I have a couple of questions for the paranoid types:

1) Lexus has gone to 10,000 mile oil changes in this generation. I know that they have done their extensive tests and everything but the fact of the matter is that we (owners of this generation vehicles) are the guinea pigs for the real world implications of extended oil change intervals. If this practice has any impact on the long term durability of the engine, we will have to suffer the financial consequences, not Lexus. Are you owners who plan to keep these vehicles for the long term buying into this or do you plan to change oil more frequently? I am on the fence for now, but I did change my first oil at 5k miles, much to the surprise of the dealer. I then did the 10k change and I am thinking that I may do the next one at 17.5k rather than 20k. What do you think?

2) There have been several threads related to the remote trunk release button not working. People have been generally successful in accessing the emergency release handle through the back seat passage and open the trunk. In one case that did not work so a body shop had to cut the lid open! In my 300h there is no back seat passage. So what is the "plan B" in case the remote trunk release stops working?

I like to be prepared...

 

Not sure about the engine in the 300h, but the 350 specs 0W-20 as factory oil. 0W-20, by definition, can only be found in fully synthetic. There are no dino oil or semi-synth versions.

As such, 10K miles on a full synth oil is more than doable. When I bought my 2000 Accord it used dino oil from the factory and even the service dept. at my dealer said 7500 mile intervals were fine. Surely a decent quality synthetic oil can handle 10K miles without much issue. BUT I do agree on changing it earlier the first time, 5K miles is about right. After that I would have it changed again at 10K and from then on go with the 10K interval.

As for #2 I havent experienced it yet so I dont know.

 

Longer oil change intervals are now (safely) possible, not only because of better lubricants, including full synthetic oil, but also because vehicle engine production tolerances are much tighter than they were even 10-15 years ago. So, even with dino oil, using a 5000 mile oil change interval is now on the conservative side.

BMW had been using 15,000 mile oil change intervals with their new vehicles and full synthetic oil (although, I believe that, for 2015 models, they are back to 10,000 mile intervals). I have no worries at all about using the 10,000 mile interval that Lexus recommends.

Of all of the things that I could possibly be worried about going wrong on a vehicle (or in life, in general), worrying about the remote trunk release not working is going to be extremely close to the bottom of the list of my concerns.

 

it's as simple as this word...CAFE....the 2gr-fe has been around for a long time, and in it's earlier life sped'd 5w30. also in other countries it has a very wide range of acceptable oil grades. 0w20 current spec is to simply meet the cafe stds. do i believe this grade is fine for this engine?(probably) i do believe with today's syn oils going to 10k oci is probably doable. however, some caveats need to be in place like very short trips,extended idling etc. the 2gr-fe is very easy on oil as well, compared to di engines.with all of this said, i do 5k oci's and use 5w30.

you also have access to the trunk via the glove box...

 

I think you should be safe on 10k for full synthetic oil between changes. I haven't heard any gel issues on this engine.

Trunk access via glove box, really? Maybe from the drivers side dash.

 

I changed my synthetic oil after one year - I didn't drive 10k - and the oil was so clean that I had to check it twice on the dipstick. This synthetic oil is so good with little to no deterioration.

 

There's a button in there that locks the trunk in the glovebox (sorta like a valet mode). Make sure it isn't activated in the event of sudden trunk failure.

I haven't heard of a case where the emergency latch in the trunk failed, and they had to cut it open. The automaker or body shop (if repaired) would be in serious trouble if that was the case. Lexus did a recall a few years back on the emergency trunk release lever because it would break too easily if pulled at a wrong angle.

 

I recall reading a thread where the latch in the trunk got stuck and the solenoid could not pull it. They had to cut the trunk open and then fix it. Horrible.

 

I am absolutely not worried about the 10k changes. Especially on your 300h, the ICE runs less than it would on a 350, which makes the extended intervals even safer.

Most of you probably haven't been around Lexus long enough to remember, but they actually used to have a 7,500 mile interval even on dino oil. The 5k was the "severe" schedule, and at some point in the early 2000s they just went to 5k across the board. Modern synthetic lubricants, I am not worried about 10k drains at all.

If it worries you though, just change it every 5k miles. Oil changes are pretty cheap. I think thats overkill though.

 

I've been doing 10-15k full synthetic oil changes since 2008 and had zero issues with any of my cars. If you are truly worried, I would go 7500 interval. Oil change is a cheap insurance for that peace of mind.

 

Aha, but you are being rational. This is the thread of paranoid worries :-)

 

Thank you all. I think I will likely go for 7,500 changes as I also tend to do short runs a lot. Also winter driving in Ohio can be tough as there can be moisture and condensation in the oil.

 

In an emergency you can take your key fob and pull out the metal key part. If you look under the top ledge of the trunk to the left of the backup camera there is a key slot to open.

 

Geez, I bet hardly anyone knew about this including me... Great tip for everyone. Thanks Fred.

 

Same here. Thank you!