Oil change interval

[UX250h]

Hi, the oil change interval for the UX250h is 10k miles or 12 months, and oil needs to be 5L of 0W-16, grade SN.

The following video 

 

states you should change your oil every 5k miles/6 months (which I think is probably important if you only do short journeys)

My question is, what do people think about this? 

What is the cheapest oil that meets the required spec? Note that I would use a OEM oil filter 

Update

This matches the spec and is £40. Millers Oils XF Premium 0W16 SP RC Fully Synthetic Engine Oil, 5 Litres https://amzn.eu/d/2Qy1aFA

Toyota genuine oil is £114

 

Thanks

 

 

[rayaans]

I think its excessive

change it at 10k/1year as per the service schedule - its not the 1990s

[Illogan]

I run a car and a boat, and frequently change the oil more often than the proscribed period, simply because it is the most cost effective/(cheapest) OCD way of engine maintenance (& the boat takes 15L!

[Bluemarlin]

My thoughts are that the video is aimed at Americans who, until fairly recently, considered 3k mile oil changes necessary. In my opinion, annually or 10k is more than adequate, especially with synthetic oils.

I would probably concede that 5k mile changes might be a little better for an engine, but am not sure that it makes any material difference. Assuming changes are done to schedule then my guess is that most cars will be killed by the cost of rust, accident damage, gearbox failure, overheating, electrical/electronic failure, or any number of other things, long before any engine fails due to 10k mile oil changes.

If I want a car to last, I'd be spending my money on servicing it to schedule, transmission fluid change every 75K miles or so, and some kind of rustproofing, rather than changing oil more frequently than the specified interval.

Just my opinion though.

[UX250h]

Yeah...my thoughts, it gets serviced my Lexus and I give it a good run at least once every week, standard Toyota oil is made by Mobil 1, so yeah, 10k oil changes should be fine for at least 200k miles. If I wanted 400k, then I think I'd need 5k oil changes

[dutchie01]

When driving a classic car you need to change often to maintain the engine. Modern cars with synthetic oils are different. My wife does 10k pa and once owned a bmw where the car warns you when it is time for new oil. This was once every 2 years. I think 10 or even 15 k is way too quick and only benefits the dealer. Btw my scientific test is to look at the color of the oil and sniff it.

[UX250h]

After contacting their technical support, I've discovered that Millers XF PREMIUM ENGINE OIL 0w16 meets all the oil requirements and it's only £39.65 for 5L from amazon

Millers-8174 - XF Premium 0w16.pdf

[gdamorini]

On 6/6/2023 at 10:58 AM, dutchie01 said:

When driving a classic car you need to change often to maintain the engine. Modern cars with synthetic oils are different. My wife does 10k pa and once owned a bmw where the car warns you when it is time for new oil. This was once every 2 years. I think 10 or even 15 k is way too quick and only benefits the dealer. Btw my scientific test is to look at the color of the oil and sniff it.

With full hybrid cars the ICE (internal combustion engine) undergoes a lot of start and stop cycles, thus degrading the oil much faster than traditional cars. 10000 miles/15000 km or 1 year (whichever comes first) is the correct interval for an oil and filter change.

[ColinBarber]

On 6/5/2023 at 10:19 AM, UX250h said:

My question is, what do people think about this? 

The vast majority of owners stick to the service schedule (every 10k/1year) and don't experience problems. There may be marginally more wear than if you half that interval but it is unlikely to manifest itself before 200k+ miles which most modern vehicles don't achieve in the UK before being scrapped/written off for other reasons.

If you are concerned then take a sample and get an oil analysis done. That will tell you if the oil is still protecting.

[stepppy]

Americans do seem to be rather pro low mileage oil changes and of course tyre rotations which isn’t part of UK service schedules as far as I know. 
 

I have always been happy with sticking to the schedules the manufacturer recommends. 

[UX250h]

I've found a few videos on YouTube...

 

 

I think a 1y/10k change is fine if you drive optimally (longer journeys where the engine oil gets up to operating temperature, few short journeys and only plan to keep the car for up to 120k miles or so.

If you want to keep the car for 150k miles plus, you need to change your oil & filter every 6m/5k miles. I.plan to use Millers XF Premium for the 6m/5k changes meaning I probably won't have any engine related issues. This will cost £100 so is well worth it

[Gary H]

I’m quite a stickler for maintenance. I’ve always considered myself to be quite ‘old fashioned’ in my view of servicing my car every year or 10,000 miles. It’s a rule I’ve followed for the last 21 years. So far, touch wood, it’s not let me down in terms of reliability e.t.c...

I’ve had at least three cars with those longer two year / 20,000 mile service intervals but regardless of that, it’s still been serviced yearly regardless. I’d never personally let a car go that long without being serviced, but that’s just me. I’ve personally seen a couple of horror stories eventually develop from friends and old work colleagues who have done this and it just seems to be a way to prematurely wear out a car mechanically in order for it to be replaced sooner rather than later. 

I do personally feel on modern cars that servicing over the likes of 6000 miles is a little excessive (unless a year has passed and you haven’t done the miles...’I’m guilty as charged’ on that front), but again, that’s just my humble opinion. Each to their own. I could understand this on a much older engine (carburettors, classic cars...) or perhaps a worn engine in which you’re trying to make it last as long as possible, but on cars under 10 years old for example - I don’t really see the point.