Oil Change question

The "HyHi" is same as our RxH according to Lexus and Toyota that they have the same engines and drivetrain. Yeah, my RxH is recommended the same 10k

 

Of course, they could if they wanted to. I stated they could install a oil life monitor. But the way the car is equipped, there is no way. It would be an added cost to the car. And as you stated, it's an added cost that would decrease dealer business. So there is no incentive for Toyota to do such a thing.

 

Can't we just use the EV/HV % screen to determine how many miles we used? if you reset that screen after each oil change, then using only the HV miles is or should be equivalent to a regular prius that should be able to get 10k miles regardless of how many ev miles were used.

 

Don't know the answer to your question but The Avalon Hybrid is the same as the Prius as far as oil changes and service intervals.

 

I think it is the same as a Prius. I am not sure exactly how the hybrid drive in the Highlander Hybrid is different from that in the regular Prius. The four-wheel-drive mechanism is rather interesting; the real wheels have only an electric motor, with no mechanical connection to the ICE.

 

I've been using that method to track my actual ICE miles vs total vehicle miles... but I chicken out and still change the oil at 10K on the odometer. I like to think that at $26 for the oil (Mobil 1 at Walmart) and $5 (OEM Toyota in bulk from Ebay) it's cheap enough to do it every once every 8 months even if it is a little early.

 

Pip: $30,000

Oil Change: $50


.....Your call.

 

Having worked at a Toyota dealer, I've seen some of the oil coming out after 10k miles, and I change my oil every 5k. The dealership I purchased from pays for the first oil change, so that one was free. Toyota Care paid for the second one, and I paid for the 3rd one. Most owners manuals on non-hybrids have a "severe conditions" schedule for changing the oil. One of the severe conditions is a lot of short trips, stop and go traffic, etc. By definition, a hybrid is operating under severe conditions, since it is constantly stopping and starting the engine. Those are the factors that made me decide on the 5K interval for my car. I'm sure it won't hurt when I go to sell it and have documented 5k service intervals.

 

This is the age old argument on this site that people have argued about for a decade now. Some people sleep better with more frequent oil changes, some people sleep better with less oil changes.

I have absolutely no problem going even up to 12,000 or more miles in HV mode, which could be almost 20k regular miles.

 

Just looked at the spreadsheet I've kept since I bought the PIP in Oct 2012..
I have 22'000 miles on the vehicle, lifetime EV ratio is at 40% so 13'200mi are ICE, 8'800mi are EV.
That's pretty significant as far as taking the mileage off the ICE.

 

The correct answer to this question depends on individual use, and can only be determined by performing an oil analysis ($20-$30).

Unless your driving habits are extremely hard on a car, wearing out the engine in just 10 years is not a concern. I've never had a car unable to reach 200,000 miles, regardless of who the previous owner was and how poorly they maintained the vehicle.

That said, I have a TSX with a high compression engine that revs much higher than the Prius, and I change the oil once a year at 12,000 miles. The Blackstone report shows that the oil still has life after that many miles.

In my experience, the real killers of cars are people that have warning signs, but do not heed them. Catastrophic damage occurs from things such as ignoring oil pressure lights, or engine temperature gauges. I've yet to see a car die because the oil was changed at 15,000 miles instead of every 3,000.

 

For me it seems a little silly to think that a few short trips in a hybrid qualifies as severe driving. First, the Prius spins the ICE up to speed and gets the oil circulating before any fuel is pumped. Second, the ICE goes on and off at highway speeds, for example when you go up and down slight hills -- this can be much more severe due to sustained driving at high temperatures.

Mike

 

This thread got me to thinking........a dangerous thing sometimes.........

With the type of "transmission" the Prius has, is the ICE really turning ALL the time the vehicle is moving......and providing power sometimes but just free-wheeling at other times ??
If so, then mileage is mileage and the "strain" on the oil would be only slightly different when the
engine is providing power versus when it is not.

I personally think that trying to find justification for going BEYOND the 10K miles oil change interval is just a fools errand.

 

No

 

I wonder if you could dribble a small synthetic oil sample on a white piece of printer paper and see the general condition. That is how many mechanics check transmission fluid. A color change indicates old fluid. It is pretty expensive buying synthetic oil and paying to have it installed.

 

The owner's manual for my 2011 Prius says to change the synthetic oil every 10,000 miles or 12 months. That's what I do. Why worry about it?

 

Like I said, I've seen the 0W20 after 10K miles, and it is BLACK. IMO, Toyota only went to a 10K interval because they are paying for the first 25k miles of service, and they were trying to cut cost. I have no problem paying for two oil changes in 25K miles with my dealer paying for 1, and Toyota paying for 2. Oil is cheap compared to some of the repairs that can be required from not changing it frequently enough:

TOYOTA ENGINES AND OIL SLUDGE - WALL ST JOURNAL - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

 

To each their own. As I said earlier, there are a ton of members on here that have had an oil analysis done after 10k and find they could easily go many more.

 

And you can NOT gauge the oil's condition by color alone.
Some oils turn black after only a few hundred miles and some don't until they are filled with dirt and carbon.
And the difference is not conventional versus synthetic; it is the specific composition of the oil and the additives used.

 

First change is to get rid of any assembly lubes and machining residue.
Second change sample establishes a baseline oil life.
Third change sample verifies the second and you adjust from there.

Agree that Hybrid system ICE need to be on a max runtime and cycle based schedule more like aircraft engines.

The soft start reduces stress on the ICE and oil but is the auto warmup cycle length long enough to prevent acid and moisture buildup in the oil from the ICE maybe running briefly only on occasion . I haven't seen enough PIP oil test data to say for sure.