Hey Scotty!
I live in Canada and I own a 2020 Toyota 4Runner TRD Off-Road. I get it serviced at the Dealership about every six months. I get them to do a seasonal tire change, service and an oil change whether it needs it or not. The service reps keep telling me I don't need to change the oil unitl 16,000 km.
I'm starting to wonder if should listen to them. I haven't put a lot of mileage on the vehicle (about 25,000 km so far). Maybe I could get away with once per year. But, I'm concerned if I extend the oil change intervals, I risk causing damage to the engine over time.
What do you think?
If you want it to last the oil and filter should be changed at 5,000 miles or 1 year intervals, whichever comes first.
All the manufacturer or dealer care about is that it lasts for the warranty period.
Half it.
8,000 km
I change my oil and filter every 3000 miles max. I don't care what anybody thinks.
Maybe a little overkill but it doesn't hurt. Heck, I drain and fill my transmission every other oil change (10K miles) and do it 3 times with the filter every 30K miles. Some would say that's overkill. The stuff still looks brand new when I drain it.
That's probably the most picky transmission servicing I've ever heard of, but clearly it works. Friction material wears off because of friction in the fluid- reduce the friction in the fluid, you reduce material loss. I might start doing that every 30k. Haha.
My daily driver has a ZF 4HP18 4-speed automatic, a transmission almost unknown in the U.S. and with little or no support in this country at this point. It was only ever used on a few low-volume cars sold here in the 1980s and 1990s, mostly imports. So I see frequent fluid changes as cheap insurance. (It helps that the trans uses inexpensive Dex/Merc fluid.)
@justin-shapard
friction material wears off of because they are friction discs. They EXIST to ADD friction.
That's like saying I need to reduce the friction in my clutch.
To minimize transmission wear, you need minimize slip (same as a manual transmission clutch). That means nice efficient shifts. As firm and quick as possible , but not so much that it breaks your neck, but not too slow so it doesn't burn itself up. That's a control function (valve body, solenoids and control electronics)
The benefit to changing tranny fluid is lubrication. As it breaks down from heat and shear, it increases wear on the metal parts of the transmission. thrust bearings, shaft seals, pump, etc.. If the fluid looks new when it drains out then your changing it too much. And it aint cheap. I think about $120 just in fluid to do mine.
@mmj, doing a drain and fill on mine costs less than $20. (About a gallon comes out draining the pan and a gallon jug of Valvoline Dex/Merc currently sells for about $18 at WalMart.)
lucky you!
I risk causing damage to the engine over time.
Yes, such infrequent oil changes WILL wear out your engine.
Go to a different shop.
Also, you can find "maintenance requirements under severe conditions" in your manual - use those.
10,000km / 6,2500 miles is the absolute max you want to go between changes,
7,500km / 4,500 miles is the typical maintenance interval
but if you want to get the most out of your engine, 5,000km / 3,000 miles is the way to go.
(when doing such short service internals, do NOT use flushes - or in general, it's just a bad idea. also do NOT use additives unless strictly instructed by the owners manual. use only the oil recommended buy the owner's manual.)
The cheapest insurance against anything ever happening to that engine is not allowing them to happen in the first place (dirty oil wears stuff out faster). Oil and filters are cheap. They're also motivated to sell you a new truck when that engine wears out prematurely. Lubricating and cooling fluids work best when they're clean, keep them clean, and that vehicle will serve you a long, long time.
Dealerships in the US are out to make money, and lots of it. Annoying that they will tell people service intervals so long, but in the long run it makes them more money.
For Subaru, most makes the dealerships in the US tell you that the transmission fluid is life time fluid, don't change it, then their transmissions go out before anything else. I guess that was the life of the transmission.
Subaru Japan says change it every 30k, so does Subaru Canada and a few other places I have heard of like Kenya. My hatred for US dealerships is growing rapidly.
