OEM filters vs Competition

Alright. First, I have to DRINK because it's another oil thread.



Warning: this is a low-value reply to a thread of, if not low value, at least exceedingly repetitive content.

Next --

Obviously, without the slightest possible shred of doubt in the known universe, Toyota OEM filters are at least extremely adequate to the task at hand.

Why do we -- all sane, rational, civic-minded, polite, forward-thinking gentlemen and women -- know this?

Because probably 19 out of 20 Toyotas on the road, whether Tacoma or any other model are, without any research, forethought, testing, planning, or comparison needed, using OEM Toyota filters. And all these zillions of Yoters are getting 300K+ miles on the motor using said filters.

Now maybe using the magical whambam superior Brand Zeta-Omicron Super Ultra Pimp filter would get the average Toyota to 350+K miles instead of just 300K miles, but it's awfully hard to prove that due to lack of controlled conditions for comparison, lack of centralized stats gathering & adjusting, yadda yadda.

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If anyone wants to properly obsess about cleaning their oil in-situ without restricting the carefully-designed stock oil flow rate, the way to do it is with a separate low-micron bypass filter. You keep the main/stock filter and add a separate low-micron filter in parallel with the main one. The low-micron filter only flows a very small amt (? maybe 2-3% ) of oil per minute but all the oil cumulatively & eventually gets passed through it, resulting in cleaner oil overall with negligible flow loss.

There are one or two good threads on bypass filtration somewhere here on TW forums, I'll paste some links in here if I find them again.

 

Why not just increase the frequency of oil and filter changes?

 

Partly because it may not be necessary (see: oil analysis reports) -- and partly because it's expensive!

I ran the numbers once on a 3K vs 5K OCI for my 4.0L Tacoma over a projected 250K minimum lifespan and came out to several thousand dollars.

 

I dropped $37,900 on my 2023.
Admittedly, I drive low miles per year.

The price of Mobile1 at Costco and an OEM filter is less than taking the family out for a pizza and drinks.
The price of a VVT-i replacement is a staggering amount compared to more frequent oil changes.
Your projected cost over 250k miles is what I pay yearly for insurance.

Not dissing you at all here, just pointing out that good maintenance is part of keeping the truck in tip-top shape.

 

You need to shop for oil more often.

One oil change for a 3.5L V6 Taco, with 6 quarts of synthetic oil and OEM filter costs me $25, with tax.
3K mile changes will cost me $2,083 over 250K miles. 250/3x$25
5K miles oil changes will cost me $1,250. 250/5x$25
Neither number is indexed for inflation.
$833 extra over 250K miles.

Same numbers for my I4 Rav4, 4.5q of 0w-20+OEM filter, $20 oil+filter+tax cost
$1667 for 3K OCI over 250K miles
$1000 for $5K OCI over 250K miles.
Difference of $667.

 

Technically not. As a filter gets loaded with particulate it actually becomes more efficiency in filtering incoming particulate.

 

Those facts are awesome

 

Hmm, seeing your numbers inspired me to dig up my own calculations on this. Where are you getting 6 quarts of synthetic motor oil for $20?

Turns out it costs me $45 per change (COSTCO synthetic 5W-30 + OEM filter), and I was amortizing over a 400K (aspirational) vehicle lifetime, a difference of nearly $2K on a truck that I bought used for $25K.

400K / 3.5K OCI = 114 oil changes * $45 = $5,130
400K / 5.5K OCI = 72 oil changes * $45 = $3,240

Here's my original posting about it.

 

And here is my posting of my Blackstone Labs oil analysis report, which indicates that a 3.5K OCI is unnecessary and can probably go just fine to 5K without any ill effects. (As long as it's either 5K OR every 6-8 months. 5K is not OK if it takes 2 years to get to that interval & oil change.)

 

EXACTLY why I no longer blindly make decisions on OCI and instead use data.

• I bought my truck at 190k.
• First oil change was done with an 3800mi OCI. Blackstone said everything looked good and to try 6k.
• Then I accidentally lost track of time and did 10k / 30 months. Blackstone agreed that was too much but in no way was it catastrophic. They suggested I try 5k for the next one.
• Next OCI was 5700 / 8 months. Blackstone said the results looked great and to try 6k again.

I'd be interested to see if anyone had any legit data on time vs mileage. I've never been one to prescribe to time being all that relevant. And in 15yrs of doing oil change analysis I've NEVER had them comment anything regarding length of time between oil changes. And on multiple occasions I've had vehicles that went for over a year or over two years without an oil change (but usually low mileage as they simply weren't driven much). I just really can't see changing the oil every 6-12mon on a car that only sees a few hundred or a couple thousand miles a year.

 

Any savings I would gain by stretching out my OCI would be offset by my weekly coffee budget, which is excessive and irresponsible

 

Sales, buy1 get one free, Autozone annual clearance sales, Publix oil clearance, etc. I buy oil ahead of time. I an oil hoarder.
My last deal was 3 of 5 qrt Pennzoil Platinum from Amazon for $49 total. 49/15x6 is almost $20.
Back in the day, G-oil synthetic was free after rebate. Those were the days.

 

Broooooooo.



Well, I hoard other things. If you have the space, why not? But you'll have to admit that an average cost of $20 for 6 quarts of quality synthetic oil is an outlier, it's around $40ish at COSTCO and that is considered a good deal.

 

Thread-hijack --



A year ago I was up to 4-5 cups (caffeine equivalent) of strong coffee a day. Then I started getting these.. weird headaches.. ONLY BEHIND THE RIGHT EYEBALL (not the left,) and I was thinking...

Wtf. How do you get a strong headache that lasts for hours only one ONE side of the head/face?

---> Oh shit. Must be a brain tumor.

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But no, it turned out to be caffeine dependency, it is a physical & documented medical phenomenon. It was a bitch to get off, I went cold turkey and the symptoms of withdrawal -- nausea, headaches, extreme fatigue -- knocked me on my arse for a full 36 hours. Literally was forced to walk off the job in the middle of the day, I came to a grinding halt.

And then, after 36 hours or so, the symptoms promptly & completely subsided, as-promised in most of the documentation on caffeine dependency.

I waited about 2-3 weeks before I felt like risking another sip of caffeine, and found I had no problem getting right back to around 1-2 cups a day, which I continue to drink without any issues.

 

Not really an outlier, normal on BITOG.

 

Ouch! Why on earth would you go cold turkey? Usually caffeine headaches are not too dependent on quantity. Meaning that even a minimal amount of caffeine will prevent you from getting the headaches. It's pretty easy to taper down/off very quickly without any headaches. Also, even small amounts of caffeine can cause physical dependence. If you drink coffee EVERY day, even just one cup, it can be enough to cause withdrawal symptoms. Oh, and don't forget that it's not just coffee. Lots of people drink enough soda to cause dependence as well. And of course energy drinks and caffeinated workout supplements too.

 

Hmmmmm... 230K sure, OK.. but I want my 4.0L 1GR-FE to go to 400K & beyond. 5K OCI is the max I'll ever go, regardless of oil analysis results.

 

I bought too many OEM filters on sale to switch to something else. And they've worked just fine according to the few blackstone reports that I've gotten.

 

FYI in San Diego region Mobil 1 is less expensive at Walmart than Costco, of course waiting for someone to open the locked cabinet is a bit annoying. I have compared a couple times.

 

My commute to work is under 15 miles round trip. I do 5k or less oci because of that. And no oil analysis will change it.