Ten Year Old Car with around 130k Odometer, Thicker Oil or Original Spec Viscosity

nothing2do on 14/09/2023 - 23:42
Last edited 15/09/2023 - 19:33 by 1 other user

I have owned a decent amount of German cars and recently gone to the dark side with a 10 year old Camry ;)

With German (VW) cars, I usually stick with VW Long Life spec 5w30 fully synthetic and my mechanic(s) were so kind to let me bring my own oil.

With the Camry, I got confused. I would love to stick to the book, as Toyota recommends 0w20 (although 5w30 is on par too, in the manual). I understand that 0w20 is thinner and hence flow around easier and faster.

My mechanic told me he won't take provided oil, which is fair enough. But when I asked about oil, he answered Fuchs 5w30 fully synthetic. I know a bit about Fuchs but my concern is 5w30. His reason(s) are:

• Australia is different from other countries, so we use different oils. I think the Toyota manual is region-specific, no?
• The older car has an old engine already worn out (not like new engines that need 0w20), so thicker oils are better.

I think he has his points. What do you think and what oil are you using for similar 9-10 year old cars?

I'm just curious and would like to learn more about this.

• 

  Muzeeb on 15/09/2023 - 00:19

  +8

  130k kms on a 10yo Toyota engine is barely run in. If it's been well maintained and looked after it's far from worn out.

  5w30 is a good all rounder oil weight for Australian conditions, especially Victoria.

  • 

    nothing2do on 15/09/2023 - 08:25

    Make sense, and also as SBOB mentioned below, 5w30 seems to cover a large spectrum of car engines, very wise and beneficial, I think.

• 

  SBOB on 15/09/2023 - 06:10

  +3

  Australia is different from other countries, so we use different oils

  More likely the 5-30w oil covers a large range of vehicles , so therefore they have large drums of it at a good price and would prefer to use that.
  (Though that oil is perfectly fine for use in that car)

  • 

    nothing2do on 15/09/2023 - 08:23

    That's also my thought too, from a workshop's perspective, and it totally makes sense as far as it does not mess up car engines. Kind of optimising the inventory ;)

• 

  haroldmac on 15/09/2023 - 07:23

  +3

  His reasoning is meh, but 5w30 in your car is fine

• 

  Brian McGee on 15/09/2023 - 08:02

  +1

  0W20 is good for engines where the ambient temp range is between -35°C and +30°C.
  5W30 is for ambient temp -30°C to +37°C.
  And Toyota will have a range in the book to show what oils are reccommended, they wil never pick just one.
  It will mirror this Penrite range chart.

  5W30 will be fine.

  • 

    nothing2do on 15/09/2023 - 08:29

    Thanks for the chart, I recall that when reading about oils for German cars yonks ago. Wouldn't it better to use engine oils, such as 5w40 or 10w40 that cover our summer temperature too (some|many)times exceeding 40°C.

    • 

      Brian McGee on 15/09/2023 - 09:37

      Depends where you are. If you're in FNQ or NT then you'd be fine with 10w30/40 all year round.
      If you're a yank(NSW) or a mexican(VIC) 5W30 all year long will be ok.

      Re: German cars, I had a mobile mechanic customer regale me with a story of an Audi owner doing his own service on a sunday. Vehicle was 2 years old and required some special 5W30 $50/L oil, but he ended up using some "old Penzoil 25/60 I had in the shed". Needless to say the timing chains protested and skipped due to lack of oil pressure on the guide/s. The MM took the head off and saw the result of a drum solo, then the guy asked "do you think it'd be covered under warranty?".

• 

  brad1-8tsi on 15/09/2023 - 08:39

  +1

  IMO, Ow-20 is the spec for North America where it snows. Keep in mind that none of the manufacturers care too much if the car craps the bed much beyond 10 years.
  5w-30 at minimum.

  I run 5w-40 in the 2004 Accord Euro and that engine was also 0w-20 for North America.

  • 

    nothing2do on 15/09/2023 - 09:07

    Thanks for the info. The price difference between 5w30 and 5w40 does not seem significant. May I ask what oil brand you prefer/have been using?

    • 

      haroldmac on 15/09/2023 - 09:09

      Why does it matter? You say your mech won't take your oil.

      • 

        nothing2do on 15/09/2023 - 09:28

        As I mentioned in the original post, I would like to learn more, pretty new to Japanese cars and services ;) Of course, only in case you don't mind.

        And he is not the only mechanic I can do service with. I did talk to another mechanic who said he only uses Penrite Enviro+ (his schedule is unfortunately full and he will be on vacation for a while). I'm just curious about what others are using.

        • 

          haroldmac on 15/09/2023 - 09:40

          +1

          @nothing2do: Have you looked beyond the headline grade and more into the actual specification?

          You should use what the manufacturer says.

          To my knowledge, there is not one car/engine maker that specifies one oil below a certain km and then a different oil after higher km is reached.

          • 

            brad1-8tsi on 15/09/2023 - 17:37

            @haroldmac:

            To my knowledge, there is not one car/engine maker that specifies one oil below a certain km and then a different oil after higher >km is reached.

            You are correct, because they don't care once warranty is over. They also don't have the facilities to test each engine for wear once a few km are on the clock.

            V6 & V8 LR Discovery have too thin an oil right from the start but it helps meet emissions and makes the fuel economy slightly better. They don't care about longevity

    • 

      brad1-8tsi on 15/09/2023 - 17:46

      what oil brand you prefer/have been using?

      Whatever meets the spec I need, is a reasonably well known brand and is on special.

      The Pajero needs APEA C3/C4. In the 30k I've owned it, I've used Gulf Western, Valvoline and Penrite, next change will be Nulon. It get's changed every 10k, not the factory 15k.

      The Honda is 19yo with 190k km and it gets whatever's on the shelf leftover from the Pajero or whatever cheap 5w-40 or 5w-30 full synth is available. Changed every 12 months. I don't even check the odometer.

      The Skoda got Penrite, Castrol, Mobil 5w-30 - anything meeting VW502 or 504 spec. Changed every 10k (not the factory 10k) or 12m whichever is first.

      It's a 10yo camry. Don't over think it

• 

  brendanm on 15/09/2023 - 17:10

  +1

  You are overthinking this. Toyota will give a minimum oil grade, and an acceptable viscosity range. As long as it meets or exceeds these specs, you are good to go.

  • 

    nothing2do on 15/09/2023 - 21:06

    @brendanm thanks. I might be overthinking and as just pretty new to Japanese cars and how they are services.

    • 

      brendanm on 16/09/2023 - 17:41

      It's the same regardless of where it's made. Meet it exceed the minimum specs. My cars get whatever is a decent brand, in spec, and on sale in a 10l container.

• 

  Jaduqimon on 16/09/2023 - 19:43

  Toyota engine. As long as you put oil in it'll be fine…