How to Drain and Fill the Transmission on a 2016-2023 Tacoma (3.5L V6)
Quick safety check before you begin. Required: safety glasses, gloves, and the truck on a lift or on jack stands, level, with the wheels chocked. Recommended: a torque wrench, a fluid pump for the refill hole, and a drain pan. Fluid at the overflow plug during the level check is hot.
What you need
Parts
Tools
- 5 mm hex socket (overflow plug) and a socket for the drain and refill plugs
- Torque wrench: 20 N·m (15 ft-lb) and 39 N·m (29 ft-lb)
- Drain pan and a fluid pump that reaches the refill hole
- Jumper wire for OBD-II terminals 4 and 13 (Toyota SST 09843-18040), or Techstream
- Lift, or jack stands and wheel chocks; the truck must be level within ±1°
The numbers
| Item | Spec | Toyota's words |
|---|---|---|
| Fluid | ATF WS | "requires Toyota Genuine ATF WS" |
| Drain and refill amount | 3.1 L (3.3 US qt) | "3.1 liters (3.3 US qts, 2.7 Imp. qts)" |
| Level tolerance | ±1° front to rear | "kept level when it is lifted up" |
| Drain plug | 20 N·m (15 ft-lb) | new gasket |
| Overflow plug (5 mm hex) | 20 N·m (15 ft-lb) | new gasket |
| Refill plug | 39 N·m (29 ft-lb) | new O-ring |
| Level-check temperature | 35–45°C (95–113°F) | D indicator on = in range, blinking = above 45°C |
| Temperature mode entry | N↔D, <1.5 s intervals, ≥6 s | D indicator lights for 2 seconds |
| Tuned Yota interval | 60,000 mi | ours, not Toyota's |
One pass, or the full factory replacement
Toyota's replacement procedure is not one drain and fill. It drains, fills to the overflow, adds 3.3 quarts on top, runs the engine for 30 seconds, and does that three times before setting the level at temperature. Each cycle replaces roughly 3.3 of the 8.5 quarts in the system, so three cycles turn over most of the fluid without a flush machine. If the transmission has never been serviced, one pass at 90,000 miles is a good first service; the full procedure is what Toyota calls a replacement. The steps below are Toyota's, with the single-pass shortcut marked.
Step by step
- 1
Lift the truck level
Set the vehicle on a lift, or on jack stands with the wheels chocked, so it is level: Toyota's tolerance is within ±1° front to rear. The level check at the end depends on it. Remove the engine under cover if it blocks the drain plug.
- 2
Drain
Remove the drain plug and its gasket from the transmission and let the fluid drain into a pan. Then temporarily reinstall the drain plug with the old gasket; it comes back out later.
- 3
Open the refill and overflow plugs
Remove the refill plug and its O-ring. With a 5 mm hex socket, remove the overflow plug and its gasket.
- 4
Fill to the overflow
Add ATF WS-spec fluid slowly into the refill hole until it runs out of the overflow hole. Slowly matters: fluid added fast hits internal parts and bounces back out of the refill hole. Wait until the flow slows to drips, then temporarily reinstall the overflow plug with the old gasket.
- 5
Add the drain-and-refill amount
Add 3.1 L (3.3 US qt) more through the refill hole. Temporarily reinstall the refill plug with the old O-ring and lower the truck. If the full amount will not go in, run the engine 30 seconds as in the next step and continue.
- 6
Circulate
With air conditioning, lights, fan and audio off, start the engine, move the shifter slowly from P to S and back to P, idle 30 seconds, then switch off.
- 7
Full factory replacement: repeat
Toyota's replacement procedure repeats steps 1 to 6 once more, then drains a third time. On that third drain, install the drain plug with a NEW gasket and torque it to 20 N·m (15 ft-lb), then refill as in steps 3 to 5. For a single drain and fill, do steps 1 to 6 once, then fit the new gasket and torque the drain plug the same way before the level check.
- 8
Enter temperature detection mode
Without a scan tool: jumper terminals 4 (CG) and 13 (TC) of the OBD-II port (Toyota's SST is 09843-18040). Hold the brake, start the engine with all electrical loads off, and move the shifter slowly from P to S and back to P. Then move the shifter between N and D at intervals of less than 1.5 seconds for at least 6 seconds. The D indicator on the cluster comes on for 2 seconds to confirm the mode. Put the shifter in P, release the brake, and remove the jumper. With Techstream: Powertrain / Transmission / Active Test / Connect the TC and TE1, then read A/T Oil Temperature 1.
- 9
Bring the fluid to 35-45°C (95-113°F)
Idle the engine. The D indicator comes on again when the fluid reaches 35°C (95°F) and blinks above 45°C (113°F). Set the level while it is lit. If it blinks, stop the engine, let the fluid cool, and start the check again.
- 10
Set the level
Lift the truck level again. With the engine running, remove the overflow plug with the 5 mm hex. The fluid is hot. If a lot comes out, wait until it slows to drips. If nothing comes out, remove the refill plug and add fluid until it flows from the overflow hole, then wait for drips. About 5 cc from the overflow tube itself does not count as overflow.
- 11
Close up
Install the overflow plug with a NEW gasket: 20 N·m (15 ft-lb). Install the refill plug with a NEW O-ring: 39 N·m (29 ft-lb). Lower the truck and switch the ignition off, which exits temperature detection mode. Lift once more, clean the area, and check for leaks.
Rather we did it?
Tuned Yota services Toyota and Lexus across Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin and the Dakotas, and every job is priced from your truck's actual capacities.
Book with Tuned Yota →Questions owners ask
Yes. Toyota publishes a drain-and-refill procedure for this transmission with a stated amount, 3.1 L (3.3 US qt) per drain on the 3.5L V6, and it is the gentlest service the transmission gets: no machine, no pressure, just the fluid that drains by gravity replaced with fresh ATF WS-spec fluid. Toyota's full replacement runs that cycle three times in one session. Tuned Yota's interval after that is every 60,000 miles.
Toyota's own replacement procedure is a repeated drain and fill, not a machine flush: drain, fill, run, and repeat, three times, then set the level at temperature. One pass replaces about 3.3 of the roughly 8.5 quarts in the system.
Toyota Genuine ATF WS, or a fluid that meets the WS specification. Tuned Yota pours AMSOIL Signature Series Fuel-Efficient Synthetic ATF, which AMSOIL lists as covering Toyota WS and names for this Tacoma in its vehicle lookup.
A single drain and fill takes 3.3 US quarts on the 3.5L V6, so buy four quarts. Toyota's full three-cycle replacement adds fluid to the overflow plus 3.3 quarts on each of three cycles, so plan on roughly five gallons for the full procedure.
Jumper terminals 4 and 13 of the OBD-II port, start the engine holding the brake, and rock the shifter between N and D for six seconds at under 1.5-second intervals. The D indicator lights for two seconds to confirm temperature detection mode. Remove the jumper and idle. When the D indicator comes on again the fluid is between 95 and 113°F, and that is when you pull the overflow plug with the truck level: slow drips mean the level is right.
More for the 2016–2023 Tacoma
Procedure, quantities, torques and temperatures are from the Toyota repair manual for the 2016 model year Tacoma (AC60E/AC60F automatic transmission fluid replacement and adjustment). The 60,000-mile interval is Tuned Yota's recommendation. AMSOIL's Toyota WS coverage is AMSOIL's published claim. Confirm specs for your exact year and torque to spec. Tuned Yota is an independent AMSOIL dealer; parts links are our store.