How often to do oil changes?

Mobil 1/filter every 7500K, 25K/year

 

Read the service schedule and go by that...

5 thousand miles.

Your dealer is lying to you.

 

There can be a deep science when it comes to oil longevity. I think bottom line it depends on what you use your truck for and what oil/filter you are using.
A good rule of thumb for nearly anyone is 5,000 miles per change on dino oil and 10,000 miles on a FULL synthetic (not a blend) with a filter designed for such.
There are oil/filter combos that will last 25,000 miles, although I do think you change the filter halfway through. You can also buy super duper filters that go down to like 1-2 microns and trap nearly everything letting your oil last quite a while.

The oil itself doesn't break down, the additives do. So the quality of oil and the filter go a long way in determining acceptable oil change intervals.

No matter what though, weather takes a toll on the oil too so you should always change it once a year after a cold season just to make sure you are running oil of a appropriate viscosity.

So unless you want to get into crazy science of oil and want to spend a lot of time picking one out, if you do full synthetic oils, you are fine to go every 10K per change.

I use a full-synthetic extended performance oil that is said to last 15K miles. I will be changing it here soon at 10K and will send a sample into Blackstone Labs for testing. We'll see how it does.
I use my 5k maintenance light to tell me when I need to rotate my tires.

 

If you are going to change your oil at 5000 you might as well use regular oil. I change my oil every 10000-12000 miles using Mobil 1 and use Wix Filters. My truck is used in regular service with very little idle time so it fits in the normal category. If you do a lot of stop and go driving, idling, dusty roads, severe service you will want to change earlier. The 5000 mile change is a fits all category.

I have three trucks and they all get once a year or 10000 mile changes using synthetics. I do the oil changes. On all vehicles I changed out factory fill with less than 4000 miles then put in synthetics. I have been doing this for a long time. My 2003 Tacoma has 170,000 miles on it and uses about a 1/4 of a quart in 10000 miles. The oil on the dipstick falls about 1/4 inch in a 10000 mile interval.

I run synthetics in everything, boat motor, lawnmower, pressure washer and also use it in the differentials.

There is lots of misinformation out in regards to proper intervals. If you want to do extended intervals use quality oils and do a oil analysis for peace of mind. You can run oil way past 10000 miles with the proper filtration and a engine that is tuned properly. Oil only loses TBN when add packs in the oil deplete which is what protects the internal components. A robust filtration system will allow oil to go a very long time without a change. Again the motor has to be running properly in order to do that.

If you research oils there is plenty of information out there to read.

 

I'm with the 2 guys above and run it till 10k miles on Mobil 1 0w-20 synthetic. I was using K&N filters but now I'm using oem so I might change a little earlier. 6 quarts slam the hood and go, only issues I've had are my own screw ups.

 

If your truck is still under Warranty then stick with the 5K interval in the Owners Manual, after Warranty use whatever grade and interval makes you happy.

 

i have been changing my oil after my free oil changes from the dealer ended.
I've been using Mobil 1 0w-20 full syn and OEM filter.
Im about to reach 5k interval and was questioning myself if I should do every 5k or every 10k.
I was thinking of doing evey 10k now until I saw this http://rav4world.com/pdf/T-TT-0005-10.pdf

maybe ill do every 7500k

 

If you're still under warranty I would stick to whatever is called out for in the owners manual. When your warranty expires do what you want, also depends on how you drive and the type of driving. If your driving is stop and start, short distance or long idling than closer to 5K. I recommend sending your first oil change away for testing, they'll recommend how long you can go between changes.

 

I was just thinking the same thing. I got my Taco to DRIVE and enjoy.

I change my oil and filter every 5,000 miles. My last Tacoma got totaled (lady blew through a stop sign and I hit her at 55...) with 216,661 miles.

 

I change mine every 3000 - 3500

 

Holy old thread revival Batman!

CLEAR....*ZAP*!!

We have a pulse.

 

Hahah, goin way down the rabbit hole with this shelter in place...

 

Ok I’ll play I buy the mobil1 at Costco on sale 5w30 and Toyota YZZD3 filters online by the case, case equals 10 ea. Last time with free shipping comes to 48.00 so just under 5 bucks for that OEM filter.
I’ll go about 7000 to 8000 miles or about 6 to 8 months. All three trucks no problems, all over 130k miles one near 200k.

 

I just got back from the dealership...got 5 OEM oil filters for $5.50 each in San Jose, CA...pretty reasonable IMO for OEM parts and will not go back to using WIX or any of those other brands. Picked up some air and cabin filters too

 

I just posted this on another thread:

Did my annual oil change today. Actually 13 months but only 2500 miles. From what I've read the recommendation is to change it at least once a year, regardless of miles. I feel like I could have let it go for a while longer, but it's so freaking easy to change the oil on these trucks. 30 minutes from popping the hood to final dip stick check, and I wasn't in any big rush. 5 qts. of Castrol GTX synthetic was only $18 on Amazon so the whole investment was less than $25 and I know it's done right.

Now the flip side to this story is I also did my wife's RAV4. What a huge pain in the ass that car is! I'd like to meet the moron who reinvented the wheel to use their cartridge system. Rather than spin the old one off and spin the new one on, there's like 10 steps you have to go through. If I had even the slightest amount of confidence in the oil change places, I'd gladly pay to have it done. But because of the sealed cartridge, there's no way to be sure they actually changed the filter and there are multiple opportunities for them to screw up even if they do change it.

 

What a waste of time and money. 5K min or GTFO!

 

To each their own, time: I can spare 15 mins...money: not a big concern in the grand scheme of what I waste money on

 

2010 Tacoma, every 5000 miles.
2007 HHR, when the oil life reaches about 20% or once a year. About 60% plus of the oil life is used up during 3 to 4 months of Minnesota winters.
Had a 2003 VW TDI diesel. Recommended oil change was 10,000 miles and that is what I followed. Many on the TDI forum would do regular oil analysis and go as far as 20,000 miles. They had more time and money than I did.

 

It's funny to see criticisms of more frequent oil changes. It sure as hell doesn't hurt the engine, and if someone has the money and time to do it who cares?

 

This is all a part of the debate. If you want the true answer for your truck and the oil you use, take a sample and send it to a lab for tests. Add the TBN test to see how much life your oil has and adjust intervals accordingly. Typically, at 5k miles, any full synthetic with a good filter has thousands of miles of life left.