Break in oil change?

I would drop that 0W8 break in oil out ASAP and go back with a Quality 0W20 Hybrid oil from Amsoil or another top brand.

 

Good job...I, also, do a break-in oil change at around 500 miles then it's every 6-months or 5,000 miles, whichever comes first. (I use Mobile One until the car gets over 100,000 miles then switch them over to Valvoline Restore and Protect. In our non-Toyota vehicle, a Hyundai, it's the Valvoline R&R always and she used to get changed every 5,000 miles but it was way too dirty for my comfort so I now change her every 3,000 miles....still dirty but not as dirty....worried about that GDI engine lasting the long-term.

 

I'm going to say "break-in" oil changes are mostly useless/wasteful, and subsequent oil changes shorter than Toyota's recommended: "10,000 miles or 12 months, whichever comes first; or 5,000 miles or 6 months if your driving includes frequent short trips (where the engine doesn’t fully warm up), extensive stop-and-go city traffic, driving in freezing or dusty environments, or frequent cold starts", is 100% useless/wasteful.

Just adding this for the sake of accuracy. Toyota engineers have zero incentive to give out information that would contribute to the early demise of their engines.

Enter: conspiracy theorists.

 

So you're saying Toyota USA would pass up the chance to save a hard $250M per year?

I'm not saying Toyota ENGINEERS are behind the change to the 10k mile interval, I'm saying Toyota USA ACCOUNTANTS are.

Here's the math:
Toyota/Lexus sells about 2.5M cars in the US each year. Those cars get ToyotaCare/LexusCare coverage for 2y/25k. If the standard OCI is 6m/5k, that works out to about 4.5 oil changes per car sold. If the OCI is 1y/10k, it's 2 oil changes per car. So that's a difference of 2.5 oil changes.

Dealerships don't do ToyotaCare oil changes for free. They bill Toyota USA for each one. Now Toyota USA has a pretty huge bargaining power here, but they still have to pay the dealerships something. GoogleAI says it varies between $30-$55 depending on market and engine size, and that sounds reasonable. So let's say an average of $40.

2.5M vehicles/year * 2.5 oil changes * $40/change = $250,000,000/year

The engines will make it to 15 years/150k miles* regardless of 6m/5k or 1y/10k oil changes. So what incentive does Toyota USA have for spending an extra $250M per year for 6m/5k changes? Toyota USA doesn't care one way or the other if a car makes 200k, 300k, or 500k miles. As long as it hits 150k, they're off the hook for any warranty work. Show me just one C-suite suit that will sign off on a $250M check every year just out of the goodness of their heart. I'll wait.


*the length of the longest required warranty period on any car sold in the US - emissions and battery systems

 

Toyota started the 2 year 25k "free maintenance" when gen3s and 10k mile intervals were introduced.

Toyota dealers will do oil changes on any schedule you want when it is new. But you only get two oil changes for free. Been there done that. I will say their oil change crew was pretty surprised when I showed up at 2k miles for my first free change. But they did it. 5k later I was back for the last free oil change.

Interestingly, they send me a buy one get one free coupon a couple times a year which nets them $40 per oil change total. The only downside is they take an hour or more each time; enough time for the car salesmen to chat you up. It is extremely rare when any of the salesmen know anything about the cars they are selling.

 

Oops. I had a bit of a typo there. I put 2,500mi instead of 25,000mi. Fixed now.

Yep, there's no way the introduction of Toyota/LexusCare in late 2009, and the switchover to the 1y/10k oil change interval around 2010 aren't connected.

And I just found out ToyotaCare is dropping to 1y/10k starting with the 2027 model year(including the Priuses about to hit lots next month). So now it's going to be 2 inspections and 1 oil change instead of 4-5 inspections and 2 oil changes. That means Toyota USA is saving another $100M-$150M/year, and the effective price of each car is going up $50-$150 depending on model and area.

And I did the same thing with my Prius in 2023, but I decided to alternate my free oil changes. I paid for my break-in change, used my free one at 6m, paid for the 1y, and used my second free one at 18m. Then I took my car to TheCarCareNut for the 2y inspection & oil change. Since then I've done the changes myself, but I still take the car in once a year so it can go up on a rack and have a good inspection(that I pay full price for so I know they take their time). Even years is the local dealership; odds years is TCCN in Chicago.

 

Excellent retort!

Toyota gross annual rev: $334B (approx.); net: $25.4B (approx.)

The "oil change cost saving theory" represents 0.076% of Toyota's gross revenue and 0.984% of its net income.

Let's now consider the "good will" and "brand equity" valuation of Toyota having the "longest lasting engines" (and highest resale values) as measured by consulting firms Interbrand and Brand Finance: $64.7B

Is it reasonable to think that the C-suite suits would risk that kind of brand value, on one of the single greatest factors that influence the lifespan of an engine, sufficient lubrication; simultaneously threatening a monumental industry achievement.... for what amounts to a 1% rebate check?