Oil question on High Mileage LS
07-01-13, 08:58 PM
#1
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Oil question on High Mileage LS
Hey guys, a few months back I picked up a 2000 LS400. The previous owner had changed the oil a few hundred miles before I took ownership of it (I know I know, never take POs word for anything).
Well anyway about a week-ish ago I had the oil changed and it has been leaking a little oil. If I let it sit over night, there may be the equivalent of 10-12 drops of oil, not very much.
My question is W/ 149,xxx miles on the clock, should I be using an oil with a heavier weight/viscosity to it?
The car was well taken care of with regular oil changes and a complete maintenance history from Lexus. Any input would be appreciated, thanks guys!
Well anyway about a week-ish ago I had the oil changed and it has been leaking a little oil. If I let it sit over night, there may be the equivalent of 10-12 drops of oil, not very much.
My question is W/ 149,xxx miles on the clock, should I be using an oil with a heavier weight/viscosity to it?
The car was well taken care of with regular oil changes and a complete maintenance history from Lexus. Any input would be appreciated, thanks guys!
07-01-13, 10:06 PM
#2
I would look into where its leaking from. The drain bolt and gasket should be changed each oil change. But i know alot of places don't do that. I'm nearing 225k and I've had my seals and valve cover gaskets changed when I had the timing belt done. I drip every so often from my rear main seal. I use what oil the engine calls for.
07-01-13, 10:41 PM
#3
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The best grades of oil for your LS are 5W-30 and 0W-30, preferably full synthetic (Pennzoil Ultra, Pennzoil Platinum, Mobil 1, Castrol Edge, Quaker State Ultimate Durability, Valvoline SynPower etc.)
if you are tight on funds, my favorite cheap oil for long engine life is good old Pennzoil in the yellow bottle. ($15 for a 5-quart jug at WM)
a heavier oil than 5W-30 will result in unnecessary engine wear during warm-up (when the vast majority of wear occurs)
your leak needs to be found and fixed, depending on the source of the leak, a leak area such as rear main seal is probably not worth fixing if you keep a sharp eye on the oil level, but most other leaks are not difficult to fix
● cam and crank seal (front main seal) leaks are easy to fix when doing the timing belt
● an oil filter leak can be fixed with an oil change using a quality filter and cleaning of the gasket mating area
● a drain bolt leak can be fixed with an oil change using a new drain bolt and crush washer from the dealership (about $5 total)
● a valve cover leak is not too difficult and can be fixed in an hour or so by a good mechanic, make sure to use the real Toyota factory gasket and use a torque wrench!
make sure it is actually oil, power steering fluid is the much more common fluid to leak from an LS400
my favorite cheap oil filter with all of the latest in technological innovations for long engine life (such as a silicone anti-drain-back valve) is the Motorcraft FL-400S ($3.99 at O'Reilly)
if the leak only started after the recent oil change, then the leak is likely either at the oil filter or drain bolt
if you are tight on funds, my favorite cheap oil for long engine life is good old Pennzoil in the yellow bottle. ($15 for a 5-quart jug at WM)
a heavier oil than 5W-30 will result in unnecessary engine wear during warm-up (when the vast majority of wear occurs)
your leak needs to be found and fixed, depending on the source of the leak, a leak area such as rear main seal is probably not worth fixing if you keep a sharp eye on the oil level, but most other leaks are not difficult to fix
● cam and crank seal (front main seal) leaks are easy to fix when doing the timing belt
● an oil filter leak can be fixed with an oil change using a quality filter and cleaning of the gasket mating area
● a drain bolt leak can be fixed with an oil change using a new drain bolt and crush washer from the dealership (about $5 total)
● a valve cover leak is not too difficult and can be fixed in an hour or so by a good mechanic, make sure to use the real Toyota factory gasket and use a torque wrench!
make sure it is actually oil, power steering fluid is the much more common fluid to leak from an LS400
my favorite cheap oil filter with all of the latest in technological innovations for long engine life (such as a silicone anti-drain-back valve) is the Motorcraft FL-400S ($3.99 at O'Reilly)
if the leak only started after the recent oil change, then the leak is likely either at the oil filter or drain bolt
Last edited by LScowboyLS; 07-03-13 at 09:27 AM.
07-02-13, 07:57 AM
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But in all seriousness,thanks for all the input guys! My car will be getting some much needed love this weekend, and I'll takle the leak then. The filter/drainplug would be great news, but we'll see!!
07-02-13, 10:57 AM
#5
along the lines of the OP's questions, would it be a good idea to use "high mileage" 5w-30 full synthetic oil?
i was using mobil 1 high mileage full synthetic in the past but noticed on the bottle it did NOT say "energy conserving" on the sticker. our oil cap says to use energy conserving oil. i recently switched to regular 5w-30 full synthetic without the "high mileage" which does say energy conserving just in case. thoughts?
i was using mobil 1 high mileage full synthetic in the past but noticed on the bottle it did NOT say "energy conserving" on the sticker. our oil cap says to use energy conserving oil. i recently switched to regular 5w-30 full synthetic without the "high mileage" which does say energy conserving just in case. thoughts?
07-02-13, 11:01 AM
#6
and to 4hunna, 10-12 drops of oil is enough to cause some concern. check around the areas already mentioned and remedy. a quick wipe around the areas can slow the leak to the pavement, and more importantly reveal the source.
i'm at 152k and using regular 5w-30 mobil 1 synthetic. oil weight has been discussed to death on other forums as well, and it does depend on local climate.
i'm at 152k and using regular 5w-30 mobil 1 synthetic. oil weight has been discussed to death on other forums as well, and it does depend on local climate.
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07-02-13, 01:32 PM
#9
Lexus Champion
07-03-13, 09:26 AM
#11
Lexus Champion
it depends on your oil change interval, if you are very good about changing oil at 3000 or 5000 miles, then synthetic is not necessary, although the fact that you can purchase thinner at startup oils such as Pennzoil Ultra synthetic and several 0W-30 oils such as German Castrol will always give synthetic an advantage, if money is not tight.
07-03-13, 12:14 PM
#14
Lexus Champion
the experts at bobistheoilguy.com recommend 5W-30 or 0W-30 for our cars regardless of your local weather or the season of the year.
Currently under discussion there is Toyota's back spec-ing of the 2UZ engine to 5W-20 on other vehicles such as trucks which is essentially identical to our 1UZ except for displacement.
Eventually it would be cool to get the engineering go-ahead to use 5W-20 and/or 0W-20 in our LS400's but it is not recommended yet.
Currently under discussion there is Toyota's back spec-ing of the 2UZ engine to 5W-20 on other vehicles such as trucks which is essentially identical to our 1UZ except for displacement.
Eventually it would be cool to get the engineering go-ahead to use 5W-20 and/or 0W-20 in our LS400's but it is not recommended yet.
