My Synthetic oil still looks new after 10k miles of driving

The key phrase here is "who knows".
A little sludge accumulation does NOT in and of itself cause any "damage".

 

AGAIN......what 's your point ?
If you think the color of your used oil somehow proves something about it's quality......
You are sadly mistaken.

 

Ive never understood why anyone would want to go more than 10k? I’d always want to have fresh oil, and not wait till it starts degrading.

I can change my oil with a name band oil, full synthetic for under $25 counting the filter.

When it comes to oil, we all have our own rituals, opinions, and most of us aren’t going to change. And that’s okay! Do what works for you.

I’ll stick to my 5-6k oil changes for less then $25.

 

Gonna unwatch this, lol.

 

Can you please provide info as to why? I would use clarity as an indicator but only because that seems intuitive to me. I really don't know jack. What I do is read and follow others who send their oil in for test results and then go by what their tests suggest. I'm about to go to 15,000 mile intervals on my Accord because that's becoming the consensus in the Accord forum I participate in. If 15k in a gas only engine is acceptable than I'd "intuitively again" guess that nearly double that would be OK in a Hybrid. But then again I don't really know jack. Have folks tested and shared lab results here?

I'll helpa bruthu out. If the oil, after 10k is only half wore out, why would you want to throw it away? it's like cars that have a Maintenance Minder that tells you what percentage of oi life is left and people, for some unknown reason, use 15-20% as the time to change it. When I eat a meal I don't toss out 20% of it. I tip my Bud Lights all the way up so not to leave any in the bottle. When I do a shot of Jack the entire amount heads down the gizzard. Does that help any?

 

Nope if it’s still like new according to you at 6k I’m the one with perfectly new clean oil in my car 24/7. I guess my cars the one that’s really blessed

 

You NEED to do some actual research for yourself and NOT listen to what you hear on Internet forums.......even if it IS some kind of a consensus and seems to make sense to you.

I already have told you part of the "why". It is not the base oil that changes color but the additives.
The other big reason for oil turning "black" is carbon contamination and there just isn't much of that in modern gas engines.

Additives are an important part of what makes an oil do a good job.
It is often the additives that "wear out" before the base oil does......especially with synthetic base oil.

The car makers have little to no actual stake in selling oil.....mostly.....so their recommendation is pretty much unbiased.
Given that, going much past their recommendation is not a wise thing to do, in my opinion.
They KNOW what they are doing.
Most self-appointed Internet experts do NOT.

But do whatever makes you happy. Arguing about it in a forum like this accomplishes mostly nothing.

 

Not sure what you're saying there.

I wasn't arguing. I was merely asking.

You say "The other big reason for oil turning "black" is carbon contamination and there just isn't much of that in modern gas engines." Not sure what modern means in this statement but when I compare the oil from my daughter's 2007 Prius and my 2007 Lexus ES350, one is black in a couple of days and the other is still honey yellow thousands of miles later. But it sounds like you are meaning to say the "black" is irrelevant. Sounds like you're saying it could still be clean as honey yet the important stuff is gone. That does make sense.

 

Maybe you are starting to "get it".

Are those two cars using the same exact oil ?
If so I would be a tiny bit concerned about the one that turns black.......but not to the point of obsession.

Maybe some previous circumstance caused an accumulation of sludge in the crankcase. Which is NOT necessarily a bad thing if it doesn't cause any real trouble.

P.S. Arguing is: Asking a question and then not accepting the answers.

 

Only if the answers are facts. So far your answer has some logic but I have yet find confirmation. To be honest I'm not trying all that hard.

As for "the same exact oil", the answer is no. The Prius is on dyno oil (honey yellow thousand of miles later) and the Lexus is on full synthetic. But same with my Hondas and every other gas burning car I've ever owned. They all turn black within a week or so on full syn. I was shocked to see how honey yellow the oil was in my daughter's car.

And Sam . . . just FYI, I appreciate your, as well as everyone else's, responses. I'm a sponge for knowledge that I don't have to go out and learn the hard way myself. It is so much better getting it this way.

 

I asked what MPG the OP is getting. Driving like a race car driver is going to wear the oil out faster than someone going gently....

moto g(7) power ?

 

No it's not.
At least half of what you see represented as "fact" on the Internet is dead wrong.
Then half of what is mostly right is wrong in some critical detail.

If you don't really care about the truth and solid facts......then I guess it's OK.
If you DO care, you need to verify.

Once you get into the habit of buying into BS statements and claims, eventually you will believe something that will get you hurt.
NOT GOOD.

P.S. Your thread title says that the synthetic is clean after use. Now you seem to be saying that isn't true and it is the conventional oil that appears clear. Which is it ?
This could be a good example of bad information.

 

Oil threads...

You're wrong and I'm right. NO...you're wrong and I'm right.

 

LOL "no it's not". Of course it is that's why we use the interweb. Otherwise this chat would serve no purpose.

As for half wrong . . . that's why I read twice as much.

It's not my thread. The oil in my daughter's Prius is honey yellow after thousands of miles and she doesn't use synthetic. The oil in my gas powered cars is full syn Mobil1 and turns black in days.

Seems it is you that likes to argue.

 

Another unwarranted ASSumption.
After 55 posts, I sometimes forget who started it.

And yes, a really LOT of the interaction that occurs on "social media" IS largely a waste of time.

 

Maybe OP or a disciple can post a pic, a jar of this 10K mile ambrosia?

 

The original ASSumption.

 

My observations based on my experience on my cars using full synthetic 5W-30.

I use full synthetic good quality (5W-30) oils, now mostly Australian manufactured (Nulon FS 5W-30 or Penrite) and sourced locally. I have used Castrol Edge A3/B4 5W-30 for a long while previously. I haven't seen any notable difference with the different brands.

I have always noted that the oil on the dipstick is much cleaner looking than the oil which ultimately fills the oil drain pan.

At 15,000 km / 9,321 mi (Toyota's recommended OCI in this part of the world), my oil is not exactly honey-coloured ambrosia, but it is definitely a gratifying dark yellowish colour on the dipstick. That is until I put in the engine clean*. After this, the oil I drain out is black as the ace of spades.

My theory – into which I have not put too much deep thought.

Full synthetic has a better detergent package than dino, so the oil gets blacker because it is cleaning better.

That's it. Don't care to analyse it much more than that. For me, I go as far as, "huh! Interesting!" But ... I am more than happy to hear of any explanations – from people that know, rather than other guesses/theories.

Well, that is my observation and opinions on this much controversial subject.

Peace out sisters and brothers.

PS, I hope you are all doing well and using the time (if you are quarantined/in isolation) to get your Prii in top shape.



* I have been using engine clean for the last (I want to say,) 5 years on my cars and will probably continue while I see jet black oil drained off at the oil change. Initially, I started using the oil flush to see if it would reduce the oil use between oil changes, I am sure it has reduced the amount of oil I top up. Unfortunately, my record keeping of top-ups it is nonexistent, so it anecdotal at this point. But I do recall putting in 1.5 L (1.6 US qts) over the 15,000 km at its worst to now I'm lucky to need to put in 0.5 L (17 US fl oz/0.53 US qts).

The reason I started using engine clean (all locally sourced, Australian manufactured), was on the advice of my brother who is a fully qualified and well-respected auto mechanic/technician when discussing the oil burning issue I was having on another car (not a Prius). My brother is the one that you go to when 3 or 4 other guys cannot fix your car. His reputation is based on his consistent ability to diagnose the real problem and fix it. So I listen to his advice. I know others on this forum think it is unnecessary and a waste of time and/or dangerous for the engine, snake-oil even, so no need to comment. I for one won't see some because the worst offenders are on my ignore list.

Product (locally sourced, Australian manufactured) I am using:

Products (both locally sourced, Australian manufactured) I will be using next year:

(**Note** The Penrite product specifically says, it "is a solvent free engine cleaning formulation." I'd be willing to go out on a limb and wager that most modern engine cleaners will be free of harmful solvents.)

Both Nulon and Penrite make good oils so I trust them to make a good and safe engine clean. Repco here and in Australia is akin to AutoZone, Pep Boys, Advanced Auto Parts, etc. They do not make their product more than likely will be made by one of the other two mentioned previously.

I have also seen STP and Wynn's product for sale here, but haven't used them.

 

Thank you. Helpful info!

Do you mind sharing your filters, (air and oil), of choice? That’s a lot more frequent than Toyota recommends changing the air filter as I know.