New Toyotas all call for 0W-20. That only comes in synthetic. They also increased the mileage between oil changes to 10k miles. Standard oil could not handle that.
0w-20 also comes as a blend - see this
Let me know how the 10k oil change works out after 200k miles. I’ll wait til it’s PROVEN to be good for vehicles up to and past 300k miles…which is the minimum mileage I keep my vehicles.
If motor is spec’d for 30w oil, using 20w is a bad idea. Your bearings have more clearance at 160k miles. Your oil pump is worn. A thinner oil is not the direction u should go. Now, if u meant 5-30 vs 10-30 I might go there. Heck, even 0-30 is ok.
After 10 years and 160k miles just keep using what you’ve been using.
As to oil type, synthetic oil is every bit as prone as regular motor oil to contamination from dust, moisture, combustion chamber particulate, and so on.
Ten thousand mile oil changes cannot be good for an internal combustion engine and especially so if it involves stop and go, extended idling use along with certain enviro conditions.
If Toyota feels so strongly about 10k oil changes then the should provide the consumer with say a 300k miles engine warranty instead of a 60k miles warranty. Some cars have never made it to anywhere near 60k miles because of an extended oil change regimen.
Honda also has a 0W20 synthetic blend
Let me know how the 10k oil change works out after 200k miles. I'll wait til it's PROVEN to be good for vehicles up to and past 300k miles...which is the minimum mileage I keep my vehicles.
Yeah, I've always held that the mfrs have "bent" at pressure from greens to extend oil change intervals to the maximum feasible.
The scary thing, Mike, is you sound like ME, and we always disagree!
I have nothing against synthetic oil but I’ve never owned a vehicle that required it. So…it’s dino oil for me until I buy a vehicle that needs it.
Check out the link. It is an amazing story out of Purdue, which isn’t exactly a third rate engineering school. The Spoilers! From reading the article, just about everything about Canola-based oil exceeds mineral and synthetic oil in terms of lubrication capacity and environmental safety. I was amazed, except I had read some recently published data on using this stuff with chainsaws. I couldn’t believe what I saw. Pun.
The manual for the new Honda Fit I just bought says to change the oil when the “Maintenance Minder” tells you to or at 12 months, whichever comes first. It doesn’t even mention mileage as a factor.
Also, The manual recommends that you use “Honda Genuine Motor Oil” or “Premium-Grade 0W-20 Detergent Oil” with an API certification seal.
Then it says that you may also use synthetic motor oil. I checked on the Honda Genuine Motor Oil and the 0W-20 is a synthetic blend.
“Honda Genuine Motor Oil” … funny. As if it could be “Honda Fake Motor Oil”
I know it comes as a blend, but I stick to synthetic on 99 V6 Camry. I wanted extra protection against sludge. I have never used blends. I use synthetic on my other 09 Camry & 10 Corolla. I use dino on on my 86 Chevy C10.
I did a little more checking and Honda also has a full synthetic “Genuine” motor oil (as opposed to full synthetic “Bogus Oil”)… 
The scary thing, Mike, is you sound like ME, and we always disagree!
I’m not going to sleep good for the next month or two thinking about that.
I think Quaker State is the manufacturer of Honda Oil these days. Changes every 5 years or so.
One think I have noticed as I move toward cars from this century is the engine oil capacity. Four cylinder engines used to be around 4 qt and now most of them are 5.5 qt capacity which should help with extending the change interval. Also, one should keep in mind that if you are going with the manual’s recommendation for synthetics with extended change interval, you probably need better oil filters than the cheapest one available.
On a side note, the local Walmart had all Purolator oil filters marked down to $1.5 and their book didn’t even have these filters listed for any car. I remembered what I needed for my 2005 Camry and bought the only two left on the shelf.
One think I have noticed as I move toward cars from this century is the engine oil capacity.
Yes. I think you’ll notice, especially on Euro cars, those that specify 10,000 mile changes have a larger oil capacity. The BMW 3.0 6 cyl holds 8.5 quarts if I remember. That’s almost twice as much as an American 3.0 from 20 years ago. Simply having more oil will allow a longer interval before oil degradation.
Yes. I think you'll notice, especially on Euro cars, those that specify 10,000 mile changes have a larger oil capacity.
Toyota didn’t change their oil capacity. Wife’s 07 Lexus and my 14 Highlander…both with the 3.5L V6…Mine is 10K…wife’s Lexus is 5K. Both have 6.5qrts capacity.
Son owns a 2011 Mazda S3- 0w-20 synthetic oil…and it also has a 5k change interval.
As long as oil meets makers spec pick whatever suits your fancy. Synthetic oil meets and exceeds most specs so it will work fine.
That being said verify oil level often. Maybe coincidence but I found I used more oil with one time I used synthetic it burned 1qt in 4k miles in my 2005 turbo Subaru Legacy so I reverted back to regular stuff. Normal consumption is <1/2 qt in that time and I have original turbo/engine with 200k miles.
If the OP’s. vehicle is doing well on non-synthetic oil, and the manual doesn’t require you to use synthetic, why tamper with a good thing. It reminds me of the time I was in the grocery store and picked up a bag of house brand dog food. Another customer saw me put the bag in the cart and said to me disgustedly “You feed your dog that stuff?” “Yes, ma’am”, I replied. " He’s just a,little cheap dog I got at the pound". The woman then gave me a lecture about cruelty to animals. I gave up and swapped the house brand dog food for a,name brand bag that cost almost twice as much. Interestingly_the dog didn’t seem to like the expensive food as well as the house brand, so I went back to the house brand. The dog lived to be 15. If your Toyota is doing well on its present oil, don’t mess with a,good thing.
About a year and a half ago I switched from dino to full synthetic in my 2012 Toyota Yaris due to my driving a lot more miles, I extended my changes from 3000 to 5000. The price of oil & filter change for dino vs synthetic is almost the same (since I extended the miles up to 5000) and I have noticed NOTHING in the change, except maybe a little bit of extra MPG. 30,000 miles of 3000 mile oil changes is 10 changes at $13 a change ($130) (DIY) and 30,000 miles of 5000 mile oil changes is 6 changes at $23 a change ($138). Crawling around on the ground less times per year is nicer, but I tend to check my vehicles (tire pressure, fluid levels) a few times a month, it’s no big deal. I’ll stick with full synthetic now and maybe extend the interval to 6000, the oil is pretty clean now when I change at 5000, purely from a “view on the dipstick and what’s in the drainpan” viewpoint. That will decrease my cost for 30,000 to $115. No big deal. No change in performance, no noise, easy start-ups either way. Hard to figure, maybe it’s all perception for me. Rocketman
yes, perception is difficult to rule out.
I remember all the people who swore by that brown gas (aka HHO) fraud. Claimed better MPG. But it’s all in the perception. If you expect to get better MPG, lo and behold, you do. Because you will drive more conservatively…