Any appreciable gain with 0w-20 oil?

here's the bummer, I dont get what is the deal about the 5w30, I never had an owner manual so I turned to this thread for input, after some debate I was shopping for oil, local store had valvoline durablend (sintetic blend ) on sale $2.5 a quart, 5w30 that made my decision a little easyer, figured it will do, I changed the oil, and I did not notice it till I put the cap back on, guess what it says on it, 0w20 go figure. bottom line either would probl do just fine, 10k intervals may be ok too, would not hurt to change filters in the middle, next time I'm getting 0w20, thou, I noticed it's not as common, a brief look on the shelves on a couple stores and I haven't seen any.

 

So you're saying that you've got a 2007 model Prius and it has 0W20 marked on the oil filler cap. What country/state are you in?

 

usa, michigan, car was originaly sold and used in bronks, ny, I looked up the service hystory on toyota's website, looks like I may be the second owner, it was serviced at the same dealer for the most part, once in new jersey.

 

Ok that's interesting, I thought everyone in the US had 5W30 on the filler cap, seeing how that's what was originally specified for the gen2. Maybe it's a replacement or aftermarket cap?

In any case, I'm sure Michigan is plenty cold enough to justify 0W20. I cant see it being any problem.

 

My 2008 Prius says 0w20 on the filler cap and is the oil of first choice in the manual.

John (Britprius)

 

Thanks John, that's interesting to know. I always thought 0W20 was a fairly recent "back-spec". Presumably not everywhere then.

 

I cannot work out Toyotas policy with regards to oil specifications and change intervals.

On the gen2 and gen3 Prius in the UK the oil change interval has always been 10,000 miles. I do not know interval for gen1 but I believe it's the same.

I think (no conformation of this) 0w20 oil was chosen from 2006 on, possibly because it was available in the UK and Europe at that time and according to posters from the US our oil specs are "better" than those in the US.

John (Britprius)

 

well unlikely its an aftermarket cap but its possible, I bought a dozen quarts of 5w30 guess it's fine for the summer, I made a mess while at it so i am not redoing it, I have other cars I can use the other 8 botles on, guess i'll do the ow20 next time, thing is I noticed most newer cars are rated for 0w20, mom has a dodge caliber 2007 that was the first one zI noticed it on, all my older stuff is 5w30

 

FWIW, it is my understanding that all US versions of the Gen II Prius use 5W30 as the standard oil. It might be a good idea to contact your local Toyota dealer service dept. and ask them what weight of oil is specified in the owner's manual for your car. I am NOT saying the 0W20 oil won't work. What I am saying is that more than likely the 5W30 is what the owner's manual would specify for normal operating conditions. As to why the cap on the engine says different, it is possible that someone changed it before you purchased the vehicle. However, I am speculating on that. Contact Toyota to verify what the correct weight of oil is for your Prius.

I am attaching a copy of a file that was uploaded here to Prius Chat by another poster (Boo). According to the files posted, 5W30 is the preferred oil.

2007 Owner's Manual PDFs | PriusChat

Ron

 

i get that, just odd isnt it? it has 5w30 in there now and i'm not redoing it for another 5k miles, why would anyone change a filler cap on any car, and I would assume most other toyota's of the era use 5/30 also, I doubt a dealer even caries a cap that would say anything other than 5w30, parts stores, I never seen valvecover caps, gastank sure, not too mention same car across the pond different specs.

 

I do agree, it does sound odd. That is why I suggested you contact Toyota to verify the correct weight. I note that it seems the UK version of the Prius spec's out different weight. Or at least I think that is correct. I am basing this on what I have read here on PC from post's by BritPrius.

Bottom line, I would simply contact Toyota service dept. and question what the correct oil weight should be and then go from there. If you do call Toyota, give them the vin # also. That will tell them if your car is US or UK. Who knows, maybe your car was originally sold in the UK and then transported over here to the states. Again, that is all speculation. You never know what you are dealing with when you buy a used car.

Who knows where the oddball cap came from. It does seem to be incorrectly applied in your case.

Ron

 

I once saw a guy top off his oil at a gas station and forget to replace the filler cap before driving off. I imagine that one or two get lost that way. If the filler cap was lost like this then the guy might have just gotten any replacement that fitted.

I wouldn't stress over it, the 5W30 you're using is fine, preferable even with your summer coming. The engine is pretty tolerant of various oil grades, it's the same engine in all markets around the world, even if they specify different oil weights. The 5W30 grade seems to be the most applicable over a broad range of temperatures, but 0W20 might be more appropriate in really cold weather. And you can certainly use even heavier oils than 5W30 if the temperatures are warm enough. Take a look at this oil chart from the Australian gen2 Prius owners manual. I scanned this myself from my own manual, so I know it's legit. Same engine here, same engine in the UK, 5W30 is fine.

 

I'm not stressing it too much, it's definately not an uk model or it will have the wheel on the wrong side , I also doubt engines are diferent based on markets, specs apear to be and I asume its mostly based on availability, 5w30 was always the norm arround here, and most of the jugs at the store are labeled 5w30, apears the engine is pretty tolerant on the oil used and toyota recomended it based on the market where the car was to be used, so they don't have too many owners bitch it takes a special hard to find oil.

 

long storry short, answear to the original question is YES, if you look few threads back I ended up with 5w 30 this time beeing the general thought on here plus I found a sale, during I found that my cap said 0w 20, the other day had the stering shaft recall done as they were trying to sell me on some stuff guess what most toyota's take lately and what the dealer uses most and what theyir flyers mentioned, you guessed it 0w 20 I asked the teck about it 0w 20 especialy if thats whats on the cap, quote, most cars these days run 0w20 the 5w 30 was common about 10 yers ago.
as for the mileage the car was pushing 50 before, and I assume it had 0w20, I bought it with fresh oil, just a bit over 47 now, and the weather only got warmer and no we have not tried the air yet.
so from where I am standing I have no clue ow you all came about using 5w30 ( owner manual I guess, I dont have one ) but guess what goes in next, yep you guessed right, granted the 5w30 I have now wont hurt it much plus in the summer with warmer temps its fine, but next time 0w20 syntetic and probl for 10k thou I noticed dealers recomend 5k, hopefully I'll have my lpg system by than, well see about the interval.

 

It sounds like the 08s have a cap that calls for 0w-20. If his 07 is one of the last built for that year, it's possible he got one of the first 08 engines in his 07, which would explain the oil cap.

 

good point, bottom line I noticed a bit of decrease with the 5/30 in fuel mileage, next time around it's getting 0w20

 

Hi 2007blueprius. How much oil did you add when you changed it. You mentioned using 4 qts, so I'm just wondering if you used the full 4 qts or if you were careful to not overfill. Overfilling the oil reduces the fuel economy, it's best to fill the Prius to just shy of the full mark on the dipstick (which generally only requires about 3.5 to 3.6 quarts).

 

I also have an 07 and it clearly shows to use 5W30. Dino all the way and had never used synthetic.

If I am not mistaken, newer hybrid vehicles recommend you to use 0W20. My '13 Camry Hybrid has 0W20 printed on the oil cap.

 

funny I just got this alert, the other day I helped my dad do a first oilchange on his new car, come to think of I think its a first for me to deflower a oilpan, long storry different car, but while at it came across a jug of mobil 0w20 full syntetic, advanced fuel economy, I think it said, got it allready, thou were not even half way throu this change, I do remember I could not find much on the shelves last time, the area I live in 5w30 has been pretty much universal (big 3) untill a few years ago, 2007 I noticed 0w20 when my mom got a Caliber, its not a pushrod, so I am pretty sure its a rebadge job, 140hp/1.8l doesn't sound domestic, pretty much every new car I came across since called for 0w20, I strongly think a lot to do with these recomandatios are based on area, 5w30 is cheap and plentyfull here, got sintetic blend, valvoline for $2/quart last time, sure , do 5w30 change it often too, if I paid $9/galon gas and 10 a quart oil, guess what putts things into perspective, my take is , the engine will do fine on both, one is for better gas mileage, the other for more mileage, have your pick

 

For the 0W20, Walmart has the best price. Go full synthetic on newer cars. New Hybrids come with synthetic.