TOYOTA TACOMA 2003 Owners Manual (in English)

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
2252003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
Do not connect the cable to or near
any part that moves when the engine
is cranked.
CAUTION
When making the connections, to
avoid serious injury, do not lean over
the battery or accidentally let the
jumper cables or clamps touch any-
thing except the correct battery termi-
nals or the ground.
5. Start your engine in the normal way.After starting, run it at about 2000 rpm
for several minutes with the accelerator
pedal lightly depressed.
6. Carefully disconnect the cables in the exact reverse order: the negative cable
and then the positive cable.
7. Carefully dispose of the battery cover cloths—they may now contain sulfuric
acid.
8. If removed, replace all the battery vent plugs.
If the cause of your battery discharging is
not apparent (for example, lights left on),
you should have it checked at your Toyota
dealer. If your engine stalls while driving...
1. Reduce your speed gradually, keeping a straight line. Move cautiously off the
road to a safe place.
2. Turn on your emergency flashers.
3. Try starting the engine again.
If the engine will not start, see “If your
vehicle will not start”.
CAUTION
If the engine is not running, the pow-
er assist for the brakes and steering
will not work so steering and braking
will be much harder than usual.
If the engine speed does not increase with
the accelerator pedal depressed down to
about the middle position , there may be a
problem somewhere in your electronic
throttle control system.
At this time, if you depress the accelera-
tor pedal more firmly and slowly, you can
drive your vehicle at low speeds. Have
your vehicle checked by your Toyota deal-
er as soon as possible.
Even if the abnormality of the electronic
throttle control system is corrected during
low speed driving, the system may not be
recovered until the engine is stopped and
the ignition key is turned to “ACC” or
“LOCK” position.
CAUTION
Be especially careful to prevent erro-
neous pedal operation.
If your engine stalls while
drivingIf you cannot increase the engine
speed (fourwheel drive models and
Pre Runner with 5VZFE engine)

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
2262003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
If your engine coolant temperature
gauge indicates overheating, if you ex-
perience a loss of power, or if you hear
a loud knocking or pinging noise, the
engine has probably overheated. You
should follow this procedure...1. Pull safely off the road, stop the ve- hicle and turn on your emergency
flashers. Put the transmission in “P”
(automatic) or neutral (manual) and ap-
ply the parking brake. Turn off the air
conditioning if it is being used.
2. If coolant or steam is boiling out of the radiator or reservoir, stop the engine.
Wait until the steam subsides before
opening the hood. If there is no coolant
boiling over or steam, leave the engine
running.
CAUTION
To help avoid personal injury, keep
the hood closed until there is no
steam. Escaping steam or coolant is
a sign of very high pressure.
3. Visually check to see if the enginedrive belt (fan belt) is broken or loose.
Look for obvious coolant leaks from the
radiator, hoses, and under the vehicle.
However, note that water draining from
the air conditioning is normal if it has
been used.
CAUTION
When the engine is running, keep
hands and clothing away from the
moving fan and engine drive belts.
4. If the engine drive belt is broken or thecoolant is leaking, stop the engine im-
mediately. Call a Toyota dealer for as-
sistance.
5. If the engine drive belt is O.K. and there are no obvious leaks, you may
help the engine cool down more quickly
by running it at about 1500 rpm for a
few minutes with the accelerator pedal
lightly depressed.
6. Check the coolant reservoir. If it is dry, add coolant to the reservoir while the
engine is running. Fill it about half full.
CAUTION
Do not attempt to remove the radiator
cap when the engine and radiator are
hot. Serious injury could result from
scalding hot fluid and steam blown
out under pressure.
7. After the engine coolant temperaturehas cooled to normal, again check the
coolant level in the reservoir. If neces-
sary, bring it up to half full again. Seri-
ous coolant loss indicates a leak in the
system. You s hould have it checked as
soon as possible at your Toyota dealer.
If your vehicle overheats

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
2272003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
1. Reduce your speed gradually, keepinga straight line. Move cautiously off the
road to a safe place well away from
the traffic. Avoid stopping on the center
divider of a highway. Park on a level
spot with firm ground.
2. Stop the engine and turn on your emergency flashers.
3. Firmly set the parking brake and put the transmission in “P” (automatic) or
reverse (manual).
4. Have everyone get out of the vehicle on the side away from traffic.
5. Read the following instructions thor- oughly.
CAUTION
When jacking, be sure to observe the
following to reduce the possibility of
personal injury:
Follow jacking instructions.
Do not put any part of your body
under the vehicle supported by the
jack. Otherwise, personal injury may
occur.
Do not start or run the engine while
your vehicle is supported by the
jack.
Stop the vehicle on a level firm
ground, firmly set the parking brake
and put the transmission in “P”
(automatic) or reverse (manual).
Block the wheel diagonally opposite
to the one being changed if neces-
sary.
Make sure to set the jack properly
in the jack point. Raising the ve-
hicle with jack improperly posi-
tioned will damage the vehicle or
may allow the vehicle to fall off the
jack and cause personal injury.
Never get under the vehicle when
the vehicle is supported by the jack
alone.
Use the jack only for lifting your
vehicle during wheel changing.
Do not raise the vehicle with some-
one in the vehicle.
When raising the vehicle, do not
place any objects on top of or un-
derneath the jack.
Raise the vehicle only high enough
to remove and change the tire.
NOTICE
Do not continue driving with a de-
flated tire. Driving even a short dis-
tance can damage a tire and wheel
beyond repair.
If you have a flat tire—

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
2282003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
1. Get the required tools and sparetire.
1 Wheel nut wrench
2 Jack handle
3Jack
To prepare yourself for an emergency, you
should fam iliarize yourself with the use of
the jack, each of the tools and their stor-
age locations.
Turn the jack joint by hand.
To remove: Turn the joint in direction 1
until the jack is free.
To store: Turn the joint in direction 2 until
the jack is firmly secured to prevent it
flying forward during a collision or s udden
braking.To remove the spare tire:
1. Insert the end of the jack handle into the lowering screw and turn it counter-
clockwise.
2. After the tire is lowered completely to the ground, remove the holding brack-
et.
When storing the spare tire, put it in place
with the outer side of the wheel facing up.
Then secure the tire, taking care that the
tire goes straight up without catching on
any other part, to prevent it from flying
forward during a collision or s udden brak-
ing.
—Required tools and spare tire
(regular cab models)

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
2292003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
Xtracab models
Double cab models
1. Get the required tools and sparetire.
1 Tool bag
2Jack
To prepare yourself for an emergency, you
should fam iliarize yourself with the use of
the jack, each of the tools and their stor-
age locations.
Turn the jack joint by hand.
To remove: Turn the joint in direction 1
until the jack is free.
To store: Turn the joint in direction 2 until
the jack is firmly secured to prevent it
flying forward during a collision or s udden
braking.

—Required tools and spare tire
(xtracab and double cab
models)

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
2302003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
To remove the spare tire:1. Put a jack handle, jack handle exten- sion and jack handle end together as
shown in the illustration.
1 Jack handle end
2 Jack handle extension
3 Jack handle
NOTICE
Tighten all joints securely. Otherwise,
the extension may come off and it
may damage the paint or vehicle
body.
2. Insert the end of the jack handle endinto the lowering screw and turn it
counterclockwise with the handle.
3. After the tire is lowered completely to the ground, remove the holding brack-
et.
When storing the spare tire, put it in place
with the outer side of the wheel facing up.
Then secure the tire, taking care that the
tire goes straight up without catching on
any other part, to prevent it from flying
forward during a collision or s udden brak-
ing.2. Block the wheel diagonally opposite the flat tire to keep the vehicle from
rolling when it is j acked up.
When blocking the wheel, place a wheel
block from the front for the front wheels
or from the rear for the rear wheels.
—Blocking the wheel

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
2312003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
Ty p e A
Ty p e B
Ty p e C
Ty p e D
Ty p e E
3. Remove the wheel ornament.
Pry off the wheel ornament, using the
beveled end of the wheel nut wrench as
shown.
CAUTION
Do not try to pull off the ornament by
hand. Take due care in handling the
ornament to avoid unexpected person-
al injury.
—Removing wheel ornament

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
2322003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
4. Loosen all the wheel nuts.
Always loosen the wheel nuts before rais-
ing the vehicle.
Turn the wheel nuts counterclockwise to
loosen. To get maximum leverage, fit the
wrench to the nut so that the handle is
on the right side, as shown above. Grab
the wrench near the end of the handle
and pull up on the handle. Be careful that
the wrench does not slip off the nut.
Do not remove the nuts yet—just unscrew
them about onehalf turn.
CAUTION
Never use oil or grease on the bolts
or nuts. The nuts may loose and the
wheels may fall off, which could cau-
se a serious accident.
Rear
Front
Twowheel drive models except Pre
Runner
RearFront
Fourwheel drive models and Pre Runner
—Loosening wheel nuts —Positioning the jack

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
2332003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
5. Position the jack at the correct jackpoint as shown.
Make sure the jack is positioned on a
level and solid place.
JACK POINTS:
Twowheel drive models
except Pre Runner Front—Under the frame side rail
Rear—Under the rear axle housing
Fourwheel drive models
and Pre Runner Front—Under the front suspension cross member
Rear—Under the rear axle housing
Specified
jack point
NOTICE
Only put the jack to the specified jack
point; otherwise your vehicle may be
damaged.
Xtracab and double cab models—Put a
jack handle, jack handle extension and
jack handle end together as shown in the
illustration.
1 Jack handle end
2 Jack handle extension
3 Jack handle
NOTICE
Tighten all joints securely. Otherwise,
the extension may come off and it
may damage the paint or vehicle
body.

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
2342003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
6. After making sure that no one is inthe vehicle, raise it high enough so
that the spare tire can be installed.
Remember you will need more ground
clearance when putting on the spare tire
than when removing the flat tire.
Regular cab models—To raise the vehicle,
insert the jack handle into the jack (it is
a loose fit) and turn it clockwise. As the
jack touches the vehicle and begins to lift,
doublecheck that it is properly positioned. Xtracab and double cab models—To raise
the vehicle, insert the jack handle end
with the extension into the jack (it is a
loose fit) and turn it clockwise with the
handle. As the jack touches the vehicle
and begins to lift, doublecheck that it is
properly positioned.
CAUTION
Never get under the vehicle when the
vehicle is supported by the jack
alone.
7. Remove the wheel nuts and change
tires.
Lift the flat tire straight off and put it
aside.
Roll the spare wheel into position and
align the holes in the wheel with the bolts.
Then lift up the wheel and get at least the
top bolt started through its hole. Wiggle
the tire and press it back over the other
bolts.

—Raising your vehicle —Changing wheels