Dirty Oil? - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

nodrogkam · 10-09-2005, 01:02 PM

Hey ive got an 05 Highlander and its got about 2.5K on the Odometer....and i know they say the first oil change is at 5K even tho its breaking in. But man is the oil dirty. I mean its almost past the dark caramel color...its getting black, but the car seems to be running fine. So i dont know if i should ask a dealership what i should do or what. Cos its got another 2.5K to go before the recommended change, but i fear waiting so long would do damage.

I also understandi could change the oil anytime i want, but if its not necessary i dont want to pollute the environment more and pay extra $ to get it done.

Thanks for any suggestions and help guys!

subliminaltrips · 10-09-2005, 02:12 PM

if my oil is darker than normal i change it. even though the reccomend 5k on almost all vehicles i still get nervous if i wait much longer than 3k.even though i use mobil 1 synthetic which is rated for 15k. changing your oil and filter early will not hurt anything as long as you use a good filter with an anti drain back valve. most people reccomend mobile 1 and a toyota filter. oil is the lifeblood of your engine, you keep it clean it will last longer. if i had a new engine with 2.5k on the first oil id feel like i seriously neglected the engine.most break ins are from 500-1500 miles. immagine all those little piecies of metal and grit sanding down your internal componets. not good. i mean its not the end of the world but fresh oil is always better, especially during break in.

sorry i guess im a little obsessive but hey i love my truck!!

94 2wd 280,000 miles
just pulled the engine out to rebuild and the crank was still within std specs and just had to be polished.

nodrogkam · 10-09-2005, 02:15 PM

OH i totally understand what you mean. It's not really my car, i have the camry but i sorta do the maintanece. I'll see if my parents want to take it in or not when it gets to 3K. We should probably take it back to the dealer as not to void the warranty i assume.

Thanks for your input.

edphighlader04 · 10-10-2005, 12:00 PM

You are crazy if you put Mobil 1 in every 3k. That is a waste of money. Mobil 1 should be changed every 5K if not more... I go 7k with mobil 1. The reason your oil looks "dirty" is becuase when the oil gets hot it changes color. There is not any dirt in the oil. Oil, especially synthetic oil could last in your car for 15-20K if you only changed your filter. But most cars it is nearly impossible to change only your filter and not the oil.

As to the part about 2.5K new car oil change. Leave it in for the full 5K. The manufacturer oil is meant to help break in the engine. I am not sure if it is really any different than normal oil but do not change it until the manual says to.

subliminaltrips · 10-10-2005, 01:18 PM

well i know one thing my engine had 280,k and is being rebuilt with the original crankshaft still well within std specs and it only had to be polished. the cylinders were also within spec but we took it one size over to use forged pistons with higher ompression. i bought that truck brand new and always ran synthetic oil from day one.call me crazy but the only thing i hurt by changing the oil that often was the garage floor that i dripped a few spots of oil on during the changes. i know that engine was not ready to be rebuilt but i decided to go ahead and do it since everything was apart from the timing cover gasket blowing out and id rather do the preventive maintainence now rather than be stuck later. by the way im not really crazy just a little car crazy.granted new ones are different and in sure theyll be fine if you follow the manual.

all that "break in oil" is is a lighter weight oil and if you want to do a true break in you should just start the car and let it idle for an hour or so turn it off allow it to completely cool off and do it again with the rpms stedily at about 2000 for 20 min. the steady rpm will allow the rings to seat better than if the rpms were changing. another thing ive been using for a few years is an oil filter magnet that wraps arroud the filter.it helps alot during the break in period although it doesnt stop aluminum. if you have a magnetic drain plug youll see what im talking about..

jhbhatia · 10-10-2005, 01:40 PM

This is from personal exp: When i bought my new solara, i kept an eye on the oil. Yes the oil color changes, but i kinda noted that the oil was already blackish when i bought the car. For the first 10K miles, i took the car to the dealership (or you can just use regular oil) to ensure all the kinks (in any TSB/warranty work,etc) needed to be taken care of. From 10K miles onwards i used synthetic. I didn't want to be TOO soon in using synthetic (this was from the advise of a toyota tech).

nodrogkam · 10-10-2005, 10:55 PM

guess we'll take it in when 3k rolls around.

the car runs great tho!

edphighlader04 · 10-12-2005, 12:27 PM

I guess you can't go wrong if you follow the manual.

ecshih · 10-29-2005, 02:23 PM

If you want some extra performance, try TOYOTA TRD Oil Filter. Comes with two version:
White: Made in USA
Red: Made in Japan

Quote:

Originally Posted by nodrogkam

Hey ive got an 05 Highlander and its got about 2.5K on the Odometer....and i know they say the first oil change is at 5K even tho its breaking in. But man is the oil dirty. I mean its almost past the dark caramel color...its getting black, but the car seems to be running fine. So i dont know if i should ask a dealership what i should do or what. Cos its got another 2.5K to go before the recommended change, but i fear waiting so long would do damage.

I also understandi could change the oil anytime i want, but if its not necessary i dont want to pollute the environment more and pay extra $ to get it done.

Thanks for any suggestions and help guys!

Edmond · 10-29-2005, 03:00 PM

It wouldn't hurt to change it. Unless it's really off from normal operation, you're probably not going to notice a difference between the change in how it runs was gradual, not immediate.

Personally, I always made the first change quicker and then I went to normal intervals after the first change.

***Bakemono*** · 10-29-2005, 05:35 PM

Im personally not a believer in extended drain intervals. I still change mine at 3,000 miles and no one is going to tell me I cant.
In reality, you cant change your oil too often.
As to the comment about how oil gets dark when it heats up, thats a new one. Ive seen oil get dark from carbon (by product of combustion) but getting dark from heat is a new one. Take a forklift that runs on LP for example, the oil in those NEVER gets dirty because LP does not produce carbon when it burns.

I cant see how heat makes oil get darker.
Cap'n

nodrogkam · 10-29-2005, 07:34 PM

thanks everyone. Perhaps when it hits 3k we'll take it in. It hasnt really been driven for the past 3 weeks cos my moms out of the country so i just take it out for a mile or two and take it back home once a week.

and uhm heat doesnt cause oil to darken...at least not as noticable...lol unless ur bruning oil...