anyone changed oil yet on 5th gen?

Yes but I can either go by the Toyota manual or by some website where an anonymous poster said 1 year/10k.

I think I'll go by the book for now. Besides, my unlimited powertrain warranty requires 5k oil changes to uphold the warranty.

I was at the dealer on Tuesday and the Service dept told me 10K interval for 2010 4R's using synthetic oil (@$60 a pop, BTW, double what it used to be). This doesnt sound right in my gut, but came from the horses mouth. I guess they would consider me silly to show at 5K. Call me crazy I guess.
 
Thanks for the oil change link Thai.A good read there!
What year M3 did you have? I just sold my beloved 2002 M3 in October with 45k miles on it because of police/speeding problems,SMG tranny gremlins, ... long story.
The M3's computer decided when you needed to change the oil and do inspection checks by fuel flow thru the engine. So if you beat on it/raced it(more fuel flow) it adjusted the number down and if you babied it,it went the other way.
Here is a link to pics of my last baby.The kid that bought it already put a Supercharger on it for over 500hp.
Harper's TiAg M3 pictures from bmws photos on webshots

I had a 2003.5 BMW M3. I did not have any SMG tranny issue, but i did have plenty of speeding tickets! :D I did get several SMG updates. I was/am on the M3forum.net.
 
Thanks. Didn't look at those.

I suppose it won't do any damage to change it more frequently and since I must to keep my aftermarket unlimited lifetime powertrain warranty I probably will stick to the 5k schedule.

Talk to your warranty folks and tell them about the synthetic oil in your 4runner. I am sure that they will understand.
 
My dealership here in Athens,GA has that same December 15, 2009 memo and provides a copy to each new car buyer when signing the papers.
 
Let me guess, you bought the unlimited powertrain warranty at your local Toyota dealership? Your dealer must have been extremely happy...here you are paying for the warranty AND you dumping money into their service center. :dancin:

Wrong but a reasonable guess.

The warranty is not on the sticker price nor was it added on. It's standard on all the Toyotas sold at this dealer as a service to their customers and as an added incentive to buy from them. It's good for all US and CAN too which is nice if you are across the border and need a repair (I don't recall if MEX was covered).

It carries a $100 deductible and requires regular oil changes and 30k services but I've never heard of a dealer adding an unlimited warranty gratis so I was still delighted.
 
Wrong but a reasonable guess.

No, i was right. You paid for it when you bought your 4runner...the price was already included in the price you paid for your 4runner. There is a Honda dealership here in Houston TX that does the same thing...in fact, they offer LIFETIME bumper-to-bumper warranty on ALL their cars on the lot. The warranty is NOT from Honda, but a 3rd party. When i was buying my father's Element, their price quote was higher than everyone else. Why? Well, they gotta get you to pay them for the warranty somehow...it is just hidden within the price of the vehicle...or in how little they discount for you. Guess what? I did not buy it from them because i got a much better discount elsewhere. Like your situation, this free lifetime warranty is NOT included in the sticker. I think that it is pure genius!! You pay for the warranty even though you "think" that it is free.

Is your powertrain warranty from a 3rd party or is it from Toyota directly? My guess is 3rd party. From all my readings, the powertrain on Toyotas (with few exceptions, mostly from their car line) are bullet-proof for the first 100k miles...and Toyota powertrain warranty is longer than the bumper-to-bumper i think. Most of these lifetime crap is banking on the fact that most owners get rid of their car well before that...thus, these 3rd party don't lose a dime.

Nothing is free in life. It is just like BMW offering free maintenance service for 4 years/50k miles...it ain't free...you paid for it when you sign on the dotted line!! BS marketing.
 
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Well given that I paid less for my TE than MSRP at every other dealer, I'm still happy about it. Besides, I saw the sticker on it when it was listed at port before dealer allotments were set and the price didn't change after my dealer located it and had it sent to them in place of their original LTD. You'd think if the local dealer was raising the price to account for the 3rd party warranty that it would be reflected in a discrepancy between what the regional importer sticker list was and what the dealer MSRP was.

Maybe they do that on the majority of cars on their lot but they couldn't do it on this one because of the weird quirk that they were changing allotments and none of the vehicles were being distributed to dealers when I bought it?

At any rate, although I hope to never use it, I'm happy that I have it and that I got one of only a few Trails in the US at a good price.
 
It seems to me you could argue that those 'special operating conditions' apply to the vast majority of drivers. There's the cold 5 mile trip and the slow driving, idling, long distance comment. Any of us that live in a metro and drive in traffic need to be on a 5k change IMHO.

I hope Toyota doesn't try to use the note to deny a 10k changers claim, that'd be wrong.
 
They cover the cost by discounting less during the haggling process. There is no free lunch. See BMW analogy above.
 
BTW, don't forget about Toyota's infamous oil sludging 3.0 V6, the 1MZ. Toyota said it was the owner's fault because they didn't follow the service schedule, BUT some mechanics attribute it to a poor block design as well that give it the perfect storm coupled with owner laziness.

Though the 4Runner's V6 is a completely different engine.
 
They cover the cost by discounting less during the haggling process. There is no free lunch. See BMW analogy above.

You are correct. Again though, I was a rare case where I got a TE below MSRP. Even though they went out of their way to get it for me and then sat on it for 3 weeks while I was on the west coast (losing money while it was on the lot the whole time).

I think I just got lucky and dealt with a very nice lady at the dealer.
 
You are correct. Again though, I was a rare case where I got a TE below MSRP. Even though they went out of their way to get it for me and then sat on it for 3 weeks while I was on the west coast (losing money while it was on the lot the whole time).

I think I just got lucky and dealt with a very nice lady at the dealer.

Don't get me wrong, you got a good deal for having such an early TE.
 
Thanks for the oil change link Thai.A good read there!
What year M3 did you have? I just sold my beloved 2002 M3 in October with 45k miles on it because of police/speeding problems,SMG tranny gremlins, ... long story.
The M3's computer decided when you needed to change the oil and do inspection checks by fuel flow thru the engine. So if you beat on it/raced it(more fuel flow) it adjusted the number down and if you babied it,it went the other way.
Here is a link to pics of my last baby.The kid that bought it already put a Supercharger on it for over 500hp.
Harper's TiAg M3 pictures from bmws photos on webshots

Harper... that's amazing. I recently sold my 2002 ti with cinnamon to move to the 4 runner. Sold her in December. Was an awesome car. Is missed but the expense and tires cost won't be.
pics below.
MobileMe Gallery
 
anyone know how much dealers are charging for the synthetic oil changes? trying to figure out if i should go straight to amsoil or not.
 
Back to the original question, I have changed my oil once and I am getting ready to do it again as I am approaching 10k. I am lucky in that I have access to a lift. The skid plate is on a hinge and only requires a few 10mm bolts to remove. The filter has a drain on it but to change out the filter element you will need a 65mm flute wrench to remove. Mine was on so tight it required a breaker bar to remove. Remember it is only plastic!
 
I just got a letter from Toyota with a new Maintenance guide and the oil change interval has been extended to 10,000 miles or one year. I will scan and post the letter later.
 
I am just under 4900 and called my dealer to ask about the 5k v 10k changes, they said it was 10k, so Im only half way to my first change.
 

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