Synthetic oil - tales of warranty void?

I absolutely love this post, and thank you greatly for the education as provided.

 

My dealer had a Saturday session for all of their new car buyers. Handed out some goodies and had a free lunch. They spent the time discussing issues with their cars and answering questions. The maint. manager stated that it was their dealer's policy to put in synthetic oil at the first change.

 

I never understand why people do that sort of thing. When ever you lie to someone it turns around and bites you. My Dad used to say "Get a reputation as a liar and you might as well be struck dumb" My Dealer put Mobile 1 in for me!

 

Pennzoil sells a 0-20W oil for Hybrids. Here is the link to their website. You can use this weight?


http://www.pennzoil.com/products/motor_oil/platinum.html

 

Why not use what Toyota says to use: 5W30. They know more about their car than any oil company does.

 

In The Netherlands Toyota recommends driving 1200 km first, and after that you can switch to synthtic oil. Once you have switched, they don't recommend going back to other oil.
Why is the oil changing schedule is different over here? Oil change is every 15000 km (9000+ miles)

 

They may indeed mean well, but, truthfully, do you want your Prius worked on by a service group that is "clueless"??? I sure don't!

 

As an update, in an earlier post in this topic I suggested a virgin sample of the Toyota oil be sent off for analysis, then compared to Mobil 1.

Actually, I've already done that and the results were posted in the Care forum. I actually thought I had a problem with the motor (Very high Na levels) but it turned out to be the dealer oil that the car had for the first two oil changes.

The dealer oil had *very* high Na, traces of sulfur and moisture, and even some Fe, in it. The new TBN was only 5, so this oil is barely good enough for even 5,000 mile oil change intervals.

Thanks but I'll stick with Mobil 1.

 

Where do you get the 1 u filter and where can I send my oil for analysis?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(koa @ Nov 11 2005, 03:47 PM) [snapback]154201[/snapback]</div>

This is why Toyota may not dominate the future car market in the US. There are too many dealers out there pulling BS routines. Even the better dealers push that damn cabin filter every 5k; it's like you have to say no a million times to get out of there for less than $100 for routine mainentance.

My current dealer offers Mobil 1 as an upgrade for ANY toyota. I have been using for a while. The internals of the Prius's engine (internal combustion) aint that complicated or high revving -- just kind of light to save weight and for the engine to start very easily. Heck, the Corvette comes with Mobil 1 standard and that motor (from an internal combustion standpoint only) is much more complicated and exotic thatn the Prius.

The only thing I can think is that the dealer pushes their standard oil out of the barrel and then pushes you to come erery 3k which is ridiculous. Heck, 5k is BS if you use full synthetic, but that is the way it is.

 

actually, they were trying to sell you "Dealer Oil" that comes in 55 gal drums and costs them much less,,and it just saves them time to use the fill hose off the Drum than to actually open cans. That dealer is just plain lying about voiding the warranty using synthetics.

 

if all the above replies are not enough, for my 15,000 full maintenance, i took it to the shop since I change the oil myself for the regular 5,000 maint. Just bought my mobil 1 with me and they took off the oil cost in the bill. I did make sure that I emptied the last bottle so that they wouldn't add it all in. I did the math for them so all they had to do was add all the oil i supplied and they wouldn't overfill it.

 

Somehow I lost track of this thread. Folks asked me some questions, here are the answers, hopefully they'll see them.

No, using a 1u filter doesn't remove the metal numbers from the lab test.

I have no idea how many manufacturers make a 1u filter, but I know Amsoil does and I use their system. No, it won't fit in the Prius. The filter is part of a "bypass filter" unit. A 1u filter would be way too restrictive for full flow by itself, so it must be used in conjunction with the unit if it's connected to the engine.

What Amsoil does have now is a 25,000 mile full flow filter. They recently changed to a better filtration media and that was the result.

If anyone is interested in finding out how I use a 1u filter "in" the Prius, do a search. I posted possibly a month ago with an update for the portable filtration rig I now use for ALL our engine oil. I think it's title was "Reducing oil in the waste stream" or some such. But any of the key words I used in this post should find the text.

 

I found Brian K's post: http://priuschat.com/index.php?showtopic=20021&hl=

 

Ditto, I buy my Mobil 1 from Sam's Club and take it to the Toyota Dealer. They charge me $15 for the filter, service, and disposal/environmental fees. If I use their oil it costs $65. I will also have them take a mid-stream oil sample for an analysis.

 

I would swear that I read something in the Toyota Manual about avoiding Synthetic Oil until the first oil change then not changing back to Dino Oil, but can I find it now... noooo. I will keep looking.

 

the dealer included the first oil change free(is this just them or Toyota policy?)
so I asked to have it filled with Mobile 1.
The mechanic asked his supervisor who said,
Sure but it'll double the price.
so I said to the mechanic, OK I'll pay double of nothing. so he put in 3.6L of synthetic.
Result: the change over to Mobile 1 didn't cost me anything but the time it took to ask.
Moral-of-the-story: It never hurts to ask!

 

Well with a little over 3k miles I'm getting ready for my first oil change.
After reading this thread I went down to my dealer (Toyota Carlsbad) and bought a Toyota oil filter ($5.41) and filter wrench ($7.31). Out of curiosity I asked the guy at the parts counter what oil to use. He pulled a bottle of Toyota 5W-30 off the shelf and assured me that this was the only oil that Toyota recommends for the Prius. He also told me that in their service department that is all they ever use.
When I asked if synthetic oil could be used, he said he didn't think it was recommended, but when questioned further, he referred me to their service department.
So off I went to the service department. When I asked a Service Manager about synthetic oil for the Prius he said Toyota says not to use it. When I asked him specifically what damage might result, he said something about possible damage to the engine and that the car might "stall". When I pumped him for more specifics, he referred me to a mechanic.
The mechanic told me that yes, Toyota does not recommend the use of synthetic oil "at this time". He also suggested that damage to the seals or stalling could result, and that its use "would definitely" void the warranty. When I asked him if Toyota dino oil must be used, he acknowledged that any comparable 5W-30 oil could be used. He said they use Quaker State oil from a drum for oil changes (contrary to what the parts guy had said minutes earlier).
These dealerships just seem to be making stuff up as they go, without specifics it just seems like scare tactics to me.
Personally I don't think there is any harm in using a synthetic such as Mobil 1 5W-30 since it meets, or exceeds, all the same industry standards as Toyota's own oil. However, I am still on the fence from a cost basis. If I'm going to be changing the oil every 5k anyway, why not use cheaper oil for now? Once the car is off warranty go to synthetic and extend the service interval to take full advantage of the synthetic oil's longevity.