Oil change frequency

[Cheers!]

Owners manual is always correct. Anything less and the dealer is wanting to make extra $ from you.

I just did my first one at 6000 miles. I took a sample of the factory fill and may send it off to Blackstone Labs

I've just been lazy. I'm definitely going to send the next sample when my 4runner hits 12,000 miles as I put in my preferred oil (Redline 0w20). From there based on the numbers you can figure out how far you want to go on an oil change. To be super precise, you should send in 3 samples (so in my case it would be 18,000 miles) of driving using the same branded oil to figure out where you want to be for oil changes.

If you are an oil change fanatic, this following link will make you feel better:
This Is What A 500,000 Mile NYC Taxi Valvetrain Looks Like

I for one like to use actual data from oil analysis to judge on when to do oil changes.

For my s2000 I go by the oil change reminder light. The Honda ECU for s2000 logs TPS, RPMs over time to determine when you should change out your oil. I've had my s2000 go 6000 miles before an oil change light came on. I also have had the oil change light go on at 2000 miles of hard track driving, mountain roads, and canyon blasting.

Lastly if you want to try 84,000 mile for the 1st oil change... Here is the link you should see:
http://jalopnik.com/what-happens-if-you-dont-change-the-oil-in-your-audi-fo-1692660828

 

[Kennyr44]

Toyota tests the oil after 10k and its fine. People here on this forum have tested their oil after 10k and it always comes back fine. What is the big mystery? Synthetics in a modern engine can go 20k although I wouldn't do it.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Put your mind at rest and the next you do an oil change spend the $25.00 the next time you change your oil and get the oil analyzed. You may be surprised at what comes back and that you are wasting money changing too frequently.

Oil Analysis & Oil Testing Services - Oil Analyzers, INC.

My kid is a heavy diesel mechanic on mining trucks. The kind of trucks that cost more than all the houses in your neighborhood put together and they change the filters on an operation hours schedule and the oil only when the analysis says its at X% of useful life left.

I am going to change my Trail at 7500 miles the first time, have it analyzed and if it's good that baby is going to 10K changes with an analyze every second time. I'll still save loads of money and can be sure all is well.

Just my .02

 

[Rmack]

The manual is usually very accurate, but climate, driving conditions, driving styles etc. all play a role. 10,000 miles on mine is not equal to the same miles on yours.

I never go past the recommended interval, but will change it early due to color etc.

Personally I do not agree with the manual recommendation for 10,000 miles on the first oil change. I have built many engines and there is a lot of wear metal discarded into the oil during the break-in period. I am sure the effects will be negligible, but I will spend the extra money for peace of mind.

 

[1engineer]

The manual is usually very accurate, but climate, driving conditions, driving styles etc. all play a role. 10,000 miles on mine is not equal to the same miles on yours.

I never go past the recommended interval, but will change it early due to color etc.

Personally I do not agree with the manual recommendation for 10,000 miles on the first oil change. I have built many engines and there is a lot of wear metal discarded into the oil during the break-in period. I am sure the effects will be negligible, but I will spend the extra money for peace of mind.

Nothing against you or anyone else in this thread but when you lead several teams of engineers and design an engine that is used globally in quantities over 100K/yr and you warranty it for 5/50 in any condition then I will listen to what you say. Follow the manual, use the right oil and filter and this engine will be running for a long time. Why second guess? You know more than them? Everyone says piece of mind right? When you go to a doctor and he says you need a heart bypass do you say "Well doc I remove my own splinters and I learned CPR once so instead of listening to you I will determine when I need a bypass 'K?"

Again not directed at you but guys, why? You should have a greater piece of mind by following the owners manual instead of thinking you know more than the guys who designed it.

 

[etc.]

I just had my first oil change on my 15 TEP. 4,000 miles on odometer.

 

[Jhalko]

Why second guess? You know more than them? Everyone says piece of mind right? When you go to a doctor and he says you need a heart bypass do you say "Well doc I remove my own splinters and I learned CPR once so instead of listening to you I will determine when I need a bypass 'K?"

Again not directed at you but guys, why? You should have a greater piece of mind by following the owners manual instead of thinking you know more than the guys who designed it.

I don't get the doctor example being thrown out all the time, they misdiagnose things all the time. I got a misdiagnosis for strep throat a few years ago, duh, it's positive or negative.

That being said ill just follow the recommended maintenance as I'm guessing it was made with a healthy safety margin since Toyota surely wants to maintain their quality reputation. These things are surely designed for the "average person" not people that actually know how to pull a dipstick to see that there is oil in there ie folks on this site.

 

[Friggin Idiot]

Why is it so hard to just follow the owners manual?

It's not about the owner's manual or service intervals, it's about the change. It seems like forever has been the recommended service interval of oil every 3kmi and tire rotation every 6kmi (every other oil change).
Today's engines have lower tolerances requiring thinner oil. The oil has advanced as well. Synthetic blend used to be fancy, and full synthetic was overkill. Now full synthetic is required in new vehicles in order to meet the higher service intervals and tolerance requirements. For those of us raised or born into the era of 3kmi oil changes the jump to 5kmi is much easier to accept than the leap of faith to 10kmi.

Imagine you are raised in the US for a couple decades, where most people bathe/shower daily. Then you move to Europe for a few months, where bathing is more an every other day or less type of thing. And finally you settle into a missionary position in Africa where bathing is even less frequent. It will take you some time to break the habit of wanting to bathe daily, and then adapting to bathing monthly or less. It takes time to break habits, and a middle ground is a simple compromise.

Call me old fashioned but I was raised that you drove the vehicle 3kmi and onto some ramps in the driveway, drained the oil, changed the filter, refilled, ran the engine, and topped off the oil. Then you took the old oil over to the tree with the ant colony in it and used the old oil and a match to permanently destroy said ant colony. You also could simply change your distributor cap, plugs, and wires while you had the hood up. And all of this could be done in an afternoon without removing 40 bolts or plastic pop rivets holding on various baffles and shields!

Now I may be wasting manufactured oil (which can be recycled), but I'm taking the compromise and changing every 5kmi. Worst case is that I spend more money than those who can change habits more easily. I also get to know my serviceman better and have a vehicle which is more likely to have problems spotted sooner.

 

[1engineer]

It's not about the owner's manual or service intervals, it's about the change. It seems like forever has been the recommended service interval of oil every 3kmi and tire rotation every 6kmi (every other oil change).
Today's engines have lower tolerances requiring thinner oil. The oil has advanced as well. Synthetic blend used to be fancy, and full synthetic was overkill. Now full synthetic is required in new vehicles in order to meet the higher service intervals and tolerance requirements. For those of us raised or born into the era of 3kmi oil changes the jump to 5kmi is much easier to accept than the leap of faith to 10kmi.

Imagine you are raised in the US for a couple decades, where most people bathe/shower daily. Then you move to Europe for a few months, where bathing is more an every other day or less type of thing. And finally you settle into a missionary position in Africa where bathing is even less frequent. It will take you some time to break the habit of wanting to bathe daily, and then adapting to bathing monthly or less. It takes time to break habits, and a middle ground is a simple compromise.

Call me old fashioned but I was raised that you drove the vehicle 3kmi and onto some ramps in the driveway, drained the oil, changed the filter, refilled, ran the engine, and topped off the oil. Then you took the old oil over to the tree with the ant colony in it and used the old oil and a match to permanently destroy said ant colony. You also could simply change your distributor cap, plugs, and wires while you had the hood up. And all of this could be done in an afternoon without removing 40 bolts or plastic pop rivets holding on various baffles and shields!

Now I may be wasting manufactured oil (which can be recycled), but I'm taking the compromise and changing every 5kmi. Worst case is that I spend more money than those who can change habits more easily. I also get to know my serviceman better and have a vehicle which is more likely to have problems spotted sooner.

Bah. It has nothing to do with "habits" as that is a cop out. It has everything to do with knowledge and getting a hammer lock on ignorance. Many of us more "progressive" older engineers have a saying: Change or die or at at minimum become Irrelevant. Some of these guys would be wise to educate themselves on the present instead of clinging to the apron strings of their past.

 

[Cheers!]

Don't forget that the 10k oil change interval is the recommended one if you are under normal operating conditions.

"Additional Maintenance Items for Special Operating Conditions" specifies that you should change your oil and filter at 5000 miles when you:

Driving on dirt roads or dusty roads
Repeated trips of less than five miles in temperatures below 32°F / 0°C:
Extensive idling and/or low speed driving for a long distance such as police, taxi or door-to-door delivery use:

Also if you hit 12 months to change your oil and filter. I personally will probably hit 6000 miles when my 4runner is at 12 months.

For the little extra cost of an oil change slightly sooner does no harm and provides more or no extra benefit. Whereas if you were trying to stretch it to 10k plus or even just 10k with special operating conditions you may have used up all your TBN in your oil.

I can change the oil in my 4runner in about 30 mins time start to finish. The cost to me is about 1 tank of gasoline in terms of money.

 

[Rmack]

Nothing against you or anyone else in this thread but when you lead several teams of engineers and design an engine that is used globally in quantities over 100K/yr and you warranty it for 5/50 in any condition then I will listen to what you say. Follow the manual, use the right oil and filter and this engine will be running for a long time. Why second guess? You know more than them? Everyone says piece of mind right? When you go to a doctor and he says you need a heart bypass do you say "Well doc I remove my own splinters and I learned CPR once so instead of listening to you I will determine when I need a bypass 'K?"

Again not directed at you but guys, why? You should have a greater piece of mind by following the owners manual instead of thinking you know more than the guys who designed it.

There is nothing wrong with going exactly by the owners manual. To clarify my comment on initial oil change I will elaborate;

I worked in a chemical engineering lab for a while. One of my jobs was analyzing oil samples that were sent to our lab for specific wear metals, depending on the engine. We also tested oils from large machinery, generators etc. I also supervised a lab that analyzed oil from high performance jet engines. I have been trained at some of the best military and civilian oil analysis schools in the country.

My experience from years of analyzing oil is that there is a significantly larger amount of wear metal debris in the oil during and right after the break-in period. The oil filter by design will catch most, but not all.

I am not trying to convince anyone to do anything, just offering my personal preference. I will go out on a limb and say I probably know more about oil than most of the guys/girls who work in the design department at Toyota.

For all we know the designers did recommend an oil change at 2,000 miles but were shot down by the corporate brass and bean counters at Toyota

 

[1engineer]

I don't get the doctor example being thrown out all the time, they misdiagnose things all the time. I got a misdiagnosis for strep throat a few years ago, duh, it's positive or negative.

That being said ill just follow the recommended maintenance as I'm guessing it was made with a healthy safety margin since Toyota surely wants to maintain their quality reputation. These things are surely designed for the "average person" not people that actually know how to pull a dipstick to see that there is oil in there ie folks on this site.

Because people trust doctors when they shouldn't and don't trust other things in life that they should.

 

[jrandom]

I am personally far more concerned with OE electrical components or suspension/steering failing far before anything oil or mechanical engine related.

I stick to the manual and blend a difference between special operating conditions and "normal" driving, since my driving is roughly 35/65.

We all like to follow our owns paths, right?

 

[nglayton]

Oil change Fav

This is my favorite article......well, maybe not my fav, but almost.

Stop Changing Your Oil! | Edmunds.com

 

[serial0l0]

I took my truck in for its first 5k service appointment and I was surprised to see an oil change sticker on it. I was expecting a tire rotation. I somehow left without the service report too. :/ I thought my 2013 LE was oil every 10k if I remember correctly. I rely a little too much on my service department i think.

 

[Bevo]

I took my truck in for its first 5k service appointment and I was surprised to see an oil change sticker on it. I was expecting a tire rotation. I somehow left without the service report too. :/ I thought my 2013 LE was oil every 10k if I remember correctly. I rely a little too much on my service department i think.

I'm betting they didn't change the oil. They probably just put the sticker on to remind you when to come back in for your next service.

 

[1engineer]

This is my favorite article......well, maybe not my fav, but almost.

Stop Changing Your Oil! | Edmunds.com

That article is brilliant. Scared, insecure and ignorant is why they change their too soon lol.

 

[mnofpeace]

That article is brilliant. Scared, insecure and ignorant is why they change their too soon lol.

I personally credit this man for blowing that paradigm out of my brain...after buying my 2014 last December. 5K was always my habit...but habits are to be broken when you see they arent good ones.

I can take changing my oil twice a yr...works just fine for me.

 

[nglayton]

I took my truck in for its first 5k service appointment and I was surprised to see an oil change sticker on it. I was expecting a tire rotation. I somehow left without the service report too. :/ I thought my 2013 LE was oil every 10k if I remember correctly. I rely a little too much on my service department i think.

Toyota care? If they did change it Toyota Corp paid the bill. I know my service manager (high school buddy) claims that most people never use the full value of Toyota care and he loses out on the service sales as well, so whenever he gets a vehicle in he changes it just in case the guy never comes back. On rare occasions he gets the vehicle back in and has to eat and extra oil change he is still way ahead.

 

[Shando]

Toyotacanada.ca says every 8,000 km to change oil!!

Hi all,

I've read through this entire thread, and everyone seems to agree with the 10k mark to change oil. When I called my service department, they said every 5k (they actually said 8,000 kms, but 5,000 miles is approx. 8k kms.). They referred me to the toyota.ca website and lo and behold, it says 8,000 kms for oil change intervals. I have a 2015, is it possible that they changed their mind, and now the suggested interval is every 8,000 km?