Would you use 5W40 for your Prius C?

What does your Asian-market owner's manual tell you to use and are acceptable alternatives?

 

5W40?!? HELL NO...

bunch of bull-crap.. Toyota makes 0W20 Synthetic oil that dealerships all over the world are supposed to use.. those idiots probably just don't want to use it because it costs them more money... sounds like you need to go somewhere else.

 

No way the engine is to run with 0w20 . You would also loose fuel mileage and damage the engine

 

0w20 is what you should use. The dealership however does not have to stock it, and that's what they are telling you. We only have this grade, do you want it?

The resolution is that you say no and go somewhere else.

Singapore does not have the "Magnuson Moss" warranty deal, but it does adhere to the Singapore Anti-Competition Acts of 2004 and the dealership would be in breach of that by tying the consumables into the contract. So no your warranty won't be void if you bring your own 0w20 oil.

 

I repeat, what does your manual say. That's the first place you should have gone for information.

Use what the manual says and find someone else to work on your car if you can't work it out with your dealer/distributor.

 

Yes, 5W40 will work for your application given what your viscosity chart tells us. 5w40's over here in the US are also generally HDEO rated, suitable for diesel engines. Mobil 1 makes a 5w40, along with Shell Oil and many others. They are fantastic oils, and are not inferior in any way.

I will go out on a limb here and say if you are considering a 5w40, why not consider Mobil1 0W40? This is Mobil Oil's global flagship motor oil. It is used in many European performance and probably even Asian vehicles as a factory fill. I use it here in the US in some of my vehicles. Even though it marketed as a 0W40, the viscosity makes is more like a heavier 0W30.

But if you just cannot find 0W20, any SM/SN rated 0W30, 0W40 or 5W40 will work according to the chart you showed us from your owners manual. It would be interesting to at least find out what make of oil your dealer has.

I think you are likely to lose some MPG's with a heavier motor oil, but probably not much. I will be interested to hear what you decide and also what effect the oil has on your MPG numbers. It is surprising the range of oil weights that modern engines will operate under. Here in the US the trend is lighter and lighter weight oils, for fuel economy. It is nice to know that our engines are not really so fragile that using a heavier weight oil will totally destroy them. Thanks for posting that table.

This is an interesting essay on motor oil...Motor oil - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

BTW, what is the recommended oil change intervals as indicated in your manual? In the US, it is 5000 miles for severe service, and 10,000 miles for normal service.

 

Castrol Edge (Singapore) is a great oil and will run fine and offer full protection in your engine. You might sacrifice a little mpg over a lighter oil, but it is better to stay with the warranty in my opinion.

Here is the Singapore website for Castro Edge 5w40.
Castrol Singapore - Castrol EDGE 5W-40

 

I just saw your oil change intervals. Was the first change, you said at 1000km, specified in your manual? Over here they tell us not to change the oil for the first time until 10,000 miles. I have 600 miles on my C4 and am wondering if I should change the oil early for the first time. Like at 4000 or 5000 miles.

Is your engine still on the factory fill and if it is, is it 0w20 or 5w40?

 

To answer your specific question, the oil presented by the dealer would be in the allowable range per your chart. If you are unable to find another dealer or do your own maintenance you should be able to sleep soundly with their oil.

 

If I know Singapore, it is a tropical climate. The "0" or "5" in 0W20 or 5w40 means that the multi-viscosity oil is rated for "0" or "5" Fahrenheit temperature at "cold start."

Since 5w40, if approved for your vehicle actually lubricates better at high warmed up temperatures, it would possibly provide better lubrication for your engine in high temperature tropical climates.

The main reason that Toyota supplies a low viscosity oil in the US is to meet with EPA mandated high gas mileage requirements. For an engine that is designed for it, the 5W40 would be better for your engine.

 

Just had my first year /20,000km service. The dealer filled it with 5W40 as well. Maybe it's coming to summer here

 

Same here in Jordan its pretty hot in summer average around 30 C and gets up to 40 C the dealership uses lexus 5W-40 fully synthetic oil for 3rd gen prius.

I had to do a research and found out that in hot climates they use higher viscosity oils since the viscosity is affected by the temperature (You need a higher viscosity oil to achieve the minimum required viscosity inside the motor in hot climates) so 5W40 is needed in hot climates

 

If manual page posted above is indeed per yours then 0w20 is acceptable in your location. And if your dealership is refusing to install 0w20, even when you supply it, you should look for another dealership, if possible. And contact Toyota about them.

 

The problem is that my car is imported from germany and the manual is for germany not jordan, so whatever oil is listed in it is not going to suit the car since germany is very cold vs jordan very hot.

I haven't noticed any difference in the car's performance or mileage since the oil change, i have already put some 1000 km on it since the oil change.

The dealership told me that they put 10w50 in the gulf countries which are very very hot compared to jordan.

Any advice is appreciated, did anyone have a problem using 5w40 with their prius that you know of ?

 

Exactly. Yet people are are somehow brainwashed that anything thicker than 0W20 and the engine will explode. The opposite is true . If we used 5W40 maybe we would not have the prius oil burning epidemic over 100,000 miles.

 

0W20 is not available in most countries worldwide.