I just received a letter from Toyota concerning the oil change interval on my 2011 Toyota Sienna. The oil change interval is now 10,000 miles. The oil has to be synthetic 0W-20. I priced 0W-20 at a farm store and it is $3.95 a quart. I’m ready to back to the good old days with my 1947 Pontiac flathead 6–no oil filter. I bought non-detergent re-refined oil for 10 cents a quart.
I put re-refined oil in my oil burning 1948 Chevrolet, and kept a case of 24 in the trunk. I had to pay $0.29 a quart, however.
When crossing the US-Canada border, the customs officer wanted to know if I traded in motor oil. I convince him I needed most of that oil to get home.
I drove a 63 Corvair that heavily leaked oil through the pushrod tube O-rings. Since I worked in a gas station, I would often use the used motor oil that we drained from customer cars (from their oil changes). It worked for me.
I had a gm car with an oil minder and in warm weather it triggered at about 7000 miles and in cold weather when I drive shorter trips it triggered at 3000 miles.
My two best oil prices for fresh 10W-30 oil was Valvoline at 25 cents a quart after mail-in rebate and Citgo 10W-30 that was 0 cents a quart after the mail in rebate. This was twenty-five to thirty years ago. This was in the days when oil companies promoted the myth that one shouldn’t change brands of oil, so the point was to get one hooked on a particular brand. I only hope competition force the price of synthetic down to a reasonable price.
On cars built in the last 15 years or so, 3000 miles is not really necessary. My Toyotas (09 Corolla, 05 Tacoma, 02 Tundra) specify 5,000 mile service intervals and that is what I go by. One exception is for cars that are rarely driven and then only for short trips that never warm up the engine. It might take such a car 6 months, a year or even more to get that many. In that case I would go more by time, say every 6 months.
The oil & filter change requirement for my 02 RSX under normal driving conditions (highway) is 10K miles or 12 months. For severe conditions (city, dusty, 90F+) 5K miles or 6 months. I’ve been doing the latter even though I drive 12 miles 1 way to work on the highway and some city driving. I just started using full synthetic and change the oil & filter before summer and winter (April and Oct).
“Now there’s a source I’d give zero credibility to.”
Why should we assign credibility to anything you say? You did not check the facts before you wrote that. How can I say that? Because I checked the reference and found that they provided the manufacturer’s recommendations for changing oil. They made no recommendations whatsoever; it is a simple public service announcement. Here’s the document in question as an easy reference:
http://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/UsedOil/OilChange/OilChanges.pdf
BTW, look at the 2006/2007 Accord and Civic: 1 year or as conditions apply. Honda owner’s manuals recommended following the OLM, or 1 year.
Do whatever the manufacturer recommends; use the OLM. GM started putting them in cars in 1988. There are lots of tests documented in SAE literature. Honda recommends using the OLM in their owner’s manual. They put their reputation on the line, and are willing to risk you and everyone you know as a future customer.
Frankly, I couldn’t care less what credibility you attach to what I said.
The fact remains, CaIWCB’s “motivation” in publishing that is to cut down on waste motor oil, something it has a vested interest in. It’s just good practice to treat with skepticism claims made by an organization with such vested interests.
(Part of the problem is that–in CA–WMO isn’t allowed to be used as home heating oil, as elsewhere. Thus, what would otherwise be a commodity becomes a liability to get rid of.)
“The fact remains, CaIWCB’s “motivation” in publishing that is to cut down on waste motor oil, something it has a vested interest in.”
Um, that’s something that all Californians, and indeed all of us have an interest in, doncha think?
Yes; it drives most oil change intervals in Western Europe. I rented a Vauxhall which specified a 20,000 miles interval, and only had a 4 liter crankcase. These cars won’t live very long unles they do nothing but highway driving.
Whitey, I have a 2000 Camry with the sludge prone V6. I recall reading somewhere that Toyota recommended using synthetic along with 5000K oil changes in this engine. I was using dino oil with 5000K intervals until the issue became public and Toyota issued its new guidelines. I then switched to Mobil 1. Last year at about 150K I changed the valve cover gaskets and saw no evidence of sludge whatsoever.
“The fact remains, CaIWCB’s ‘motivation’ in publishing that is to cut down on waste motor oil, something it has a vested interest in.”
“Um, that’s something that all Californians, and indeed all of us have an interest in, doncha think?”
Nope.
“I just received a letter from Toyota concerning the oil change interval on my 2011 Toyota Sienna. The oil change interval is now 10,000 miles. The oil has to be synthetic 0W-20. I priced 0W-20 at a farm store and it is $3.95 a quart. I’m ready to back to the good old days with my 1947 Pontiac flathead 6–no oil filter. I bought non-detergent re-refined oil for 10 cents a quart.”
Must have been tough walking uphill both to and from school in the snow with no shoes.
$20 is too much for an oil change? Yet you’re driving a brand new car. How does that make sense?
Why not, ZombieWoof?
Um, that’s something that all Californians, and indeed all of us have an interest in, doncha think?
I have an interest in keeping the old heap running as long as physically possible, as I cannot afford to replace it easily.
To the extent I feel an obligation to be environmentally responsible (and yes, I do), frequent oil changes discharge that obligation by minimizing the chances my truck will wind up a blue-smoke-spewing mess due to premature engine wear. As far as the environmental liability of used motor oil, I handle that by properly disposing of same.
Additionally, as my commonwealth allows for the use of waste motor oil as home heating oil, I’m also providing an inexpensive source of winter heat to needy families (given that folks who haven’t upgraded to gas heat by now probably ain’t the hoi palloi.)
Thanks for the info, orangevega.
Because it can be recycled, and discarding oil doesn’t add to the net amount of oil on Earth.
If oil can be recycled, and it’s changed less often, that seems like two ways to reduce mining for oil. I don’t follow your logic, Z.