DKnight350

I just changed to synthetic oil by taking my car to my local Toyota dealership. For me, I do not want to deal with the mess and used oil of doing it myself anymore and Toyota is 13 miles closer to my house.

They put in 0W-20, a grade I had not heard of before (saw it on the paperwork after, I just assumed they would put in 5w-30). The car feels faster during acceleration (placebo effect?). I have not driven enough to say the mileage is better, but I wanted to see if anyone else experienced the same effect.

FYI: Lexus wanted $139 for a "full service" oil change with dyno blend oil and Toyota charged me $65 out the door with synthetic oil and a car wash (and topped off all fluids/checked tires).

Nikon

iTrader: (2)

toyota dealer is the way to go for minor maintenance items i think. good choice. good luck with the mpg, hopefully they increase. let us know.

kickin8

iTrader: (1)

you will have better protecting using 0 Weight oil but I dont think you will get more power.....

reyoasian

iTrader: (2)

0w20 would be better for winter I think

sw2oboi

iTrader: (12)

I have been using 0-20 mobil 1 since i got my car which is pre owned. I didnt notice gas mileage or acceleration increase like you are supposed to get with lower weight oil. I do notice my car warms up faster thanks to thinner oil.

skullkandy

Holy!!!

There is absolutely no extra power gain from using thinner oil, the car will run smoother but that's about it.

KillaIS250

iTrader: (1)

Probably just the placebo effect as far as the power increase is concerned. I switched to 0w30 recently from 5w30 - not much of a difference except for the fact that start up/idle feels better from a cold start and it's a little smoother feeling while the engine is still warming up vs with 5w30.

SeanIS350

iTrader: (2)

I have not noticed any power gains since switching to synthetic, but have noticed a minor increase in MPGs.

BTW, you should never let the dealership wash you car!!! That is a sure way to end up with scratches on your paint and messed up interior.

The last time I let them do it, they ran my car through a car wash, and used the same rag they used to dry the car to wipe down the interior.

minato

iTrader: (1)

I've been on 0w20 since summer, its suppose to help with cold starts tho..

neomedic

iTrader: (5)

Who is the oil expert here? Should we run 5W-30 or 0W-30? and why?

reyoasian

iTrader: (2)

hence better for winter

edwinjaeho

iTrader: (4)

oil grade should not affect any performance gains

edgeucated

iTrader: (4)

0W-30 will give your car better protection at lower temperature. However, 0W-30 is more expensive/harder to find.

There are huge debates on which oil is better, its your own decision to make. You'll probably never really notice the minor difference.

skullkandy

^what this madcore dude said.

chikoo

huh.

I got charged $89 at Toyota for 5w-30 Mobil1 synthetic.