Confusion on 2010 Motor Oil

The owner's manual and the oil cap call for 0W20 oil. How 0W20 is available may be subject to debate, but I've only seen it as a synthetic.

 

The owners manual specifies 0W20, which is only available in synthetic. I certainly wouldn't take a dealer's opinion over the manufacturer.

And charging $65 more for synthetic is a total rip off. The Prius holds 4.5 quarts (including filter). List for the Toyota 0W20 is $7.76/quart, or $39 for 5 quarts. The price for the non-synthetic oil service includes oil, so the differential should be less than $39--probably half that.

 

I you think you're confused . . .

I just went to my dealer for my 5,000 mile oil change and tire rotation. I asked up front about the up-charge for synthetic oil, and the service rep said he thought Toyota had a non-synthetic 0W20. I kindly challenged him on it, while I also asked for the price to be confirmed before I handed the car over for service.

The service rep went to talk with a couple of guys, including the Prius specialists. I figured I was the first 2010 in the area to get to 5,000 miles, so I expected this would be an issue.

I was told they didn't have 0W20 in bulk, but only in quart containers, and they also said it was a Toyota-branded synthetic. Better than anything else, the service rep said he had no direction to charge anything other than the going rate ($42.95) for the "5,000 mile service" offered at the dealership.

When the service was complete, I was told they had to write off around $30 to make it work. If I brought in synthetic myself, I'd have to buy 5 quarts at around $8/qt (plus tax), so this was a real deal for me. I don't think I can plan on it staying that way for very long . . .

 

This topic caught my eye as I have a '10 Prius on order. I would like to hear from those who have had oil changes for their '10 Prius. What oil did you use? How much did it cost? What is the recommended distance between changes? A $90 oil change could be a deal breaker........

 

Toyota recommends servicing the 2010 Prius at every 5,000 mile or 6 months, which ever comes first.

 

The Toyota 0w-20 synthetic is less than 50% synthetic. It is a blend. But they do specify synthetic.

 

Page 560 of the manual only specifies 0W20. It also says 5W20 may be used if 0W20 is not available, but 0W20 should be used at the next oil change. The word synthetic never appears.

From the manual:

Engine oil selection
“Toyota Genuine Motor Oil” is used in your Toyota vehicle. Use
Toyota approved “Toyota Genuine Motor Oil” or equivalent to satisfy
the following grade and viscosity.
Oil grade: ILSAC multigrade engine oil
Recommended viscosity: SAE 0W-20
SAE 0W-20 is the best choice for
good fuel economy and good
starting in cold weather.
If SAE 0W-20 is not available,
SAE 5W-20 may be used. However,
it must be replaced with
SAE 0W-20 at the next oil
change.
The 0W portion of the oil viscosity rating indicates the characteristic of the
oil which allows cold startability. Oils with a lower value before the W allow
for easier starting of the engine in cold weather.
The 20 in 0W-20 indicates the oil viscosity when the oil is at its operating
temperature. An oil with a higher viscosity may be better suited if the vehicle
is operated at high speeds, or under extreme load conditions.

 

Anyone get an oil change yet? If so, how much did it cost? What oil did you use? Do most oil change places carry the oil and filter needed or must this be done at the dealer? Thanks for anyone's advise.

 

I did get my first oil change this week, after calling several dealers for their pricing, as I would not bring the car anywhere else yet. The filter for this car is unique to the Prius, so it is unlikely that others would stock it for some time. Additionally, they have an O-Ring gasket that must be replaced. The filter needs to be filled, and inserted a special way, and the fact that they need to remove lower panels to access this ensures that I will go nowhere else for a long time to get this done.

The first three dealers I called were all in the $32-$35 dollar range. Then I went to a local dealer, to get the job done. They told me it would be a 45 minute wait to get to it, so i waited patiently in their waiting room, watching a cubs game being replayed. About 1 hour later, the service guy walks in and says, well, I have some 'bad news' for your oil change. He then tells me (reminds me) that I need to have synthetic oil, so the price of $33.95 they originally quoted me is incorrect, and asked me if they should proceed.

I was shocked, as I had not planned for it, but agreed to the 62.00 oil change, as I was already invested an hour into waiting there. Then, once done, it tool them 20 more minutes to figure out how to reset the 'Oil Change' indicator. Luckily, they felt bad for my waiting so long, so I was given a $20 discount on the service, and ended up paying $42.95 out the door. However, I only did the oil, as I will likely rotate the tires myself.

He did state that he felt their oil was high priced, and that I would likely save a few bucks by bringing in 5 quarts of oil with me next time. I will certainly look into that. He stated that outside of the oil cost, the fee should be around $20 for them to change it, the filter, and the gaskets.

More than I thought it would cost, but still cheaper than buying all the gas I used to buy.

 

There is a great tutorial here on PC on how to change the oil, does not seem that hard. I will try a search to see if I can find it again.

[Edit] - Here is a great post on oil/changes. The second page includes instructions:
http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...0-mile-change-intervals-still-required-2.html

Peter

 

I'm curious where you got that info from, since the bottle of Toyota branded 0W-20 I bought at the dealer says "Full Synthetic" on the front label.

 

I kinda agree. I called 5 local dealers and all said $25-30 for an oil change. After taking 5 minutes to informed them that it requires 0w-20 (synthetic), the price shot up to $70-80. That's about $50 extra per oil change. Figure 100,000 miles of use and we're talking an extra $1000 in service compared to other cars. That is simply unacceptable, IMO. For a Corvette or Porsche, sure, but not for a Prius.

 

I'll keep going back to my dealer at $42.95 for oil & filter change and tire rotation, but once they move the price up to accomodate the synthetic oil charge, then I'll just start bringing in my own 5 quarts of Mobil 1.

There seems to be no valid reason to have synthetic oil required at the same time a 5,000-mile change is required.

 

For the record there are at least two people on Long Island with the sunroof option; you and me.

 

There seems to be no valid reason to have synthetic oil required at the same time a 5,000-mile change is required.[/quote]


Why do you have to change the synthetic oil at the 5,000 mile mark??? Just got my 2010 Prius three weeks ago and love it. I sold my Mercedes ML 350, it required Mobile 1 (synthetic), the oil change for Mercedes was every 11,000 to 12,000 miles. The whole idea of using a more expensive synthetic is suppose to LAST LONGER! My wife has A Lexus that uses regular oil, and the oil changes are every 5,000 miles.

 

I think you've just expressed the same opinion I had. I'm not arguing that you or I should use synthetic oil AND have 5,000-mile changes, but that is what Toyota is requiring in order to keep the warranty intact.

As noted a few posts earlier, here is a link to a thread on this very issue: Despite the Synthetic Oil requirement, 5000 mile change intervals are still "required"

 

Why do you have to change the synthetic oil at the 5,000 mile mark??? Just got my 2010 Prius three weeks ago and love it. I sold my Mercedes ML 350, it required Mobile 1 (synthetic), the oil change for Mercedes was every 11,000 to 12,000 miles. The whole idea of using a more expensive synthetic is suppose to LAST LONGER! My wife has A Lexus that uses regular oil, and the oil changes are every 5,000 miles.[/quote]

After the warranty is up, I think I will start having the synthetic oil analyzed on a regular basis instead of changing it so often. IMO, frequent, unnecessary synthetic oil changes are not only very expensive, they are also not GREEN.:hippie:

To the OP - yep- this was almost a deal breaker for me. If we had been able to find a great price on a Gen II, we would have bought that instead.