Poll: How long do you go between synthetic oil changes?

i'm using the Amsoil SSO 0W-30 100% synthetic with the Amsoil EAO 09 filter

i change the oil every twelve months
i swapped out the factory oil at 1000 miles
10,500 miles and one year later (11,500 on the clock), i didn't have my Amsoil on hand,
so i used the 0W-20 Mobil with the green cap and a pure-one purolator filter

i got 16k on the clock now, and an imminent oil change back to the Amsoil SSO 0W-30 and the EAO 09

the filters and oil for my Prius and my Kawasaki arrived yesterday :thumb:

i will likely send the Mobil in for analysis

 

you have to look at the kind of driving you do as well
start/stop and short trips are considered severe duty, as well as dusty/dirty environment

i don't know that i'd go 25k miles without a bypass filter
but again, i don't mind changing oil, i find it relaxing and peaceful
and do it on my cars and bike, as well as for friends and my ex ('cause i'm paying for her car)

if it makes you feel better, why don't you shoot for 2x annually with the Amsoil SSO OW-30?
schedule it out easily, say first week of January and first week July, so every six months like clockwork
if you get nervous about it, send some in for analysis to verify your car is doing ok

 

I don't put enough miles on my car to worry about change intervals. I do it every two years if it needs it or not! And that usually works out to about 10,000 miles.

 

Well, a couple of reasons, and no need to drill too deep.

I'd been using Amsoil in my motorcycle and my truck, and do oil changes for a number of friends as well. As a result, I also signed up for a ten year Amsoil dealership, so I can order all my maintenance supplies for myself and my pals.

Essentially, Amsoil recommends the SSO 0W-30 for the Prius, as well as my truck which sports a Ford 5.0

I know that a number of the manufacturers are recommending 0W-20 now, and I suspect Toyo may be doing the same.

I live in SoCal, and it's HOT year round, and the factory and Amsoil both recommended the SSO 0W-30, it's a pretty universal weight right now ...

like I said, I'm running the Mobil 0W-20 right now, I'll do an analysis and see how it held up, but I'm not noticing any differences in mileage or performance or anything else ... so I'm going to stick to stocking the 0W-30 for my cars/trucks and the 10W-40 for mine and my buddies' motorcycles.

If you need any, give me a holler. I'd offer to do your next change, but you're kinda far away.

 

hey friend, respectfully, you shouldn't wait that long, even with limited mileage. most drain intervals say three months for dino oil, and six months for synthetic, even if you're not clocking the mileage to justify an oil change

i certainly wouldn't go a year without an oil and filter change
even if i had the car in storage for a year, i'd do a change before firing it up ... new filter and oil, among other things

:thumb:

 

i hear ya ... i don't mean to be preachy

i'm a cynic as well ... it's safer that way :thumb:

 

In most of my previous cars, I've noticed that the engine idle starts to deteriorate slightly at about 3000 miles, even with synthetic oil. By about 5000 miles it's usually quite noticeable. I've used Amsoil, Mobil One, and a few others and I think that Amsoil is a little bit better in this regard. The occasional time I've taken the oil to 8000 miles or more, this deterioration has been quite pronounced.

It's easy to notice this effect -- right after you change the oil the engine suddenly becomes silky smooth. I'd guess that it's the result of friction modifiers in the oil being burned off as the oil ages. I'd also guess that fuel economy would drop when this happens, but I've never attempted to measure it. The Prius engine generally doesn't idle, so I likely won't notice this sort of thing in the future for this car.

My Prius is sitting at about 4500 miles right now, so it's about time for an oil change. I decided to take a quick look at the dipstick to see if there's been any oil consumption (there wasn't any) before taking it to the dealer. I was very surprised to see that the color of the oil looked like it had just been put in. Much of my driving is in stop-and-go highway traffic; it typically takes me about an hour and fifteen minutes to go about 33 miles in each direction to/from work. Unlike other cars where the oil would be approaching a black color, it would seem that the Prius engine thrives in this type of environment. Then again, maybe it will just take a bit more time before enough carbon buildup begins to accumulate inside the engine, causing the oil to blacken...

Anyway, I voted for 5000 miles based on this experience. That's not to say that it's not perfectly safe to go double that distance, since the primary function of oil is to stop metal-to-metal contact, and it may well be able to do this whether the friction modifiers are still there or not (oil analysis would tell that story). I just like to have a slippery oil, since the engine will run a bit smoother.

As I see it, here are a few properties (all different) that contribute to a good engine oil:
1. There's no metal-to-metal contact (a top priority).
2. The oil is still slippery when it's time for an oil change (i.e.) the oil's friction modifier additives are still working.
3. The oil is not leaving a carbon buildup in your engine (i.e.) the oil's detergent additives are doing their job.
4. As oil ages, it tends to become acidic. This is especially bad if the oil contains sulfur (think sulfuric-acid), since it will tend to dissolve your engine parts. Additives are added to oil to resist this. Oil analysis "TBN" rating measures this resistance -- a TBN from 5 to 15 is considered good while a TBN below 3 is considered bad.

 

i am picking up my car today & plan on changing oil at 1000k. i will put amsoil 0w-20 and wix filter in & plan to run oil & filter for 7,500k. to my knowledge amsoil does not make a EAo (25k) filter for the Gen III yet. amsoil change interval recommendations for wix or mann filters in gasoline applications is to match drain interval of amsoil xl motor oils (7,500k). for the Gen III amsoil suggests using 0w-20. when amsoil comes out with a EAo filter i will change oil once a year.

 

i was researching the oil recommendations/options for the Gen III last night, and the Amsoil site still recommends the SSO 0W30 for the new Prius

the only filter i found was the purolator, i didn't see a wix

do we know if the toyota filter is compatible or interchangeable with any other vehicles, so i can research more options

 

2010 TOYOTA PRIUS 1.8L 4-cyl Engine Code 2ZR-FXEVariable Fuel LUBRICANTS & FLUIDS: All TEMPS......0W-20 i just cut this from the amsoil product application guide. your 08 does recommond the SSO. i am getting my info from the amsoil web site & have not talked with my amsoil rep yet. the amsoil web site does not show a wix filter but if you go to wix web site and enter 2010 prius they do make a cartridge.

 

i think for warranty purposes the build sheet page directs you to the 0W20, but the Amsoil site lays out the following:

 

good info. i sure hope amsoil comes out with an AEo filter. sure would hate to drain oil that has been used for only 30% of its intended mileage. the wix filter appears compatible with Principal Application: Scion xD,Toyota Corolla (08-09), Matrix (09) Pontiac Vibe (09)

 

i hope they come out with a filter too, but i'm not familiar with any EAO canister filters

i just re-upped to a ten year dealership, and i get all my motorcycle filters from them as well, and it's a wix canister, also avail. from purolator at pep boys ... the canister is pretty universal for kawasakis, but still no EAO filter

are you aware of any EAO canister applications?

thanks for the compatible application list :thumb:

 

I'm like you --- I put on 5000 miles a year (at the most) on my Prius.

But on the advice of dogfriend (I think it was he who said something about water getting into the oil), I change my synthetic oil every 12 months no matter how few miles I had traveled on the oil.