[DMD3]

I’m not currently an owner of a Gen 8 Camry, though I plan to buy one in the near future (once this chip shortage/high price ends). I do own an 02 Camry with 342k miles and counting, and I‘d like for my next vehicle to last this long, if not longer.

Ok, there have been some lengthy discussions in regards to the engine oil, and I’m not trying to start another one, but can I increase the longevity of the engine by using 0w20 or thicker vs. the recommended 0w16? It’s my understanding they recommend this in order to squeeze as much fuel economy as possible, but the engine may not last as long. I believe the owners manual states you can use 0w20 if the 0w16 is not available, but you must add 0w16 at the next oil change. But it seems like I‘ve read that in other countries with lower epa standards, the owners manuals state you can use thicker oil at all times, despite the fact that it’s the same car (I’ve read where people said that, not sure how true it is).

Also, how much will using thicker oil lower the fuel economy? I’d rather trade a few MPGs and my vehicle last 400k miles vs. lasting only half that (it’s the equivalent of turbocharged engines; they may get better mileage, AND have more power, but they don’t last like N/A engines). Someone posted that they ran 0w20 and even 0w30 sometimes and it didn’t effect their fuel economy.

Regardless of what oil I’m able to use, I plan to be religious with oil changes (that goes for all fluids). In my current vehicle, I’ve always had my non synthetic oil changed every 3k miles, 3,500 tops, regardless of how much highway travel I’ve done. Some people say that I could probably change it every 5k, but those same people don’t have anywhere near the mileage that my car has. All the drivers with insane mileage, such as Million Mile Joe (put 1 million miles on a Honda) and even the master himself, Irv Gordon (3.2 million on a Volvo P1800) did 3k oil changes, so I know who I want to imitate. There are others with high mileage vehicles, but those two spring to mind. I’d probably change the oill every 5k miles in a Gen 8 Camry, as they use synthetic oil.

 

[AF8]

New Camry requires synthetic. Change every 5,000 miles and alternate between 0-16 abd 0-20 for OCI. Most miles on my car is 150k 2010 Highlander.

 

[wormburner]

.... can I increase the longevity of the engine by using 0w20 or thicker vs. the recommended 0w16?

.... Also, how much will using thicker oil lower the fuel economy?

Yes, you could potentially increase engine life by moving to 0w20 weight. Also, if you're relying on a dealer to change your oil, 0w20 (or heavier) is exactly what they're putting in your vehicle as it's cheaper/ more readily available in bulk. (Yes, many dealers don't follow the manual.) All this said, 0w16 has been used in Japan for a very long time and has been proven reliable. It's just new to North America. Also, the electric oil pump in our 8th gen Camrys is meant to work with a lighter weight oil so it can deliver higher/lower pressure on demand. There is a Toyota mechanic on Youtube who describes this in detail and insists owners stick with 0w 16 as recommended.

As to your second question, loss in fuel economy is negligible.

Verdict... it's a great car, and 0w16 vs 0w20 will likely be of far less consequence than simply changing your oil and filter on regular (or even earlier) intervals.

 

[Tim883]

The listing has been deleted but there was a clear shot of the odometer when it was active. Just maintain it well. I'm not worried.

2018 with 347,509 miles and still running!

From the photos you can see from the tachometer the engine is idling. https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/l-Used-Toyota-Camry-d292?sourceContext=shareListingLink#listing=257219557

www.toyotanation.com

 

[Vangm25]

You have to wait twenty years to determine if a twenty year old vehicle will last twenty years.

 

[rl1990]

Maintenance, maintenance maintenance. Do that and it will last many years, just like your old car. At the end of the day it's a Toyota; the company entire reputation is about reliability and durability and they know that's what sells their vehicles. But that requires owners to follow the maintenance they say needs to be done. For instance if you read the book carefully they say the oil needs to be changed every 5,000 miles not 10,000 miles for severe use. Most people fall under severe use. I fault Toyota for not making this clear in the manual and for not using an advanced oil life monitor like other makes. They use a simple mileage counter.

My daily commute is 90 miles a day round trip, 90% highway driving. My old Acura would give the oil change message at the max allowed 10,000 miles. My wife's Accord, with basically the same engine, would usually trigger the message between 6,000-7,000 miles. Her commute is about 30 miles round trip through the city. Honda uses an algorithm to calculate when the oil needs changed based on driving conditions and environmental conditions. I trusted the Honda system and changed the oil when it said to and that old Acura went 218,000 miles with 10,000 mile oil changes. I don't trust the mileage counter Toyota system so I tend to change the oil a little earlier at around 7,000 miles on the Camry.

 

[Luftmasse]

Our Camrys does have a maintenance reminder at every 5k miles that needs to be reset.

 

[DMD3]

Yes, you could potentially increase engine life by moving to 0w20 weight. Also, if you're relying on a dealer to change your oil, 0w20 (or heavier) is exactly what they're putting in your vehicle as it's cheaper/ more readily available in bulk. (Yes, many dealers don't follow the manual.) All this said, 0w16 has been used in Japan for a very long time and has been proven reliable. It's just new to North America. Also, the electric oil pump in our 8th gen Camrys is meant to work with a lighter weight oil so it can deliver higher/lower pressure on demand. There is a Toyota mechanic on Youtube who describes this in detail and insists owners stick with 0w 16 as recommended.

As to your second question, loss in fuel economy is negligible.

Verdict... it's a great car, and 0w16 vs 0w20 will likely be of far less consequence than simply changing your oil and filter on regular (or even earlier) intervals.

Maintenance, maintenance maintenance. Do that and it will last many years, just like your old car. At the end of the day it's a Toyota; the company entire reputation is about reliability and durability and they know that's what sells their vehicles. But that requires owners to follow the maintenance they say needs to be done. For instance if you read the book carefully they say the oil needs to be changed every 5,000 miles not 10,000 miles for severe use. Most people fall under severe use. I fault Toyota for not making this clear in the manual and for not using an advanced oil life monitor like other makes. They use a simple mileage counter.

My daily commute is 90 miles a day round trip, 90% highway driving. My old Acura would give the oil change message at the max allowed 10,000 miles. My wife's Accord, with basically the same engine, would usually trigger the message between 6,000-7,000 miles. Her commute is about 30 miles round trip through the city. Honda uses an algorithm to calculate when the oil needs changed based on driving conditions and environmental conditions. I trusted the Honda system and changed the oil when it said to and that old Acura went 218,000 miles with 10,000 mile oil changes. I don't trust the mileage counter Toyota system so I tend to change the oil a little earlier at around 7,000 miles on the Camry.

Yes, I plan to change it at 5k miles, whether it’s severe use or not. I do mostly Hwy miles as well, and I don’t drive hard. When accelerating, I seldom rev the engine over 3,000 rpms unless I’m merging into traffic, or just in a bad hurry.

Like I said, for those who claim you can go 10k miles between oil changes (or 5-6k for nonsynthetic oil) you never hear of them getting incredibly high mileage. I know someone who has a 93 Chevy truck with 230k miles who changes th oil between 5-7k miles, but he’s had the engine rebuilt at some point, so there it is.

 

[LLH]

Yes, I plan to change it at 5k miles, whether it’s severe use or not. I do mostly Hwy miles as well, and I don’t drive hard. When accelerating, I seldom rev the engine over 3,000 rpms unless I’m merging into traffic, or just in a bad hurry.

Like I said, for those who claim you can go 10k miles between oil changes (or 5-6k for nonsynthetic oil) you never hear of them getting incredibly high mileage. I know someone who has a 93 Chevy truck with 230k miles who changes th oil between 5-7k miles, but he’s had the engine rebuilt at some point, so there it is.

My Echo used to get regular oil changes every 5K miles on average, (sometimes at 3K or 4K miles) , (now synthetic blend) I've got 358K miles so far and it runs great. Last compression check was at 300K when I changed the plugs, still good compression, still gets 44-45 mpg highway, and doesn't burn a quart of oil every 1200 miles, like Toyota claims is normal for a Gen 8 Cruze. I'm sure though it will need to be rebuilt or replaced at some point.

 

[LLH]

Maintenance, maintenance maintenance. Do that and it will last many years, just like your old car. At the end of the day it's a Toyota; the company entire reputation is about reliability and durability and they know that's what sells their vehicles. But that requires owners to follow the maintenance they say needs to be done. For instance if you read the book carefully they say the oil needs to be changed every 5,000 miles not 10,000 miles for severe use. Most people fall under severe use. I fault Toyota for not making this clear in the manual and for not using an advanced oil life monitor like other makes. They use a simple mileage counter.

My daily commute is 90 miles a day round trip, 90% highway driving. My old Acura would give the oil change message at the max allowed 10,000 miles. My wife's Accord, with basically the same engine, would usually trigger the message between 6,000-7,000 miles. Her commute is about 30 miles round trip through the city. Honda uses an algorithm to calculate when the oil needs changed based on driving conditions and environmental conditions. I trusted the Honda system and changed the oil when it said to and that old Acura went 218,000 miles with 10,000 mile oil changes. I don't trust the mileage counter Toyota system so I tend to change the oil a little earlier at around 7,000 miles on the Camry.

I completely agree with you. One concern of mine though with the Gen 8 Camry is that there is more to proper maint. than just oil changes. I'm suspicious of things like "lifetime" trans fluid, PCV valves buried under the intake manifold where people will be least likely to change them or have them changed because the cost will be many $$$ and nothing mentioned in the service schedule about changing them ever, just for a couple of examples.

 

[Vangm25]

I completely agree with you. One concern of mine though with the Gen 8 Camry is that there is more to proper maint. than just oil changes. I'm suspicious of things like "lifetime" trans fluid, PCV valves buried under the intake manifold where people will be least likely to change them or have them changed because the cost will be many $$$ and nothing mentioned in the service schedule about changing them ever, just for a couple of examples.

There was a time when there was a lot of maintenance (5S-FE). There was a time of very low maintenance (2AZ-FE). Now is the time for more maintenance (A25A).

You just adapt to it. Or don't.

 

[molson.david]

Yes, I plan to change it at 5k miles, whether it’s severe use or not. I do mostly Hwy miles as well, and I don’t drive hard. When accelerating, I seldom rev the engine over 3,000 rpms unless I’m merging into traffic, or just in a bad hurry.

Like I said, for those who claim you can go 10k miles between oil changes (or 5-6k for nonsynthetic oil) you never hear of them getting incredibly high mileage.

How about taxi fleet cars that rolled to 300K despite 15K oil change intervals???

 

[LLH]

There was a time when there was a lot of maintenance (5S-FE). There was a time of very low maintenance (2AZ-FE). Now is the time for more maintenance (A25A).

You just adapt to it. Or don't.

If by adapt you mean throw lots of $$$$ at the service dept. then no I don't have to adapt, I have choices. In fact I now have even more choices because the circumstances in which I had to get a car like a late model Camry have changed, and also my options for the occasional times I might want to drive a late model car.

 

[GaryQ]

How about taxi fleet cars that rolled to 300K despite 15K oil change intervals???

And if that's not considered intense driving conditions with all that stop and go, I don't know what is.

 

[GaryQ]

I completely agree with you. One concern of mine though with the Gen 8 Camry is that there is more to proper maint. than just oil changes. I'm suspicious of things like "lifetime" trans fluid, PCV valves buried under the intake manifold where people will be least likely to change them or have them changed because the cost will be many $$$ and nothing mentioned in the service schedule about changing them ever, just for a couple of examples.

I'm sure the local stealership will say $$$$ that you absolutely need a new PCV valve every x miles. Maybe come up with some BS excuse like an omission in the user service manual.

 

[Shel_B]

IMO, there's no reason, other than perhaps warranty and CAFE standards, that you can't run a heavier oil:

 

[myang]

3 months and 5k miles and still going strong after the 5k service. ‘21 XSE V6

 

[DMD3]

Thanks for confirming, Shel B. Looks like I can use 15w 40 if the air temp. is warm enough.

 

[Shel_B]

I completely agree with you. One concern of mine though with the Gen 8 Camry is that there is more to proper maint. than just oil changes. I'm suspicious of things like "lifetime" trans fluid, PCV valves buried under the intake manifold where people will be least likely to change them or have them changed because the cost will be many $$$ and nothing mentioned in the service schedule about changing them ever, just for a couple of examples.

Since you're aware of these issues, and are "suspicious" of them, just change the xmission fluid and PCV valve on a regular basis. And don't overlook maintaining the EGR valve, either.

 

[Shel_B]

Thanks for confirming, Shel B. Looks like I can use 15w 40 if the air temp. is warm enough.

I'd probably stick with a 0W-30 (like M1 ESP), 5W-30 or, at most, a 0W-40, like one of these if you want a 40wt. Even the Russians feel that 15W-40 is pushing things a little too far.