6m/8K oil change ?

Interesting point indeed. When I bought my used '02 Prius last year at 116K miles, one of the first things I did was to switch it to synthetic oil (both engine and transmission).

I saw the oil pick-up screen in the transmission but I forgot how fine it was. It was fine enough to catch visible pieces but not fine enough to clog from "dust-sized" stuff if I recall.

I think the Engine oil pick-up screen would probably be even coarser than the Tranny one, and I would not be too worried about it - hopefully the filter would take care of the small stuff and there will not be much of a big chunks floating around...

But this information of yours is a good excuse to drop the engine oil pan at the next oil change to see what I find there - seems very easy to do on my Prius: $4 for the gasket sealer and just remove a few bolts (unlike on the Camry where I have to remove the exhaust and some transmission brackets to get access).

 

He may be a good mechanic, but he is misinformed on this issue.

There is a big difference between "keeping your engine free of varnish" and "dislodging existing varnish". Synthetic oil will do the former, but definately will not do the latter. There is some risk of stuff being dislodged with some "engine flushes" but the risk of those items clogging up anything is debatable too.

 

And what about a brand new PRIUS?

In the EU we have 15k kms. (9.5k milles?) intervals for oil and filter.
Even for the very first.

It's a little scaring.

maybe 3k milles this very first time or even less?

 

Some dealerships offer free oil and filter changes for the life of the vehicle. Mine gets the free oil changes. I am thinking this will save me some $$.... But I am also sure that the dealership will take those opportunities to try to sell me a bunch of stuff and do extra work on my car.

Cheers and Congrats on your purchase. Its an awesome car!!!

 

Not necessary.
In the EU the oil quality standards are much higher than in the USA. Sludge is even less of an issue there.

It is possible that the original oil MIGHT have some additional additives that help the engine break in better.

If you want to change it sooner, go ahead, but don't feel too nervous about the oil change interval that Toyota recommends for EU Prius.

 

I did an initial oil change at 2500 miles, then another at 5000 miles. You can see the results in the archive section. Seeing the amount of crud that came out of the engine, I think those were reasonable, but not anal intervals.

 

I saw this from other forum that I vist....


.....
No matter how well the parts are manufactured, or how meticulous your engine builder is in maintaining his tolerances, the internals of your engine still have a lot of relatively rough friction surfaces when freshly put together. I'm talking about rings, cams, rockers, and bearings...stuff like that. There is a lot of processes manufacturers put their parts through to ensure that they have the desired hardness that is required for long life: Heat treating, Tuftriding, things like that.

For approximately the first 10-12,000 miles of a fresh engine's life, the parts all go through a combination of physical and molecular changes. First, there is a tremendous (relatively speaking) amount of friction on these surfaces for the first 12K, and the result is that the parts are reaching what engineers call equilibrium. The parts are wearing into a state of near perfect smoothness, in relation to each other. Much more perfectly smooth than any manufacturer could ever produce. Secondly, as this first 12K elapses the internal parts of the engine are also going through a molecular change (for want of a better word): the best hardening processes used by manufacturers cannot achieve what the constant heat and operation of 12K can put the parts through. The parts will become even more hardened, and much more resistant to wear and tear. But they also become more brittle.

For those reasons, it is vitally important that you operate your car in a variety of driving styles during this high-friction break-in period to ensure that the internals are fully worn-in, or seated by the time equilibrium sets in. If the parts are not fully worn-in by that time, then the new-found brittleness will cause an excess of wear and tear, shortening the engine's life. For that reason, it is a good idea to stick with regular 'dino' for the break-in period, so that you will have enough friction to wear in the parts, but not so much that you are damaging the engine. Since there is so much friction, and therefore much more microscopic (but still damaging!) particulate matter present in the oil, I would recommend changing it at the first 200 miles, then at 500 miles, and then every 1,000-1,500 miles until you have reached about 12K. At this point, you have done everything possible to help your engine reach as near a perfect state of equilibrium as possible, and no more break-in is necessary. That means that now you want to have as little internal friction as possible. At this point, switch to a good full synthetic.

 

Thanks for the responses.

The 200 miles first time seems a little over-care. But I understand it warrants the best care.

The 2500 miles, then another at 5000 miles, sounds the most reasonable.

I think I'll change at 4000 kms., then 9000 kms., to go at the service at 15000 kms for warranty. (2486, 5593, 9322 miles).

Fortunatly in the PRIUS is very easy to make the oil&filter change at home.

 

It is surprising to learn Toyota Japan puts lesser oil in cars for certain markets. I am happy I changed the supposed inferior USA market stuff out at 1100 miles. Oil filters do not filter very fine. Water and fuel are not filtered. I will change every 3500 miles, synthetic blend and Toyota filter, or 5000 on synthetic. Others can do as they wish with their investment.

 

Here we go, again. Oi.

That schedule might be appropriate if you rebuild something like a smallblock Chevy or Ford V8 using iron rings. With modern CNC assembly techniques - thank you automated line honing! - that requirement is almost unheard of

There are also huge differences in oil standards comparing the crap API "standards" to the EU market ACEA ('Association des Constructeurs Européens d'Automobiles). Remember that in the EU, the auto maker has the final say in what viscosity and quality of oil to use. Hence the various EU requirements like MB 229.3, BMW LL-01, etc

ACEA grades A3, B3, B4 are intended to cover very severe operating conditions and highly extended oil changes up to 24 months or 30,000 miles. The test regime itself covers intervals 3-6 times longer than comparable API test regimes.

There are many cars in the EU with a "normal" 24 month or 30,000 mile oil change interval. There is no short initial service. Those motors last a long time, the car itself will usually wear out first

There are exceptions to the rule. My FJ Cruiser had odd oil shearing at just 2,500 km. The dealer did a free oil change, the conventional 5W-30 also badly sheared. Esso XD-3 0W-40 had NO shear, held up very well

If you were to buy a new car in the EU, then return to the dealer after just 300 miles and demand an oil change, they'd probably have you committed.

 

There is no need to do that. The dealer will use the proper ACEA oil, just follow the schedule as recommended for your area

 

Probably you're right, but it's cheap to change at home with shorter intervals, specially when new, and go for "official" 15.000 kms. service when required.

With the Toyota COROLLA 1.4 D4D (diesel) we bought sep 2006, the dealer refused to change oil before 15.000 kms.
We use to change at home at middle of that, 7.500 kms., mineral oil.

 

WOW
A dealer that turns down money.

 

I'm afraid they have more cars waiting for service than they can manage. It's where we bought the COROLLA, my wife -it's her car- was too much loyal to them.

Just now we go to a different town dealer where we've bought the PRIUS, we have to drive +/- 40 miles to any of them. The new one is a little Toyota rep, even I can look side to the car when they are working

 

It's your money. If you're suddenly losing sleep after reading odd comments from this forum, my sincerest apologies. You have to understand that the average motorist here breaks out in a cold sweat if they have more than 3,000 miles on the oil

If you mention 10,000 miles / 16,000 km, the average motorist here would sooner jump off a cliff than "push" the oil that far. Of course, the API ILSAC "Starburst" oil sold here is complete crap

Remember, no matter the cheapest generic motor oil, or a synthetic costing 10 times more, all are rated exactly the same in North America. So the average motorist here naturally has to assume all motor oils are created exactly the same, with the same performance

If I lived in the EU and the dealer told me "every 12 months of 16,000 km" or even "every 24 months or 50,000 km" with your ACEA oils, I'd follow the schedule. I wouldn't lose any sleep at night either. EU motor oils are far, far superior to the crap sold here in North America

As far as the diesel, the ACEA E5, E7 oils offer very long oil change intervals with excellent protection. The ACEA standards mandate no stuck rings or clogged rings during the entire interval. North American oil standards will specifically exclude sludged rings, cold stuck rings, cold sludge, gellation, etc etc

A cheap mineral oil probably isn't rated for a modern turbodiesel, especially if it fires the unit injectors with oil pressure. You could have done far more harm than good

I suppose you're aware that the highway trucks offered by MAN, Iveco, Mercedes usually have the first oil change at 80,000 km? I'm aware of injector trouble but that isn't caused by the motor oil. The new emission requirements have much higher pressures, a lot of the early build injectors are not up to the task

We have the same issue here now with the new diesel particulate standards, which is why VW had to stop offering their TDI motor. Even big trucks have to have DPF Diesel Particulate Filter.

The DPF regenerates by having diesel fuel squirted in, igniting the soot buildup inside. Except in bitterly cold temps found in Canada, Alaska, and the Arctic, it's too cold for the DPF to ignite.

So raw diesel fuel fills the DPF and starts coming out the tailpipe. Until it finally gets warm enough to light off then WHOOOOSSSHHHHH! a flame thrower effect. It's quite exciting to watch - from a distance

I'd hate to be stuck in traffic in my Prius alongside one of the new Ford Super Duty trucks with the new turbodiesel. Whoosh and my eyebrows are burnt off

 

Pennzoil Platinum, made in the USA, sold in the USA, has the ACEA specs it "meet or exceeds" written on the bottle. A5-02, B1, and B5.

 

Yep there are synthetic oils sold here that have gone the extra step of certification to both API and ACEA standards. I haven't seen the Penzoil product you mentioned, but the only Mobil product I know of is Mobil 1 0W-40. Meets the very strict BMW LL, ACEA A3/B3/B4 specs

 

I would like to add that the other Mobil 1 viscosity grades (0W-20, 0W-30, 5W-30) meet ACEA A1/B1 in addition to API/ILSAC GF-4/SM.

Mobil 1 10W-30 meets ACEA A1/B1 and A5/B5

Mobil 1 High Mileage 10W-30 meets ACEA A3/B4/B4

Mobil 1 Truck and SUV 5W-30 meets ACEA A1/B1 and A5/B5

Mobil 1 Extended Performance 5W-30 and 10W-30 meets ACEA A1/B1 and A5/B5

Note: Mobil Drive Clean 5000 and Drive Clean 7500 do *not* meet any ACEA certification level. They are only certified to API/ILSAC SM/GF-4