The old 5k or 10k oil change debate

I believe there are energy-intensive ways of synthesizing hydrocarbons from other carbon sources, like CO2 or graphite. But there’s no reason to consider these methods for engine oil, because if we’re that desperate for hydrocarbons, then there’s certainly no burnable gasoline anyway and ICE cars are long gone.

Shell’s natural gas to oil process seems to be a method of turning methane into longer chain hydrocarbons like hexane in a clean predictable way.

 

Oil change threads are the best. The armchair (insert type here) are all over the spectrum in this one. I do 3k and use the old oil for my burn pile in the fall. I recycle

 

Amsoil = Snake oil

 

FWIW... spoiler alert: "From not regularly changing the vehicle's oil at 5k miles":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4JS7PybV2k

 

Isn't it great as it services those who want the best. It's also a conservation product keeping a manageable snake population. Win-win if you ask me.

 

Been doin' the 10k/1yr oil changes on my '17, driven an average of 3.8k a year. I guess it must be fuct.

 

Lol your not screwed, but I will say with such little miles a year the oil sits and does have a tendency to leave deposits, and absorb moisture and other things . I think it’s a good idea to change it .

 

5k miler here. low tension oil control rings and component dependant systems like our VVT demand fresh oil to work properly.

In the 70’s poeple I knew only put in oil when they heard the lifters rattle. Change oil…never

 

I also get people are trying to be frugal. But how many people waste money on other stuff ?
Probably quite a bit. The other thing is do we really think the manufacturers want our vehicles to last 300K miles …. Nope . They know full well that it’s not helping doing long oil changes, plus it probably makes them look good having people think the vehicle is low maintenance and I’m sure Toyota and other manufacturers get brownie points for advertising that. The other question is all these labs, yes they test the oil, yes the oil can still be good but do we really know what deposits are being left where ?
Why is it I change my oil all the time , and besides one crappy GM product I had ( that’s another long saga ) I’ve never had an oil burning vehicle . Was that luck…. Maybe …. But I don’t think so ,and that includes motorcycles . It’s cheap insurance and a little extra time, in my book .

 

The Tacoma sure isn't known for its high build quality, smoothness, or refinement. The fact is that it is reliability IS one of the highest touted features of the truck. Toyota is not unaware of this and I find it highly unlikely that the would knowingly reduce the lifespan of the truck just to convince folks its "low maintenance". And yes, its off road nature is a big selling point to some, but if we wanted low reliability and good off road capability we would buy a ZR2.

Have you heard folks on here tout how their truck is Low Maintenance? Nope.
Have you heard them talk about it should last 300,000 miles? Absolutely.
Reliability is a FAR bigger selling point than the frequency of oil changes, and yet they still tell us to go 10,000 miles.

 

So I get the argument that the manufacturers don't care if the truck lasts 300k so they can sell you another...however if they don't last that long they start to lose that position in the market that Toyota's last 300k and they sell less trucks/cars. So I believe they are putting in the manual what their engineers find is what is needed to maintain that market position. I have done the 3k change in other vehicles in the past and honestly now I think it was a waste of money. I follow the recommendations of the manufacturer because they built it and did all the testing. Now would I trust Ford or Chevy the same way...no because they are at the bottom of the reliability charts typically. The people that say they are changing their oil at 3k are completely wasting their money. Honestly I think 5k is the same way unless you meet the requirements indicated in the manual for a 5k change. If you are concerned about the 10k interval than send it out and see what the analysis says.

 

Scamsoil is what we call the company here. Actually most of their products are good like spectro lubricants.

 

Yeah, your engine is done...should of blowed up years ago.

 

There’s no issues with going past a year on low mile full synthetic oil. This isn’t 1970. I’d still change after a year but it really doesn’t cause issues. See my 15 month 3k mile UOA I posted earlier in this thread.

 

I've got a bit to say on the topic. I saw tons of engines in all forms of maintenance both none at all and overkill in my 18 years of wrenching.
I use synthetic, it's not prone to coking nearly as badly, and it doesn't break down under heat as quickly. Will be using TGMO Synthetic as Toyota uses a different additive package with more molybdenum than comparable oils. It is made by Nippon and finished off by Mobil. BobIsTheOilGuy.com states it's around ~15% Mobil 1 and ~85% a Nippon-specific Group IV Synthetic.
Clearly, Toyota uses that formulation for a reason so it's good enough for me. I've already told my dealer to note that every oil change is to only be with TGMO Synthetic and a TRD filter. OE Filters usually do the best job of filtering compared to most aftermarket and keeping oil pressure within spec.
I will be doing my changes every 5k as Atlanta traffic is a severe service condition. Otherwise, I would change every 7.5k and no further. If it was a turbo (Like a 2024 will be) it would be 5k only as turbos use oil for cooling and lubrication. Engine oil is superheated going through the center section of the turbo which breaks it down faster, synthetics less so but still happens depending on how much gas has contaminated it.

 

Where is here and why do you think Amsoil is a scam?

 

So has anybody had their mind changed yet?

 

Yeah, I once used to think that humans are rational and capable of deductive reasoning, but now...

nOt AlL sYntHetiC iS 100% sYntheTic... tHe GovErnMent doeSnt waNt You To kNow... pLAnned ObsoLesCence

 

It's not so much the product, but their marketing tactics by dealers here. Our guys just began calling them that.