First Oil Change for new 4 Runner
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txclimber
New member
It is my understanding that the "break in" change logic is a relic of older manufacturing techniques. The tolerances on engine parts used to be much greater so when an engine was new the moving parts would "mate" together and wear down the parts that didn't quite fit. These bits would make their way into the oil causing it to need the quick change.
I'm lead to believe that engines these days are manufactured to such tighter tolerances that this just isn't the case anymore.
HOWEVER, I would still recommend doing so. If you've just bought a $40k vehicle, don't skimp on a $50 bit of insurance. Change the oil, get the peace of mind, and drive on.
I'm lead to believe that engines these days are manufactured to such tighter tolerances that this just isn't the case anymore.
HOWEVER, I would still recommend doing so. If you've just bought a $40k vehicle, don't skimp on a $50 bit of insurance. Change the oil, get the peace of mind, and drive on.
The manual says 10k miles. That is written by engineers and developers at Toyota and you should be fine going by that schedule. There is nothing that says to change the oil for the first time before that 10k mark.
Now, I only drive about 10k miles a year in my truck and I choose to change it every 5k miles, which is about every 6 months. I realize it contradicts what the manual and Toyota say, but that is what I am comfortable with. Sometimes the Toyota service guys look at me strange for requesting 5k oil changes, but what do they care? They are making extra money. Obviously, if you choose to change it before the 10k, its not going to negatively impact your vehicle at all. Just your pocket book a little bit.
Now, I only drive about 10k miles a year in my truck and I choose to change it every 5k miles, which is about every 6 months. I realize it contradicts what the manual and Toyota say, but that is what I am comfortable with. Sometimes the Toyota service guys look at me strange for requesting 5k oil changes, but what do they care? They are making extra money. Obviously, if you choose to change it before the 10k, its not going to negatively impact your vehicle at all. Just your pocket book a little bit.
Ducmonsta
New member
This is the most realistic advice regarding this subject. It's the culmination of 6,549 threads.
On a side note! Why did the Toyota engineers say oil intervals should be at 5k for the 2010 models and change it to 10k for the following years? Did they realize the exact same engine could go longer after a year of service? Or does it just so happen to be at the same time they provided the '2 year maintenance plan' for free?
Hmmm. I was unaware the 2010's specified a 5k interval. Mine is a 2011, not sure what the difference in one model year would be.
grey_ghost
New member
I have a 5th Gen also and it came standard with synthetic oil, that could be the reason for the change; perhaps 2010 and older did not use synthetic oil?
Anyway I just hit 10k this week and had it changed. If it were a Jeep i'd say change it every 3,000 miles ;-) but a Toyota running synthetic? I'm good with a 10k interval.
Anyway I just hit 10k this week and had it changed. If it were a Jeep i'd say change it every 3,000 miles ;-) but a Toyota running synthetic? I'm good with a 10k interval.
Ducmonsta
New member
Exactly! There is no difference.
If we want to trust the engineers who supposedly wrote the manual, then I guess it's ok to consume a quart of oil every 600 miles, right?
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Ducmonsta
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grey_ghost
New member
Ok so your manual for a 2010 does not say change at 5k, it says change oil at 10k and it says that motor uses synthetic oil.
It only says change at 5k under "special operating conditions", which generally means frequent towing or other harder conditions.
But i'm sure if you go back far enough someone can find out what year they started using synthetic; that's when the 10k mile interval started.
It only says change at 5k under "special operating conditions", which generally means frequent towing or other harder conditions.
But i'm sure if you go back far enough someone can find out what year they started using synthetic; that's when the 10k mile interval started.
I agree completely. But, if you stay with the 10k interval, as specified by the owner's manual, and drive under normal conditions, you should certainly be covered if something went seriously wrong with your engine (as long as you have documentation that you performed regular maintenance). All I am saying is that Toyota's engineers and developers must be awfully certain of this, otherwise engines in their millions of cars would be failing early and they would have a HUGE headache. That being said, I guess I am still a little old school and cannot completely wrap my mind around a 10k oil change. But, that is just me and my anal retentiveness.
Ducmonsta
New member
Sure, for a whopping 3yr/36k miles. The engines would probably last that long without ONE oil service.
Let's see, Toyota pays for your oil service for the first two years of ownership. We'll say the average driver does 15k a year. So that's 30k or 3 oil services. Let's just assume it costs Toyota $50 for every oil service (cost of oil, filter, labor, overhead, etc). Toyota ONLY sells 100k units this particular year. You guys should know Toyota sells over 9 million units per year.
1 vehicle costs them $150 in the first two years of service.
$150x100,000=$15,000,000
Here's the easy part. Now let's go back to 5k oil service intervals. 6 oil services in 3yrs.
$300x100,000=$30,000,000!!!
Imagine the savings at 9 million units!
As I stated before and most of you agree. Change it when you want to. I, personally, don't care if I invest an extra $150 per year in excessive oil services. It's my money and my truck. I'll do 10k oil services when Toyota warranties my engine for 150k miles. Not 36k.
Grenvilleter
New member
Although not Toyota related directly, I made, what I thought was an interesting observation regarding manufacturer warranties. I purchased a new car back in the '80's during a time when, IMO, N.A. built cars were of dubious quality.
Sales were low so mfgrs were offering bigger warranties to compete with each other. My point of this post is
As the mfg warranty was increased, say from 5 to 7 yrs, in the next model yr, the recommended maintenance schedule was made more rigid as well including dropping the recommended miles between oil changes.
What I rightly or wrongly deduced from that was, if you want your vehicle to go farther/longer, increase the maintenance sched.
Of course there is a point where you are wasting money on not needed replacement of parts/fluids, and disposing them long before their "best before date" has matured.
Sales were low so mfgrs were offering bigger warranties to compete with each other. My point of this post is
As the mfg warranty was increased, say from 5 to 7 yrs, in the next model yr, the recommended maintenance schedule was made more rigid as well including dropping the recommended miles between oil changes.
What I rightly or wrongly deduced from that was, if you want your vehicle to go farther/longer, increase the maintenance sched.
Of course there is a point where you are wasting money on not needed replacement of parts/fluids, and disposing them long before their "best before date" has matured.
Don't get me wrong. I agree with you. When I bought my truck, they gave me three oil changes to be used whenever I wanted, before 30k was up, hence once every 10k miles. I used them at 5, 10, and 15k. I understand the costs and agree that if they gave more free oil changes, it would cost them a lot of money. What I don't understand is why Toyota and many other manufacturers are now recommending 10k oil changes. If they stuck with the 3k or 5k intervals, they would theoretically make much more money in the long run over the life of the car, if the customer kept to that schedule and took it to the dealership for service. Heck, even these quick change places are now recommending at least 5k intervals on traditional dino oil.
Anyway, its a moot point. Change it when you want, I would certainly not go past the recommended 10k under normal driving conditions.
