store, you've probably seen oil additives on the shelf. These additives chemically neutralize some of the sludge that will build up in your engine as your oil gets old and worn out. Be aware, however, that using an oil additive should not be thought of as a replacement for regularly scheduled oil and oil filter changes. Instead, it should be seen as a way to support the work of an oil filter in keeping solid debris out of the engine of your Toyota Tacoma. When used in this way, oil additives can be beneficial to your engine.

How to Change Your Tacoma's Oil Filter

Changing an oil filter is a simple procedure that anyone can do without too much trouble. The first step, of course, is to drain the old oil out of your Tacoma's oil pan. After that, locate the oil filter, which will be next to the pan itself, then follow these steps to remove and replace it:

-Remove the old filter by turning it counter-clockwise

-Turn the oil filter upside-down in your oil drain pan to let it drain out safely

-Fill the new filter to the top with fresh oil

-Use a rag to wipe a small amount of oil onto the gasket at the top of the new filter

-Position the new filter and screw it in by turning it clockwise until fully tightened down

When removing the old filter, you may have some trouble getting it to come loose. Vibration and impact from the daily driving of your Tacoma can cause it to become overly tight. If you live in climates with heating and cooling throughout the seasons, the expansion and contraction of the metal threading can also make the filter harder to remove than it should be. If you live here in the Scottsdale, Arizona area, where our weather is fairly consistent throughout the year, you'll probably find this less of a challenge. If the filter does give you trouble, you can use an oil filter wrench to remove it. This kind of a wrench will fit onto the end of the oil filter and let you connect a ratchet to it so that you can remove the filter. In case this does become a problem, it's a good idea to have an oil filter wrench that will fit the filter on your Tacoma ready to go in advance so that you do not have to go out and buy one in the middle of a simple oil change.

Conclusion

If you want to keep your Toyota Tacoma's engine in good shape and continue driving it for years to come, regular oil and oil filter changes are a must. If you need a new OEM filter to replace your old one with, view our selection here on RightToyotaParts.com. Based in Scottsdale, we offer all of the factory original parts you need for your Toyota Tacoma, including oil filters.