I live in Houston and am a little concerned about using 5W-20 when its 100°F......what do you guys think???

is everyone switching to 5W-20?? regardless of where you live??

 

If you are worried about that, you may want to try to get your hands on some Castrol 0W30, this is that German Castrol. I am experimenting with it now, but no complaints thus far.

 

i have a crapload of mobile 1 5w-30. wally world had a sale so i stocked up.... gonna be using it for years, regardless of season...

The lexus will probably run 100k trouble free miles regardless of what oil you put in it...how long you plan on owning it??

I had a buddy that ran his RX for over 50K miles without a SINGLE oil change, then traded it in.... I'm not recommending it, just saying these things will run and run and probably get traded in long before any oil related problems come up.... no point in being so **** about maintenance....

 

A pure synthetic 5w-20 will provide better protection against thermal breakdown from heat then a 5w-30 petroleum based oil. Also 5w-20 dino oils have proven to provide excellent protection.

Koz

 

The car was tested in different conditions. I am sure Lexus would not use an oil that will damage the engine. Besides, if you use an unapproved weight, you may have a warranty issue if engine fails. Consider that before you change the weight.

 

Hell no. My oil cap says 5w-30, my owners manual says 5w-30, and the dealer used 5w-30 for my free 5k service. I heard that Lexus released a TSB on the oil update, but they never sent me a letter on it. I have a couple of cases of castrol GTX 5w-30 that I use for my 3.5l vtec Mdx, so that is what I'll use on the IS as well.

 

You sound like you disbelieve the existence of the TSB. Right, wrong, or indifferent, it is what Lexus prescribe and fill at the factory. Here you go:

 

5w-30 for me as well, didn't hear anything from lexus regarding oil

 

the TSB has been out for a while... that's what this forum is for, to get information that lexus fails to notify us about. i would think since a TSB is out, the dealer would notify you when you went in for an oil change. i haven't heard anyone getting letters about any TSB notice. for example, the low brake dust pads had a TSB, but they're not gonna send a letter out for every single one released. besides, it's not mandatory, just the new recommendation.

 

TSB is dated March 2006, so do all 2007's have 5W-20 on the oil fill cap????

 

What both the cap and the owner's manual say are irrelevant in this case - that's the whole point of issuing a TSB (which is NOT a recall, so you shouldn't be "expecting a letter" to alert you what the TSB says). The repair manual states:

Quote:

Use the recommended grade specified on the oil filler cap or in the Repair Manual or Owner’s Manual for each vehicle.

In this type of situation, you would use the most recently published instruction, the Technical Service Bulletin (i.e. update to the repair manual), which specifies 5W-20 engine oil.

 

Many car manufactures have switched to 5W-20W. I have a 2006 Honda Civic which also use 5W-20W

I recommend that you visithttp://techinfo.lexus.com/ once a quarter to ensure you are up to date on TSB.

 

Yes if read the whole TSB it stats it is for better fuel mileage and emissions. This doesn't mean you have to use it.

 

Call me indifferent, we can agree that we disagree. 5w-20 oil is just a way for the manufacturers to squeeze more MPG from their vehicles to comply with CAFE, it started with Ford & Honda and now is catching on with others. Until Lexus/Toyota officially notifies ME that I must use 5w-20 in my 2006 2GR-FSE or risk voiding the factory warranty, then I will continue to use 5w-30, tree-huggers be darned . . .

 

Can you tell me whats the benefit over 5-20w?