Prius 2010 Oil Change Interval Revised? Not yet... (closed)

I'm sure things need to happen in the background but checking the supply of 0W-20 shouldn't be one of them. It is already required for the Prius and the change to 10,000 mile intervals will cut in half the amount needed.

 

1. If some Toyota dealerships DON'T have 0W20 syn in their stock, many folks who have had their oil changed there since delivery have been bilked.

2. Dealerships, no doubt, have had many months to prepare for the recommended syn oil for the Prius (actually mandated if one wants their warranty valid).

3. Unhappy dealers - my heart breaks. These are the folks that typically market services based on extreme use intervals. I've talked to friends many times about this in the past. Dealer service folks allude that the Toyota (and other manufacturer dealer's of course) warranty would be voided if these services are not performed at that mileage or time. Of course that's a lie - actually a swindle.

4. Manufacturer's product service intervals should not be based upon service revenues or the Legal department. If so, eventually customer satisfaction could be impacted.

5. It's obvious that Toyota is protecting themselves financially at the expense (literally) of their new Prius customers. And at the expense of the environment if the 5K is continued.

Most of us hope the 5K document was a premature slip that will be substantiated. Patience, of course.

 

If you wait until 10,000 miles to get your oil changed you are retarded. The tires need to be rotated every 5,000 on the new Prius as well. I just had my tires rotated and oil changed at a Toyota dealer for $61.25. If anyone pays over $100 they are a stupid as my friends girlfriend who was told by BMW that you can only get the oil changed at a dealership.

If you are going to wait until 10k, I highly suggest you buy a case of oil, because mine was already over a quart low after 4500 miles.

 

A quart low? That soon? It doesn't sound right.

 

Just happened upon this on PC's Home Page:




Toyota Upping the Oil Change Interval to 10,000 Miles for 2010 Prius, other Toyota models
Submitted by Danny on September 10, 2009 - 2:36pm.


With some new 2010 Prius owners being charged $100+ for an oil change due to the 0W-20 synthetic oil requirements, we have some good news. PriusChat forum member Sphyrna has posted a document provided by his dealership in Miami showing that the 2010 Prius oil change interval will be changed to 10,000 miles instead of the current 5,000 miles. The document appears to be a training material for dealerships and contains other pages showing that the 2010 4 cylinder Camry, the 4.6L Tundra and Sequoia, the FJ Cruiser, 4Runner, and Scion XD are all also included in this oil change interval update.

While Toyota officially has said that no updates have been made to the oil change interval policies, these documents look pretty official and I'd say it's only a matter of time before Toyota confirms this change. Most likely they are training dealerships on it now and then they will issue a software update to keep your car from reminding you to get service every 5,000 miles. The cost of the 0W-20 oil change has been a source of heartburn for a lot of 2010 owners, so it's great to see Toyota changing their tune.

Thanks, Sphyrna, for the great news tip! Be sure to hit the "Thanks" button under his post in the comment thread.

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Thanks to you too Danny! You must have a pretty good perception to make this statement.

And Sphyrna - you're OUR Woodward or Bernstein...OCIgate. Yes - THANKS!

 

Thank you for making the call before I could get to it!

Now the only difference between us is that you are willing to request a formal explanation. As you say, it really seems like a terrible waste to have that synthetic oil and short time intervals.

I don't know that it has much to do with tolerances, but it has a lot to do with the fact the ICE has to turn on and off fairly often. This becomes even more critical in lower temp climates.

Please keep us informed of what you find.

 

You have a crazy power train warranty, and now Toyota officially ups the interval to 10K. You sir, are the retarded one. If you think Toyota make this change without the best engineering resources available - that solidifies it.

Changing at 10K is environmentally sound, and now backed by Toyota.

I am guessing all the research you have done is ........

 

Sigh. That's just a rewrite of what was reported in this thread. It doesn't make it any more of a sure thing.
I am with everyone else in hoping this is true, but I'm kind of disappointed to see it on the front page with no confirmation (and in fact a denial at this point) from Toyota. It doesn't meet my journalistic standards. I think Ben Bradlee required confirmation. Maybe Danny has some Deep Throat saying what's coming?
I sure hope Toyota gets whatever it is doing together and officially announced before I get to 10k...

 

Its a Internet Forum not a news source (not that there is much difference these days).

 

I got a hunch Someone knows something that cannot be officially released yet, otherwise Danny would not have posted it.

Even the Toyota team did not "deny" it.. but simply said patience.

Its not proper to release information to us "officially" without the dealers being made aware first..... thats my take.

 

Did you get a letter fromToyota or your dealer confirming 10k miles between changes?

 

Yeah, I know. Someone else made the journalistic comparison (Woodward and Bernstein) and I tried to extend that.

I hope it's true that Danny has some inside info. That we'll all hear from Toyota soon. But for now it seems like a lot of people are taking it for fact when it has not been confirmed and clarified.

 

I dont really see the harm.. even if its wrong, you still need to do your first oil change at 5000miles just to flush out all the goobers from the new engine. I doubt many folks are to their 10K mark yet to have to worry about it... if all else fails.... just do that one too until we know... no foul by doing too many!

 

So, is the revised schedule to do the first change at the 5K mark and then all subsequent changes every 10K?

 

That doesn't make much sense. In my 2001 Prius in 8 years, 10 months and 20 days I never had to add one drop of oil. The dipstick never registered less than ~95% full (i.e. 95% between min and max) In my 2004 Prius in almost 6 years I never had to add one drop of oil. In my previous 5 new vehicles (2 Toyotas, Acura, VW, Fiat) I always had to add some oil, after a few years, but never when they were new.

A quart low after 4500 miles -- I'd have it checked.

3PriusMike

P.S. Now 2PriusMike since I sold the 2001 Prius yesterday

 

That's a pretty silly statement. Have you ever seen an oil analysis of synthetic oil that has been driven for 10,000 miles? If you had, I'm fairly certain that you would retract your statement. Also, have you considered the effects of rotating your tires at 5,000 miles and then every 10,000 miles after that? Try the math -- it's basically the same as rotating them every 5,000 miles...

If this is in fact true, then I would suggest making a service appointment as soon as possible. Not doing anything about this obvious problem would be, retarded.

Bryan

 

Just guessing - the LAPrius guy is fabricating a point - and been caught with his hands on the oil drain plug????? Of course, his use of words tends toward a 'son' of an owner mentality - do you get to drive it often????

 

Would you please explain this statement? It isn't obvious to me how they are the same.

For example, if you rotate your tires every 5,000 miles, you would rotate them at 5,000, 10,000, 15,000, 20,000, and 25,000. If you rotate them at 5,000, then every 10,000 after that, you would rotate them at 5,000, 15,000, and 25,000. So after 25,000 miles, you would rotate your tires 5 times in the first case and only 3 times in the second case. I don't understand how this is basically the same.

 

Since the Prius only calls for the front tires to go straight to the back (with no crossover), then by rotating them once at 5,000 miles and then every 10,000 miles thereafter, at no point and time will one set exceed more than 5,000 miles over the other set. So essentially, you will have the same amount of wear, but with less tire rotations to perform.

For example, take a look at the scenarios you posted above. At the 25,000 mile point, no matter if you rotated at the 5K interval or a 5K, 15K, and 25K interval, you still end up with 15,000 miles on the original front set of tires and 10,000 on original rear set of tires. Either way it's the same. But the latter saves you two rotations!

Hope this helps,
Bryan