The old 5k or 10k oil change debate

My Ex had a VW Jetta about 10 years ago that required some sort of German Synthetic, was definitely pricey.

 

I have my reminder set to 7500 mi. Truth be told though, I do it whenever the weather is agreeable.

As for the first post, some dealer flyer doesn't mean much to me. It list nothing done between 95k and 120k miles, so...

 

This is the probably the most reasonable thing I've seen. Seems like a good compromise

 

I find it funny how people think earlier OICs cost more- they do. But relatively speaking they are minuscule in relation to many other things many do, like- immediately change-out tires on a new truck, possibly to even a larger size. A lift. Etc.. Not only do these cost way more money than an oil change every 5k they likely induce future repairs. An earlier OIC, will not harm a truck BUT a longer one MAY. All of you are like the trooper stopping the guy going 1 mph over the speed limit while everyone else speeds by them alongside the road at +10 mph over the limit. Not a well thought out thought. Wow- you can’t make this sh*t up.

I’m guessing many of you don’t believe in any form of insurance because you have it all figured out. Simply buy the life insurance the month before you pass. Anyone not doing that is a sucker, lol. They say “all my friends did this just before they died”, or at this age, etc. Anecdotal- look it up.

 

These threads always come up. I used to change my oil in all the used beater cars I drove when I was younger every 3-4 thousand miles. Then I got a Liberty CRD with under 40k on it and owned it for 11 years. I followed the manual and changed to oil per the severe service schedule at around 6,000 per the 6,250 they called for with 5w40 synthetic oil. Had some Blackstone labs tests. Never had an engine oil related issue in 150k miles.

I'm going to do the same 6,000 miles with the Tacoma on my own once Toyota care is over and I been changing my oil between the provided ones.
It's not a big investment to do but I seen from experience with the first nicer vehicle I had that it seemed like it made a difference over the years. If you aren't planning to own the truck a decade or more that might not be something you will want to do. To each his own.

 

Lots of 500 000 mile trucks on this site that did 10 000 mile OCI since new ….. just sayin. If the additives aren’t used up the oil isn’t “dirty.” The filter catches the particulates.

 

Not quoting the post I am replying to, because it applies to many in these threads.

 

You nailed it.

 

Excellent point Mike. For those who don’t plan on owning their trucks 10 years or more OICs probably won’t factor in at all- once every 50k to 100k would suffice. For those who want to get to 300k and more earlier OICs will likely be your friend.

 

Oil threads on any forum always seem to go downhill in a hurry. I'm usually wise enough to just click the back button and avoid them.

That being said, it's weird how upset people get at others because they change their oil on a different frequency.

 

Same experience... After the first do-it-yourself oil change I figured out it was significantly cheaper to just pay the dealer to do it.... Normally I like to do level-10 maintenance like that myself, but the $ difference was too significant to ignore.

(Same thing with my 2008 BMW 3-series; dealer was about the same as DIY)

 

Considering the cost of an engine, amd the intricate mechanical internals. Added with how hard these engines are working to create the HP and Torque that they are. I wouldn't use an extended oil change interval.
I think the shorter oil change interval is cheap insurance to keeping the internals of an engine clean and well lubricated.

Thats just my 2 cents.

 

The thing is choosing 5000 - 7500 - 10,000 intervals will not be noticeable till the vehicle hits about 80-100,000 miles.
Thats when things change, some people buy a vehicle and hope it last for 300-400,000 miles. They follow the standard, 5,000.
Some trade in regularly and yes,... change the oil only when necessary, at 10,000. Most the time they are 2000 miles past due.

They trade it in,
Dealership salesman tells you "It's a one owner car that has been maintained HERE at the dealership on schedule and recorded",... and then smiles at the next victim.

 

I dont think its noticeable then, I started with 10k changes in 1990, and normally run them 40,000-50,000 miles a year to 150,000 to 250,000 miles total then sell or trade. Since 1990, I have never had an oil related failure, and never had one burn more than 1/2 a quart in that time frame. Some have been traded after shorter mileage than that, but thats because I was just sick of them in some form or the other. After Dallas to El Paso in a solid days drive in a Jeep Wrangler you could hear the wind roaring in your head in the hotel at night. The Nissan Xterra was comfortable but rode rough and went thru gas like Charlie Sheen thru a line of cocaine.

 

I don't know but I had a friend that had a VW GTI that was turbo and vvti. They changed to oil every 10,000 miles too. The thing makes to around 80,000 and there was some issues with the variable valve timing. Something about a screen in the actuator that controls it was clogged. They ended up replacing the actuator and effected cam at the dealership. It still wasn't right and ended up trading off.
Not he believes in 5k oil changes... imagine that.

I personally did it ever 6k witj my old Liberty CRD I had over a decade. Even had an annual oil analysis done and they always said that engine was wearing better than expected. Some where between 5k and 7,500 is probably good depending on how and where you drive.

 

My Tacoma hasn't arrived at the dealership yet. At what mileage does the service engine light come on, or does it? My 2005 Camry's comes on at 5k.

 

The Tacoma will put up a message in the center screen to preform service every 5,000 miles.
When you go in for that 5k Toyota care service they will just check over fluids and rotate the tires. They won't do an oil change until the 10k service. They only say to do an oil change at 5k if you tow, off road, use a car top carrier or frequent trips under, I think 5 miles.
I believe the reason for 10k oil changes is in part to lower costs of ownership.

 

If you're that worried about it just do it at 5k. It's not that much money, especially doing it yourself.

I do mine every 6 months because I never drive maybe more than 10 miles a day lol

 

I love these threads. A bunch of guys slapping each other on the back for changing their oil more often than necessary because their feels told them they should.

But they're also the guys who only use "ermergerd OEM" Toyota oil filters, because Toyota engineers know best...except for the oil change intervals, obviously.

 

Toyota filters are easily available at my local Wal-Mart that's Why I bought them. I have no issues with wix or Napa gold which is the same.

As far as cost if you do it yourself it's really cheap. My dealership charges $109 to change the oil and rotate the tires. I can do it myself twice for that money and have change left over.
But there is always that argument against do it yourself because it's hard to get rid of used oil. It's not, not in my experience. Walmart auto center, auto zone and advanced auto parts accepts it for recycling. The other thing guys say is the service record isn't recorded. The Toyota app or web site let's you enter service history done by you or an independent mechanic and Toyota can see it too if they is a warranty issue from what I understand.