Oil change

Maintenance/Repairs
,
1

I have a 1996 toyota with 139800 mi drive mostly in town should I still change oil at 3000 mi or is 5000mi o.k.I also whant to make sure engine is warm enough to keep muffler and cat converter dry

2

Oil is cheap. Engines are expensive. 5000 miles is pushing it. 4000 would be my upper limit.

3

Oil should be changed based on what the manufacturer (not dealer)recommends. Those recommendations always give mileage based recommendations and TIME based recommendations. You use which ever comes first. You sound like you are in the time bases.

4

What does the owners manual say. For my 05 4runner and my wifes 07 Lexus…both say every 5k miles. I’ve been doing every 5k miles for 15 years now and never had a problem.

5

Ronny, When In Doubt, Change It Out.

[list]Are most trips under 5 miles (particularly important in cold weather)?[/list]

[list] Do most trips involve extensive idling (such as frequent driving in stop-and-go traffic)?[/list]

All of my car’s manuals have always included these situations as “severe” operation and recommend 3,000 mile intervals in either one of these cases.

You’re only averaging about 10,000 miles per year, so 3 oil changes per year sounds good. That’s just one extra one beyond the 5,000 mile intervals.

Since you’re concerned about moisture, the oil changes will help the engine and a trip of longer distance/duration, once a week or so, would help the exhaust system.

CSA

6

5000 is likely fine if changed 6 months or less.

7

Ronny; your driving is SEVERE by most definitons. This type of driving has caused sludging in other Toyotas in the past unless the oil was changed frequently. I would keep changing it at 3000 miles, unless you plan to do lot of highway driving.

Oil is cheap and if you want the longest life out of your engine, don’t let too few oil changes stand in the way.

If you live in the Northern states, install a block heater and plug it in for 2 hours before starting the car.

8

Particularly If This Toyota Is On The Famous Sludge List, I’d Go With Full-Synthetic Oil (At 3,000 Mile Intervals), Rather Than Conventional Type Oil.
CSA