Changing to syntheic oil

As stated in my other forum posting...im a computer geek not a gear head so please bear with me on these noob questions.

I am insterested in switching to a synthetic oil. How do I go about doing that? I have my first oil change coming up and would like to do it then.

Do I need to drain the oil and then flush the system before I put in the synthetic stuff? Do I just drain and replace with synthetic? I was told by one person that I had to put some type of cleaning solution in to get the old regular oil out before I could successfuly use synthetics...

Seems like a lot of people have changed to a syntheic and are getting some benefit from it. Please share with me how I can change to syntheic oil as well...

Thnx
Mouse

 

Just drain it and replace with synthetic. Don't forget to change the oil filter. If you're unsure about changing oil, I would take it to a professional and have them replace it.

 

I am really wanting to start doing most of my service myself. I had a 2000 celica before my Tacoma. I took it in for an oil change and they drained it and never refilled it with oil. As I drove to work I blew the engine and they got away with not refunding me for the damages...My tacoma was my celicas replacments.

You know what they say...if you want it done right...you have to do it yourself.

 

As Klown mentioned...

No flushing needed. Just drain & fill.

Do a lot of research before you tackle the job. It's an EASY job once you know exactly what you're doing. Paticularly...know exactly which bolt is the drain plug (NOT the transmission drain plug).

Change the filter and look in your owners manual for how much oil you need to put in.

 

Thanks...

Im getting a copy of the 2005+ service manual now...I would expect it to show exactly where the oil drain plug is.

Is there a special synthetic oil filter...or is an oil filter and oil filter?

 

I use Wix or Napa gold oil filter with Castrol syntec.

 

I just get the toyota oil filter that you can buy at the $tealer.

 

Oil filters & synthetic oils - there are many different types & brands. You can use whatever you want. It's a personal preference. You can easily research oil filters and see what folks are using.

I'm running toyota filters - no paticular reason why. I got a case of them for a good deal and figured I'd stick with OEM.

 

Just drain out the old oil, replace the old oil filter and refill it with synthetic. There is no need to flush the engine.
Id suggest using either a Toyota OEM oil filter or a Wix and any oil is fine as long as its a name brand (Mobil, Castrol, Amsoil, etc...) and isnt Pennzoil.

 

Hopefully not much cause about 20 minutes ago I put in 5.5 qts of Pennzoil Platnium.

 

hell yeah!!! damned good stuff!!!



nothing at all wrong with pennzoil platinum......i have been using it in my tacoma for 12k miles.....no problems whatsoever!!! its as good, if not better than mobil1(an oil i like also).

 

It has a reputation for leaving a lot of dirt and gunk in the valvetrain. IMO, Pennzoil is to oil what Fram is to filters...

 

tests on.....http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php......show the pennzoil platinum to be really good oil. they do their fair share of testing over there. i havent had any problems with it since i've been running it.

 

Yup, same here. Personally, I wouldnt run Pennzoil in my lawnmower, much less in my truck.
Ive personally always been a believer in Castrol. I ran Castrol GTX in my '85 4Runner. When I sold that thing it had over 245,000 miles on it, didnt burn a drop of oil and ran like it was brand-new. Castrol is kinda pricey, but its good stuff.
Almost any of the name brand oils are good though. A lot of people make a big fuss that you have to run Mobil 1 or Amsoil or Royal Purple or whatever, but the fact is that as long as you change the oil every 5,000 miles an engine will just about run forever no matter what oil you use. IMO, doing the proper maintenance is the most important thing you can do to prolong the life of your vehicle.

 

i may give it a try. i had seen a while back on tn that a couple of people had done an analysis on the 4.0 with the pp, theirs turned out pretty good.