Break in oil change.

haven't read my manual entirely, but I would think if Toyota recommends 10K oil change intervals, they must have synthetic oil in them. if that is the case, I'm good with the 10K. after all, you're not using the engine for ALL of those 10K miles anyway.

 

I did it a 1K. I think it's the most important oil change one can do but that's just my opinion. I'll let Toyota pick up the next two.

 

changed @ 2.1k miles here. have 13k miles now, car is running very nicely (peaked at 60mpg this summer, down to 51mpg due to winter).

 

If Toyota wanted you to change the oil before the 10K mile mark, they would tell you to. You're just wasting money and possibly damaging your engine by changing it really early like 1K miles or less.

Why? Because there could be "break-in" additives that are meant to stay in the engine until 10K. If Toyota engineers say the first oil change is due at 10K, then it's due at 10K. You're just wasting your money and hurting the environment by changing it early. Prove me wrong by producing a used oil analysis showing otherwise.

Not trying to be a troll, just trying to be devils advocate ;-)

 

We're all just beating a dead horse here. I just responded to the poster since he asked.

As to why I do it early, I reminded myself that the 2010 Prius didn't always have 10k oil changes. It was initially supposed to have 5k oil changes. Who knows if Toyota felt it too complicated for the consumer to tell them "initially do a 5k oil change, then you can do a 10k oil change thereon" - that would have been confusing, don't you think? Anyways, thats one reason why I decided to do it early @ 2k, as I would any other car.

Also I am concerned that in the manufacturing process, I might accidentally get a Prius that has a few more solids/metal left in the engine than the other Priuses in the assembly line, so no addition of break-in oil or additives will fix such a problem. So in my mind, changing it early is just insurance against that. But yes, I am sure that my example is an exceptional case, but I always like to play it safe, I hate bringing cars to dealers for servicing, even if it is their/Toyota's fault.

 

Neither you nor I know what Toyota powertrain engineers believe is the best time for the first oil change. All we have is the Toyota corporate recommendation that has a lot of input other than powertrain engineering.

 

Ahhhh....the Great Oil Debate.
I don't have any skin in the game for Priuses, since "Big Phone" is covering the oil changes in "my" Prius...but FWIW, I'm getting to be an old fart now. I've found that the truth (if it can be determined) is usually in the middle somewhere.
I've read looooooong articles saying that you'll ruin your engine if you change the oil early, and also heard from equally passionate debaters that say you'll kill your motor if you leave the 'factory' oil in for longer than the break-in period.
This battle is especially nasty in the motorcycle forums.

Since there are fierce contenders on both sides of this argument, I believe that both approaches are being adhered to.
Since I know that GM, Harley-Davidson, Kawasaki, and Toyota (to name the brands that I currently drive) don't stock shelves full of replacement motors for their vehicles in their service departments, this tells me that it reeeeally doesn't make much of a difference which trench you're fighting from in this battle.

I usually replace the oil in my vehicles after the break-in period. This allows me a looky-see under the hood, (actually beneath the vehicle) and a chance to 'discover' what interesting challenges await me in the role of home mechanic.
Does this help the engine or hurt it?

Since I usually get lunar mileage out of a motor (except for the motorcycles) I really don't care, but that's how I roll. If you always DO what you always DID...you'll always GET what you always GOT....right?

We now return you to our previously scheduled debate already in progress....

 

Bought my 2010 Prius last Saturday and the dealer said every 5,000 miles for my oil change.

 

It used to be every 5,000 miles for the US and Canadian market, but for the 2010/gen3 Prius it has now been extended to every 10,000 miles. This is because this Prius must use special 0w20 oil which is expensive but offer superior protection and running qualities.

 

If I might ask where and what additives are added to the Toyota oil and can you please give us a link to your findings, all so a link on the damage that non dino oil would do to environment would be nice

 

I went to about 1500 before the first change...now I just change it when it's divisible by 10,000.

 

My dealer insisted on 2k and then 10k or 6 months and my answer was "but they say 10k" their answer was "ok we'll do it free but we do want it done" and I saw the filter and guess what , they were right all kinds of junk in the filter.

 

Big no!

On the contrary, many experts don't recommended doing the first oil change until the recommended interval. It could wash the assembly lube and you also don't want to all of a sudden change the oil condition before your engine is fully broken in (at least 3,000 miles). This would mess up the engine clearances before you break in the engine.

They also don't recommend synthetic oil for the first fill but since that's what is filled in the factory, it's a moot point now.

 

As McEnroe used to say...you cannot be serious!!!!!!!!!!! This topic has been discussed to death. More info here:
Posting And You... | Flash Videos

 

Simple - used to be 5K when I bought my car and then changed it to 10K. Breakin used to be the mysterious 1000 miles. I opted for 2K miles for first oil change based on people that had done analysis of the oil in the past etc. I am onto the recommended intervals now. Also I will ditch my first transaxle fluid at 15-20K.

 

I have posted my info in a few threads regarding this topic. I replaced the oild at 1,000 miles then again at 5,000.

 

Careful, you'll stir up the hornets! :deadhorse:

 

Awww Crap.
Here we go....