Why is the oil change interval so different GEN 3vs4

Only synthetic oils are available in 0W-xx weights; conventional oils can't reach that low a viscosity at cold temperatures without adding so much viscosity index improvers that it becomes cheaper to just use a synthetic base (which, most "synthetic" bases are actually highly-refined conventional oil anyway). So, by specifying 0W-20, Toyota effectively specifies synthetic oil. Because synthetics don't use as much VII, which break down in the high-temperature, high-pressure engine, their viscosity characteristics don't change as much over a long oil change interval as a conventional oil, and consequently the interval can be longer.

 

Mine says "0W-20"

 

Australian manual has a range of oils - despite 0W-20 on the oil filler

 

In your case, would you be like TAXIs who often stretch the changes, as their engines never cool down and particularly on hybrids where the engine isn't running all the time anyway. One driver I was talking to used to get an oil analysis for every 3rd or 5th change - which made him confident to extend change frequency.

But I'd still do the first change as recommended.

 

Canadian interval for third gen is 8000 kms or 6 months, and the oil spec is 0W20.

And for that matter, any grade can come in synthetic.

Australia specs a mix of weights, with 0W20 the preference, and an interval similar to Canadian, I believe 10K kms or 6 months.

If Toyota's longer interval in the states (and 4th gen now, in Canada) is due to the oil being synth, why don't they just say so?

Ultimately, it's up the owner to pick their interval.

 

Just to show up TOYOTA's randomness - new Corolla Sedan released this week - same drivetrain as PRIUS. PRIUS 10,000km/6mth, COROLLA 15,000km/12 month.

And much cheaper - for first 3 years, COROLLA $175 each - PRIUS $140 each, but twice as many.

 

Common problem with the younger generation. They drive the car until the light comes on. Kid across the street went through two engine rebuilds before he got smart.
Or better yet, " is there something wrong with the tires or sensor since the light is coming on?"

Put air I the tires and call me in the morning. "Oh the light went out". Did you have an oil change recently? Oh yeah! The dealer let air out of your tires while it was hot.

 

Wow is that what they're robbing you these days?

 

Yep - and with "Check Engine Lights" on a lot of cars instead of temp gauges etc. I've heard the story many times of someone asking about the red light which has been on for the last 6 weeks. Most new cars are getting more intelligent - some have a Yellow caution and a Red catastrophic "check engine" light. And many go into limp home mode for long enough to park safely - that gives a good hint - "fix it".

 

Yes, most cars here now have fixed price service published by the Manufacturer. Most are for 3 or 5 years. And are something which you might be able to negotiate with the dealer at sale to have them included - sometimes it works.

 

Mobil 1 regularly has $12 rebate on 5qt jugs. So an oem filter on eBay $4 and oil $13 are a grand total of $17.

 

PS, change the oil cold and another quart comes out. Argue against it if you wish. Enjoy. Just stay away from the stealership

 

Only thing - warranty is voided if it's not serviced according to the book - doesn't have to be by a dealer, but needs to be certified to be a full service as per the service book, not just oil and filter.

Plus - I generally turn my cars over every 3-4 years, and the first thing a buyer looks at (well, after they check general condition) is the service book.

I've priced the TOYOTA service items from non-dealership, and they've been considerably dearer in some cases, others only slightly cheaper. I thought FORD was quite expensive with my 60,000km service on my FIESTA - so I checked with 2 non-dealerships, they were both within $50.

 

I thought you were going to finish that sentence that first thought with "...has stopped including the service schedule...", which is also the case, and puzzling. Now the schedule's only online, and the spoonfeeding event-by-event format, so you have to translate it, create your own table, to have any hope of seeing the patterns.

They were doing so good for a while, the 2014 model year for example. (attached)

 

Our 06 Civic Hybrid had blank pages for the service department to stamp and sign. When we first had it I was thinking to have dealership service, and at the first service I asked if they could stamp it. It seemed a novel concept to them, lol.

After 3 or 4 oil changes where they routinely dumped in 4 liters of oil (spec was 3.2, with oil filter change), I gave up on that notion, went back to DIY. I hated sitting in that lounge too, the lose-all-hope lounge...

 

Same car, same experience with the overfill. Also purchased the lifetime free oil change. Was nice until I found out they put recycled oil in there. Wondering what the viscosity of the recycled was?
I don't want to even imagine where the oil filters came from.
The waiting room had 6 presidential service awards on the wall.
The steelership got a new name a few years ago. One of these days I'm gonna stop in just to see if those awards are still on the wall.

 

I'm not sure if some oils include recycled. The stuff which comes from the ground is crude - awful looking stuff, which is refined, and becomes a base which they then make into various retail products. I vaguely remember reading in New Scientist or Scientific American (??) years ago that recycled oils get included in that mix somehow.