Any appreciable gain with 0w-20 oil?

that sucks, when I have some time I'd have to do something about that, its why I was hesitant of the scan gauge, may be a neat gadget and display hundreds of readings I dont care about, besides I miss dial guages, would be nice to fit a few behund the steering wheel where the dash should be

 

"Respectfully, ya'll decide for yourselves based on your own conditions and desires, because it is your car. "

 

Yes the oil in the UK is very expensive compared to the US. Enough quality 0w20 oil to fill the Prius in the UK costs $75, but our fuel is around $10 a gallon so using the correct oil and maximizing fuel ecconomy is paramount.

An oil gauge could be fitted useing a "T" peice to tap into the oil prssure line.

John (Britprius)

 

With equal respect this is not something I chose, but rather following Toyota servicing information. See below.

John (Britprius)

 

Yep.

 

$10 wow, I thought it was $7 or so, arround hereis not even $4 yet, 0w20/10k it is than, its pretty obvious why toyota recomends it in the uk.
have you ever looked into lpg, I'm trying to get a kit thou arround here its unheard of, you're right in the hot spot, I got a thread going about it, if you have any experience with it please pitch in.

 

Yeah I think that price is per UK gallon, it's more like about $7.80 per US gallon.

BTW. Here's some interesting pic for us "oil heads". 02 Mitsubishi Galant Pictures under valve cover - Bob Is The Oil Guy This guy has only used conventional oil, Valvoline, Pennzoil and Quaker State, every 6 months for 11 years. Engine is immaculate.

 

Yes I have been trying to remember the name of a company that supplies LPG equipment. It is based in a Welsh village caled "Dinas Mawddwy" if I can find any information I will PM you.

John (Britprius)

 

If you see the PDF chart for oil you will notice the highest viscosity oil Toyota show is 30 grade, this is because in cold climates heaveyer oils can cause the engine to turn over to slowly giveing the engine did not start fault code.

John (Britprius)

 

The only of those listed available here is Valvoline, and that is not readily available or known. The cheapest of cheap usualy 20w50 oils here are around $25 a UK gallon, and some of them I would not put in my lawn mower. Our top grade oils are just that, but they are very expensive and last 10,000 miles with ease.

John (Britprius)

 

I would apreciate it look up my thread under modifications, I came across a shop in the uk that installs and sells kits, problem is I came across them friday night may not hear back till monday

 

Hi John. That problem is extremely temperature dependent. A typical 15W40 oil at +5C is actually about the same viscosity as is a typical 0W20 oil at -10C, such is the rapid change in viscosity with temperature at the low end. In other words, the prius can in no way distinguish between a 15W40 oil at +5C versus a 0W20 at -10C, so there's really no concern about that issue unless you choose an oil which is totally incompatible with your given ambient temperature range in the first place (and then you've got other problems anyway).

Here in Australia I can use anything up to (and including) 20W50 and not have that problem. I'm not advocating it, but 20W50 is actually included in my prius manual as an option!

 

Yes thanks Uart I do appreciate the difference temperature makes hence my reference to cold climates.

The Toyota thinking on oil viscosity for the Prius is difficult to follow the highest viscosity recommended here being 5w30 and the oil of preference in the handbook for my gen2 is 0w20.

We do get temperatures (rarely) as low as -15c and go up to (again rarely) 35c. I would like to and will do when time permits do some oil temperature checks (perhaps at the filter case) to see what difference external temperatures affect oil temps.

John (Britprius)

 

I had a (factory installed) oil temperature gauge in a 1980 VW Rabbit (Golf) for nine years. My sense was that in the long run the oil followed the coolant temperature, but stayed a little cooler. This makes some sense, since the coolant pretty successfully limits the temperature of the cylinder head and block. With the oil pan working as a heat sink it took much longer to reach equilibrium though, maybe 40 minutes in warm weather vs. 5 minutes to get the coolant temperature up there.
The under body cover might reduce the cooling from the oil pan but on the other side of the equation the coolant temperature is more influenced by external temperature than in a conventional car due to the engine off coasting and idling. This time of year I guarantee you that my oil hasn't reached 180 °F (82 C) in months.

 

After reading a few different GEN II Owners manuals and the comments made here of the manual recommendations from other countries, I have come to the conclusion that the only consistency is:

“Toyota Genuine Motor Oil” is used in your
Toyota vehicle. Use Toyota approved “Toyota
Genuine Motor Oil” or equivalent to satisfy the
following grade and viscosity. ________

While I still feel my comments as they applied to the Michigan posters is correct, I will concede that this is not the only correct answer . I stand firm on the 5000 mile changes however, but that's because I'm more concerned with the health of an engine, than squeaking another 0.5 to 1.0 mpg, or saving a few bucks, or saving the environment, or trying to cut off middle east oil.....or whatever. That's just the mechanic in me. As previously stated, because this is not my first Rodeo...

"Respectfully, ya'll decide for yourselves based on your own conditions and desires, because it is your car. "

 

The best thing anyone can do to maintain any engine is keep clean oil in it. I have to chuckle at those that think the oil is good then passes a certain point and it is now bad. Oil that has 100 miles on it is not quite as good as new oil......it degrades slowly, additives being used up and a certain amount of micro solids building up. Those little microsolids are abrasive as the #s build they begin to wear at a quicker rate. To those that get bored with a car and trade out every few years go ahead and follow the 10+ oil change. My self I can't do it, 5000 with Synthetic is as far as I am willing to go, I was raised to not abuse my gear. As to those that say the shorter oil change abuses the environment...poppycock . Even if you pass the rig off before she dies the rig will die sooner rather than later and the impact of manufacturing new rigs more often has a greater impact than a few extra oil changes.

RAL

 

very good points, myself I am a grease monkey and I used to be religious about 3000 mile intervals, oil is rather cheap, savings are irelevant, I too care more about the helth of the engine versus the above mentioned, a new engine/car involves more polution/transport, cost etc, which is wht I figured I'd get a few opinions, the mechanic in me always wanted to push it too not just maintain, or should I say the tinkerer, this topic in no diferent in pricipal than trying to get a couple extra horses, different sparkplugs, cai what have you

 

well there has been a hype lately about extended oil changes, I remember a few years back mobil had a big campaign 15k guaranteed protection comercials were allover the place, I never considered it before, just figured since the prius does not run as much as a regular car stands a better shot at making it, than again 5000 is more than the 3000 I used to do, can't blame a guy for considering it, I'm also looking into converting to propane so if anything that might give the motor a better shot at it too, however if its a bad Ideea, I certanly am not into abusing it.
I was typing the same thing as your post poped on, a new engine/car has an impact too, its like shooting that healthy horse in the face, bottom line I don't care about what manufacturers say, my peers opinion I value more , who knows that 15k interval may just be one of those great Ideeas to "stimulate" the economy, like cash for clunkers, I would not be surprised if someone figured cars last too long nowadays so how do we correct that, 15k, its subtile, it will take a while to show wear, not looking fo much but if you kill a car at 150k versus 250k it will stimulate the economy,
actualy ,that would not surprise me one bit

 

All this talk of propane reminds me of the old "Hank Hill" quote.

"I change the oil in my truck every 3000 miles.......or when I get bored. Whichever comes first."

 

Ok, so how about this idea.... Sticking with the recommended 5w30 for maximum engine life (maybe) and minimal oil loss (maybe), and using synthetic, oc every 7k, and..... Using MoS2–Anti-Friction from Liqui Moly. The stuff is proven to reduce wear and reduce fuel consumption.... This way you're getting the best of both worlds. It's relatively inexpensive. Around $8 a pop, and you only need to use half a container per oc after the initial recommended full container use on the first fill. That works out to four bucks plus your oil and filter. If it really does extend engine life and increase your mileage it would be a win. Many posters at Bitog forum highly recommend it....

http://www.liqui-moly.us/liquimoly/mediendb.nsf/gfx2/2009_MoS2%20Anti-Friction%20Engine%20Treatment.pdf/$file/2009_MoS2%20Anti-Friction%20Engine%20Treatment.pdf

Bob Is The Oil Guy - Forums powered by UBB.threads™