^not so fast, officer. the ES300h is particularly sensitive to lack of oil changes. hybrid engines in general. i'd be concerned after no oil changes after 10k. the engine runs frequent startups on cold oil=increased oil wear. also the hybrid uses less oil so that's also a factor.

 

If you are going to pass on a car because *one* possibly missed oil change only was the only negative point, you should stop shopping for a used car and only buy new.

 

The better way to phrase that is if there's no proof a car had its oil changes when needed, then do not buy it.

New/used, etc is immaterial and moot.

 

You mean new car buyers should worry about this as well?? I never once asked for the oil change history on a new car I was purchasing

 

A new car wouldn't need oil changes. See the bold highlighted part.

 

In my experience, even if a Lexus is serviced at a Toyota Dealership, the records will migrate over to the vehicle’s Lexus maintenance records.

 

Exactly, I've already changed the oil in my three-week-old 2023 ES300h Ultra Luxury by a certified Toyota and Lexus technician. I hate the dealers and waiting until one year or 10,000 miles is criminal IMO. He put in Liqui Moly 0W-16 Special Tec V oil and a Toyota 90915-YZZN1 Oil Filter. The 5,000-mile service is a joke, all they do is inspect this and inspect that, for what? It's only valuable if they take care of Technical Service Bulletins or recalls, if any. Here's what they do, seriously and I can't wait. LOL

Perform road test on Vehicle. Rotate Tires. Inspect Wiper Blades. Inspect /Adjust All Fluid Levels.

If you are wondering why, well go to YouTube to The Car Care Nut and find his video on his Toyota Camry hybrid and watch the whole thing. He is a certified Toyota Master Diagnostic Technician.

 

A good service department at a dealership will look for TSB's and recalls. Otherwise you can always ask them to check for those when you drop your car off at the dealership.

As for the car care nut, Ahmed says a lot of contradictory things so I don't even watch his videos anymore.

 

It's sad how so many people in society take a convincing YouTubers word as THE gospel and refuse to apply any critical thinking to what they say or consider differing viewpoints. There are much smarter people who are doing the same thing but aren't attention wh0res. I'm not just referring to one popular Toyota mechanic, either.

 

Well, as Scotty Kilmer says: Oil & Filters are cheap, a new engine is not.

 

Fully agreed. My ESh had three oil changes (four if you count the factory oil) by the time it hit 13k miles. This is the way to go. On a hybrid, if the first oil change is done at 10k... i would be worried. I wouldn't have confidence i didn't cause micro-marring or marring in general that would show up later on in the car's life. At 75,000 miles, it will cause one of those "hmm it needs a little bit of oil" type scenarios or "you know, the engine isn't as smooth"

As you say oil is cheap. do the break in @ 800 miles, then every 5k after that. Hybrids are very sensitive to 10k changes because the oil retains moisture due to not being able to heat up because the engine is constantly off. VERY harsh conditions for hybrid oil.

 

You are spot on, the engine has been used in hybrid Camrys starting in 2017, so it is not crazy technology... the engine code Toyota A25A-FXS.

"First introduced in 2017 for the Camry Hybrid, this engine is a 2.5L I-4 that sports an impressive 14:1 compression ratio and is capable of 41% thermal efficiency (many older gasoline engines average around 20%, which means the A25A-FXS is squeezing twice as much energy out of every drop of fuel)."

 

As long as you regularly take your car on the highway for 30+ mins at a time, you really don't need to worry about fuel dilution and/or early oil changes. Break-in early oil changes aren't a thing on modern mass produced vehicles. This isn't 1986 anymore.

 

I used to say the same stuff, believe me. For years on BMW forums. "OIL IS SO GOOD NOW. THIS ISNT 1980." CHANGE IT EVERY 15k!! Yep that was me.

Things are a bit different now, though in 2018+. While it's true oil is much better now, the Toyota A25AFXS family/hybrid series engines are very complicated inside and depend on very clean oil. For example the variable speed/variable pressure oil pump is a very sensitive item that requires very specific properties to work. It's not 1980s anymore is precisely why you want to change oil more often because ICE cars are using complex internal parts with very tight tolerances that need clean oil.

I stand with The Car Care Nut on this topic -- the greatest Toyota mechanic in the world.

If you're right, we'd have wasted a bit of money on extra oil.

If we're right, you'd ruined your engine!

As they say "to each his own!"

 

Believe me if the 10K mile Toyota recommended oil change is found out not to be right for these engines there will be massive class action lawsuits. Everybody has there own beliefs about when oil should be changed in any car. In the old days it was the belief to change oil every 1k to 1.2K miles and thinking has gradually gone up from that. The company that built this engine, technicians, and engineers are saying the 10k mile oil change is what is recommended for the life of the car. Changing oil early won't hurt but doing it by the 10k should be done. Also if you don't change the oil yourself mistakes can happen which ups the chances with the frequency. I have seen cars leave a dealership with the filter changed and no oil put in which of course ruins the engine. Mechanics get distracted and think they put it in. You will get a rebuilt engine put back in which is nothing like factory. It happens more than you think.