PHEV specific topic: oil change based on time ONLY

Not a PHEV owner, and didn't watch the video, but most equipment has hour meters, no?
Too bad this couldn't be accessed via software, or even miles with engine running-you'd think it should be kept track of by the car.
I suppose you could install an hour meter.

 

if i had known this when i owned a pip, i would have changed the oil twice in eleven years, instead of every year.
that would have been a $1,000. savings

 

Oil goes bad from oxidation. At room temperatures, that reaction is very slow, and even stops if cold enough. Then in a sealed bottle, the available oxygen is used up and oxidation stops.

So oil can last some time in a non-running engine. But we also need to account for climate along with time. The engine isn't sealed, and warm/cool cycles will lead to fresh air getting into the crankcase with more available oxygen. It also can bring in humidity that adds water as an oxidation source.

In the case of a PHEV, the engine use cycle needs to be considered. If only running for a short time when it comes on, that is the same as a short trip in an ICE car. This is severe use on the oil, as there is more water and even fuel sitting in the oil for long periods before being boiled off.

Toyota's oil change schedule is too short for PHEVs; its what they use for ICE cars. Would be great if they, and everyone else, used a system like Honda and GM, which monitored engine operation to calculate remaining oil life. With that system, the Volt could go two years between oil changes. Which was probably still conservative.

 

You want to take away my once-a-year fun...

 

i'm surprised big oil hasn't shut these guys down.
it would be interesting if someone did a long term study of hybrids vs gassers. the only potential problems i see are climate and driving variables.

 

Honda's maintenance schedule (it's a little elusive, built into their in-dash Maintenance Minder system) stipulates oil filter change at every second oil change. That said, at our nearby dealership at least, if you ask them to just change the oil, leave the filter, they treat you like you're nuts. What I would DIY at the oil change-only-interval, was drain the oil and filter, reinstall that filter. Worked, and the oil change was more complete.

BTW, I wonder if there's some brain-fart afoot in the video, at 4:52 the guy he quotes says "a dirty air filter...". I have heard the latter.

 

I believe we are really overthinking things. While the data may be correct for that instance in time; are we really going to monitor the car that closely? Regarding the dirty filter thing, what happens when it gets loaded up with junk and the by-pass valve opens up - it dumps all that debris into your motor. They're creating a solution for a non-exisiting problem by taking a narrow slice of data points. It's more advantageous to look at the entire set of data points, before coming to a conclusion. When I was a kid working the fryer in a fast food joint, after cleaning the filter, we used to dump a cup of powder into the fryer. It was suppose to coat the stainless steel filter and make to filter better. I'm NOT going to leave a dirty filter in on an oil change.

I did NOT watch the video, because data points can be manipulated to prove their argument. Isn't it common sense that a partial clogged filter is going to filter better if it's partially clogged? Does this mean that we should NEVER change our filters??? We need to be looking at the entire data set and repeating the experiment - only then you can come to a valid conclusion. That's why scientific papers are peer reviewed. To play devils advocate; how clogged should a filter be, before you should toss it out and how would you measure that?

I change my oil per OEM required intervals. When I get beyond my 5 year 60K mile ICE warranty; I'll more than likely stop annual oil changes and do 10K mile changes ONLY. Based on my current pattern, I've calculated that I do 7500 miles max. on the ICE in that 10K mile interval, that's rounding up on all ICE calculations. Actual numbers not rounding up places me right around 5K miles. So I'm OK with that and may also move to 5w30 oil to reduce wear - I'm in the warmer part of the lower 48 and don't see any down side to that. I exercise my ICE enough to require a fill-up every month. IMHO - anyone doing fill-ups >90 days should rethink how a PHEV fit's their life style.I believe someone here had a strong gasoline smell coming from their engine oil, when they changed it - that's telling me that they are NOT running their ICE long enough or hot enough to evaporate that contamination.

Just my two cents.....

 

Still lots of reported engine issues coming from Toyota nation with the V-6 engines in the new Tundras and some Lexus. Failure rate is about 3 times higher than the non-turbo V-8 and V-6 engines in the previous generation. Finally, folks are now suspecting it's the turbos causing issues.
I don't know...just very thankful I didn't trade in my 2014 Tundra V-8 (5.7L) yet....I've been wanting to trade it in for a 1794 for about 4-years now but doesn't look like it'll be anytime soon. (And Toyota discontinuing my favorite color, that smoked mesquite, was just a bummer.)

If I ever DO buy a Toyota with a turbo, that oil is getting changed every 2,000-3000 miles for sure.

David, from the Automotive Press channel, recommends we just half whatever recommendation for maintenance intervals. So if our Toyota manual says oil change every 10,000, do it at 5,000.

 

I see what your saying; but the fact is that most people are 'one size fits all' and don't really examine their own particular circumstances. My only real problem with leaving an oil filter in, is you DO NOT know how much junk has accumulated in that filter and your NOT measuring it. So the safer course of action would be to replace it......
Your tire example is a bit different because you can see and measure it - you can't look inside an oil filter without cutting it open or hooking it up to some sort of analyzer to determine it's blockage level. Spend the $5-$10 bucks and move on to more pressing matters. Cheaper than an engine replacement and the reason we do planned preventive maintenance in the first place.

YMMV

 

I once changed the oil filter on the HHR a week before the oil; about 300 miles. It was a topside filter, and the weather turned before I got to crawling on the ground. The oil went from black to muddy brown by the time I changed the oil.

Yes, the filter will filter smaller particles out as it clogs. It may even start working like a parallel filter as the bypass valve opens. But the valve is open, and the amount of particles being removed from the oil stream drops.

Very likely the oil lasts longer than recommended in most cars. You should do oil analysis if you really want to push it past the manufacturer's point. A CT200h owner here that did extreme annual miles, learned they could do up to 30k miles between changes.

 

I can see both sides, for sure, and know quite a few Prius owners who only change the engine oil once a year (because they only put 5,000 miles on them in a year.)

Yes our ICE engines don't run 100% of the time we are driving, so there are miles on the hybrid that shouldn't count toward the oil change. BUT our ICE engines don't just start up and then are shut down when we get to our destination...they stop and start stop and start numerous times. All engine studies show starting engines is where the majority of the wear and tear happens, so we have to think about that, too.

Remember the Quaker State Slick 50 oil additive scam? Supposed to "specially coat" the engine to prevent wear and tear upon startup. (They got sued, and lost, total snake oil.)