switching back to natural oil?

[caineroad]

i am currently running syth oil for 6 months, and 6 months only and now I am thinking to switch it back to toyota oil because of the price. Is it ok for me to do so and if the toyota oil is really that bad?

[why?]

what type of synthetic? Was is just a mobil type that is still based off of real oil or a total synthetic? If just a normal synthetic than you can just switch whenever and it will not matter.

Toyota oil is fine, heck most oil you can buy at a Wal-Mart is fine.

[craigq]

If price is a problem Canadian Walmart's have their SuperTech branded conventional oils on sale this week for $6.

[caineroad]

it says mobil1 5w30 syth, not sure if it based of real oil? it's the one most people use

[Happy Little Pony]

You can switch back to conventional. Conventional oil is fine. If you like the Toyota brand oil, it is perfectly fine stuff.

For that matter, any 5w30 motor oil that meets the American Petroleum Institute's current standards will work. The current rating is "SN," but if you come across some "SL" or "SM" oil, they will be OK, too. Any API approved 5w30 will provide the basic lubrication that your engine requires. Some brands might be better than others, but all should be "good enough."

[fnkngrv]

What is your drain interval?

[daf62757]

Originally Posted by caineroad

i am currently running syth oil for 6 months, and 6 months only and now I am thinking to switch it back to toyota oil because of the price. Is it ok for me to do so and if the toyota oil is really that bad?

I would say WHY?

With the synthetic oil you can actually pay less for it than regular oil when you use extended drain techniques. The synthetic oil is far superior for wear and tear and if you use the 0w5, you can even get better gas mileage.

With conventional, you have to change the oil at 5k miles. With synthetic, you can go 10 to 12k safely and have better protection.

Its your car, but synthetic is just too superior an oil and saves you money. And it will help your engine get past the 200k mark with flying colors!

[fnkngrv]

^ I was gonna say a lot of the same, but thy seem to have their mind made up.

[racerb]

I run only synthetic oil in all my Toyotas, change it at around 7,500 miles each time. But as others have said you could safely go 10,000-12,000 between changes. When I used to sell Amsoil, we would recommend changing your filter at 12,500 and topping up the oil, then not totally changing oil until 25,000 miles. This was after flushing your engine of all contaminates and installing Amsoil pure synthetic oil and an Amsoil filter. I run Valvoline pure synthetic now and a Fram oil filter and most times the oil still looks like new when I replace it. To be ohnest the real key with synthetic is the quality of your filter, you could easily just change filters, top up your oil and keep right on going for twice the distance I'm currently going between changes.

Oh and by the way my 3 daily/weekly driven Toyotas have 96,000, 176,000, and 195,000 miles on them respectively. In fact I sold a '94 T-100 I owned a few years ago with 240,000 miles on it, which also ran pure synthetic and it still ran like a new engine the day I sold it!!

[bronsin]

If you are thinking you will get better gas mileage using synth think again. I drove 5200 miles to AK from NJ on regular motor oil and returned the same way using synthetic. There was no difference in gas mileage over 5200 miles.

Also you will void your warranty if you dont change your oil according to the owners manual.

Also see below.

[fnkngrv]

Originally Posted by bronsin

Also you will void your warranty if you dont change your oil according to the owners manual.

Also see below.

The warranty is only 3/36 anyway. Secondly they have to prove that you changing your interval was the direct cause for engine failure which they will not be able to do. Third speaking from experience from blowing up a 4E-FTE with conventional and also 1NZ with synthetic I can tell you that there is definitely a cleaner difference between them when you tear them down. It may not an apples to apples comparison, but from what I had occur both from over boosting there was a lot more damage on the 4E with conventional than the 1NZ with the synthetic. Lastly, the 1NZ is such a cheap motor to replace it wouldn't even be worth worrying about warranty IMHO. A Toyota motor for the most part will continue to run even after the vehicle that houses it has rusted away and is dust if you leave it stock.

This is a debate that can go round and round, but there has been plenty of independent studies out there showing that synthetic has several advantages over conventional oil one of which is the ability to move away from the reliance of fossil fuels.

[fnkngrv]

Originally Posted by bronsin

If you are thinking you will get better gas mileage using synth think again. I drove 5200 miles to AK from NJ on regular motor oil and returned the same way using synthetic. There was no difference in gas mileage over 5200 miles.

As racerb stated you should do an engine flush between the two types of oils to ensure that you have removed all of the contaminants. You should have seen the amount of garbage that came out with the flush of the motor that I just put into my car and that engine had only 23k on it with conventional oil. I totally believe that you didn't notice an improvement in FE on your trip. There is a reason why AMSOIL for example makes the claim that over time you should notice an improvement and not over the short haul.

[bronsin]

Ha thats good for a laugh. Synthetic oil is NOT going to reduce our dependence on fossil fuel.

Thats a good example of the logic used by SO proponents.

But you are right to make up for the increased cost you will have to extend the oil change interval past what the owners manual calls for.

Walmart conventional oil is going for $12 for five quarts while their synthetic oil is going for $22 for....four quarts? Maybe its five.

So you better plan on about doubling your oil change interval using synth.


I am sorry to sound so nasty its just the facts...

[fnkngrv]

This is a cost comparison that even though it is at a 3k/3 month interval there will still be a savings when you adjust to 5k/3 month.

3k/3 month interval:

Conventional Oil 10w-30 (40qts needed for 25k miles)
@ $3.00/qt * 40 = $120.00
8 Standard Filters
@ 6.00/filter * 8 = 48.00

Total: $168.00

AMSOIL 25k/1 year interval:

AMSOIL 10w-30 (5 qts needed for 25k miles)
@ 7.35/qt * 5 = $47.75
1 EaO Filter
@ 18.30

Total: $55.05

Savings: $112.95 annually


Even if you only drive 12k miles per year you are saving just in oil/filter costs not to mention the following benefits:

- Easier cold-temp starting
- Improved fuel economy over time
- Cleaner running engine
- Cooler running temps
- Should experience more power/throttle response
- Less engine wear
- Longer intervals between changes which means less inconvenience of the car being at the shop

[tooter]

Originally Posted by fnkngrv

This is a debate that can go round and round, but there has been plenty of independent studies out there showing that synthetic has several advantages over conventional oil one of which is the ability to move away from the reliance of fossil fuels.

I don't lose much sleep over a few quarts of fossil oil as long as I'm already putting gallons and gallons of fossil gasoline in my car.

[fnkngrv]

Originally Posted by bronsin

Ha thats good for a laugh. Synthetic oil is NOT going to reduce our dependence on fossil fuel.

Thats a good example of the logic used by SO proponents.

But you are right to make up for the increased cost you will have to extend the oil change interval past what the owners manual calls for.

Walmart conventional oil is going for $12 for five quarts while their synthetic oil is going for $22 for....four quarts? Maybe its five.

So you better plan on about doubling your oil change interval using synth.


I am sorry to sound so nasty its just the facts...

No worries here. As I said before this is a debate that can go round and round. I will be showing via an independent oil analysis this fall how strongly or weak that AMSOIL performs and we will see if I will need to eat my words. I am sponsoring all lubricants for a racing team at a local circle track this summer on one of their cars with AMSOIL products. He will be running the whole season on the standard AMSOIL long drain interval motor oil in a 94 Mercury Grand Marquis. This will be a true test to hard driving and the effects it has on the oil and motor. The track is only a 1/4 mile long and they of course due to that short track put a lot of stress on the engines. I will also be running a log on my replacement motor with their 5-20 Dominator Racing Oil using it for my DD and then at the Land Speed Runs as well. I am a man of my word so if after the results come back it shows that the AMSOIL product hasn't stood up to the claims that the company makes then I will admit that my beliefs were misguided.

[fnkngrv]

Originally Posted by tooter

I don't lose much sleep over a few quarts of fossil oil as long as I'm already putting gallons and gallons of fossil gasoline in my car.

So you are saying that you only bought the Yaris for its looks/handling and not the FE that it provides you over other subcompacts out there?

[bronsin]

Make it a recommended six month/6k mile interval for conventional oil then read the numbers.

I dont think you want to change oil less than every year and very few people drive anywhere near 25k miles in a year.

The only thing you say that makes sense is synth gives you better starting at really low temps like zero degrees or below. I would use it in the winter if it got that cold in NJ.

But it doesnt.