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Which Oil grade?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by SteveWlf, Jul 30, 2013.

  1. SteveWlf

    SteveWlf Old-on-Hold

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    My '07 has 85K miles and slightly over due for oil change. First change since I have own it. Between about 5k on oil since I purchased it and it was change just before my purchase.
    It is down one qt right now but I'm not going to have a chance to change it until next week, so I want to add a quart for now. I have no idea of what grade was used. The service sticker is a Napa sticker but should I trust their judgement if I ask them for a quart of oil. Do they have a reference that suggests the right oil for a Prius??

    When I change the oil I will use what ever grade/type that is recommended on here.

    Thanks
    Steve
     
  2. wjtracy

    wjtracy Senior Member

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    GenII manual calls for 5W-30 oil. I use Mobil-1 synthetic.
     
    skruse likes this.
  3. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    5W-30 is the correct viscosity. Note that it is necessary just to keep the oil level above the lower dimple; it is not necessary to fill to the top dimple since you are planning to replace the oil next week.
     
  4. wjtracy

    wjtracy Senior Member

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    I only use 3 qts to fill sometimes 3.5
     
  5. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    If it's only going to be in your car for a week?
    You could almost use olive oil. It simply isn't going to matter that much.....especially out on the upper left coast in late July. Besides....if NAPA was doing it before?????
    They might have been using bulk oil themselves.

    The "Fleet Ops" folks in my company got their grubby paws on my car back when it only had 5K miles on the clock. I asked them why since Toyota has a 10K oil change interval. They said they do all of our vehicles at 5K. Period. I asked them what oil they use. They answered 20w50...because....that's what they use in all of our vehicles at 5K. Period.
    I had to pop an angry flare over several desk squatters before I had this practice suspended (not to be confused with halted!) for our G3s, and only then because they were somewhat worried about warranties.

    OK.
    So....what did I learn from this?
    1. Over the short term....it probably doesn't matter very much. We had 5 or 6 G3's running bulk oil for as much as 1000 miles.They're all still in service and knocking down 50 MPG or better.
    It's like eating a double bacon cheeseburger. I wouldn't do it every day...but I also wouldn't have my stomach pumped if I accidentally ate one for lunch.
    2. Never....EVER buy a used fleet vehicle, including rental cars. When I knocked holes in the ocean for a living.....we always used to have a saying.... "NOTHING handles like a rental car!" :D

    Prius People worry waaaaaaaaaaay too much.
    Don't.
    You'll live longer that way, AND your car will be there to take you to Wendys for that Double Bacon Cheeseburger. ;)
     
  6. dorunron

    dorunron Senior Member

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    I agree with Patrick Wong. As long as the oil level is in between the two marks on the dip stick, you don't need to add any. 5W30 is the norm for US models.

    FWIW, you might consider going with synthetic if you haven't already. You might see a little more MPG. First change on ours to Mobil 1 I saw a little oil usage. After that, it returned to little or none over 5K intervals. Odometer is reading 71K on ours today.

    No telling what NAPA put in. Probably bulk oil out of a drum. Might have been 5W30, but could have been anything if you did not specify.

    It might be a good idea if you were to specify which weight and oil you prefer, or provide the oil yourself when doing the changes if you intend on not DIY.

    Refer to the owner's manual for more detailed information and peace of mind.
     
  7. theshark

    theshark Member

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    Steve,

    When you have the oil changed I recommend purchasing a few extra quarts. I have to add a quart every 700 miles.. Basically once a week.
     
  8. artyking

    artyking Junior Member

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    '05 Prius at 110,000 miles - 5w30, 09 Prius at 94,000 miles - 5w30. Haven't used synthetic or hi tech oils yet, just plain Jane 5w30. About 50,000 miles on the '09 are on mail delivery route. I haven't noticed any oil usage yet to be concerned about. I just change it every 5,000 miles and "knock on wood" no need to add a quart in between yet. I wouldn't bother with topping up for just a week unless it was down below the low level dimple on dip stick. In your case since you just bought it I'd pull the dip stick every couple thousand miles though just to see, maybe even every one thousand;)