3k-4k every 3-4 months with mineral oil is fine for almost any vehicle. With your location, if using mineral oil, use a 5w30. Check and top off oil as needed regularly. If you're not dedicated to popping the hood every week or two, you are propably better off with synthetic.

With synthetic, 6k/6month oil change interval is a good starting point. It also won't boil over and turn into sludge rapidly when accidently run a pint or couple quarts low.

If your engine is in perfect running condition, and your vehicle is pristine mint condition, it might be worth the investment in full synthetic fluids everywhere. I'll always recommend synthetic over mineral oil always as there are just too many variables that could cause issues with mineral oil. Any of the full synthetic 0w30's, 5w30'.... should work just fine. Also use full synthetics... grease, gear oils, power steering, differential, manual transmission, automatic transmission, in your vehicle and everything else you own like the weedwacker, lawnmower, generator, boat, motorcycle..... commit everywhere to it and watch all those mis-engineered and negligent 'known oiling issues' fade away.

For the oil filter, ANY will work just fine. Cheapest filter is great as long as it doesn't introduce any new noises. Oversized is an option if there is room.

 

Mobil 1 with a Wix filter every 6k mi. or 1 year, whichever comes first.

 

No need for synthetic in these old engines. I run 10W30 Castrol GTX High Mileage with a Wix/Napa Gold filter.

Change every 3500-4000. Basically any oil is good, the filter is more critical. Dont use Fram or other junk filters. Get cheaper oil and a better filter if money is an issue. Wix/Purolator are good and cheap at ~5$.

No need for fancy oil or filter, Amsoil, Royal Purple, etc. are just a waste of money on these engines.

Oversize filter may seem like a good idea but its not. These filters are mounted in such a way that they will drain back somewhat. Bigger filter takes longer to fill at start so more damage at startup is done.

 

No need for synthetic in these old engines. I run 10W30 Castrol GTX High Mileage with a Wix/Napa Gold filter.

Change every 3500-4000. Basically any oil is good, the filter is more critical. Dont use Fram or other junk filters. Get cheaper oil and a better filter if money is an issue. Wix/Purolator are good and cheap at ~5$.

No need for fancy oil or filter, Amsoil, Royal Purple, etc. are just a waste of money on these engines.

Can't say I agree with you there. Synthetic oils do make a difference and, overall, increase the life of your engine. I had a Ford Probe GT (Mazda MX6 basically) that went all the way to 250k miles using Castrol Syntec and Wix filters.
Also, if you're running a high performance engine, synthetic oil will lower operating temps. I observed this in my 400HP 5.0L Mustang.

If you run synthetic or dino oil, it doesn't even matter. While sure the up-front cost is higher with synthetic, however, you change the oil less frequently, so really, it's a wash money wise.

That said, if the car has been run on dino oils it's whole "life", then I wouldn't recommend switching to synthetic later on. This could lead to oil burning since the oil will be too slippery for the piston rings to seat properly.


At any rate, I typically use Castrol Syntec (5w50) and Wix filters. Most cars can run this combo, however, there are some that can't because the oil passages in the lifters are too small and it will cause clatter. Most cars that call for 5w20 can't run anything thicker otherwise it'll tick and clatter like crazy because the oil can't pump the hydraulic lifters fast enough.

 

Royal Purple filter & Walmart Synthetic Supertech Oil every 7.5k.

 

Been using Walmart's Supertech filters for a long time now, like 6 years or so. Before that, a mix of Purolator, Bosch, Wix; anything but Fram. For oil, I use whatever major brand is the cheapest when I go to buy it. Mostly Quaker State lately. Always dino-based, never a synth or a blend. 10W-30 in the Camry, 5W-30 in the Avalon. I used to do 3k mile OCI's, but went to 5k about 2 years ago.

Neither car burns any oil to speak of. The Camry used to use 1-2 quarts between changes. It's ready for its first oil change after doing the head gaskets, at which time I also replaced the valve stem seals. It's used only 1/4 of a quart!:clap:

 

i use whatever filter has an anti-drainback valve installed in it. Not Particular

 

In everything I own Mobil One oil and Filter at book recommended intervals. I have never had a car use any oil or have any sludge issues following this and I drive a lot of miles.

 

i made a thread about this a while age. I use amsoil synthetic signature and their filter and change it every year, topping it off every 4-6 months. and I also mentioned that after I put it in I felt huge difference in the smoothness of the engine when acclerating, same with our oddyssy (right after mobil 1) I hope someone puts amsoil in and tells me if my observations were correct....

 

I've got an oil change due soon, and want to put in Amsoil signature, but I wasn't sure if it was worth the heft cost. It's good to know that it worked well for you:thumbsup: Do you notice an increased oil consumption rate?

I'm going to put in an OEM Toyota filter. . I don't want to reduce oil pressure because of a super filter clogging up (I'm assuming the previous owner did not take care of the car well, maybe I'll switch to a nicer filter if the oil comes out clean).

 

M1 with an M1 filter. Get the filters pretty cheap. About 30 total.

 

Where do you get the filter cheap? I try to catch the sales. I got ten oil change and filter specials from Auto zone that saved about $11 a change that is the best I have done for a long time. Usually $13 + for just the filter. I am out of them right now and will be over due for an oil change when I get home from work next Friday.

 

In my experience, it's a waste of money if you're using expensive oil filters. Do me a favor by cutting open a used (and expensive) oil filter and let us know what you find. I have cut open lots of used oil filters over the years and found nothing remarkable. It's a total waste of money.

Talking about oil, for the I4 Camry I got recently that was semi-neglected based on what I saw in the oil filler hole (just the baffle plate and the oil cap), I decided to give it couple of short 3k miles oil changes. All the fills so far have been some Delvac 15w40 with 5w30/10w30/5w20. The last fill was 1qt Delvac 15w40 and 3qts of Shell 5w20. When it was warmer I used more Delvac. It's been cleaned up pretty good and oil usage has been reduced. Will probably go synthetic in a couple of months.

I use whatever cheaper oil filters (Fram included) available. I value oil flow rate more than filtration ability. Oil filters are pretty much useless after break-in period. Also I change filters every other oil change (occasionally go 3 times).

 

I use whatever cheaper oil filters (Fram included) available. I value oil flow rate more than filtration ability. Oil filters are pretty much useless after break-in period. Also I change filters every other oil change (occasionally go 3 times).

Really? Do you believe the same about air filters? I personally want any filter to do the best it can at filtering. That is its purpose. The Mobil one is the only one to go down to one micron that I know of. In my experience again, following this practice I have never, ever had a vehicle use oil or have any sludge problems. I sent some oil from my pickup in to the lab at 192k and they found no signs of wear. I have driven well over a million miles over the life of about 4 cars and had not troubles at all. I take it as a cheap way to extend service life.

I pick up the oil for $23 at Walmart, and the filter for $5 at Autozone. Probably helps because I know the guy at Autozone. Rest is just tax. Sucks when he's not there, gotta pay that $13 for it. :facepalm:

Got dang dude, how many can you buy? I will give you $7 a piece + shipping for a dozen to start!

 

If anyone doubts the benefit of synthetics, put a quart of syn. and conventional in your freezer overnight then pour some out. it will give some idea what your engine has to go through on cold start up.

 

Supertech full synthetic and supertech filters. Except my wal-mart quit carrying supertech filters and now purolater filters are their cheapest so I've been using them. :dunno: I heard supertech filters were re-badged purolaters, which is cool, but the supertech was cheaper!!

 

Except my wal-mart quit carrying supertech filters and now purolater filters are their cheapest so I've been using them. :dunno: I heard supertech filters were re-badged purolaters, which is cool, but the supertech was cheaper!!

I've noticed that at two of the Walmarts in my area too! Are they discontinuing them I wonder?

 

Why would it clog right off if it is well maintained? I have seen plenty of totally clogged air filters that no longer pass enough air to feed the engine but that was long after the recommended service life. I see no problem with using a better filter if you don't abuse your cars with shoddy maintenance. They are all tested for each application and the desired flow rate. It is just like an air filter in that if you have a desired level of filtering and it wont pass enough air for the application you make the filter bigger so it will. I see your point with the transmission I do like more filtering but I am not going to add an aftermarket one. I have added transmission coolers to cars that didn't have them. Ultimately heat can kill transmissions.

 

Your oil filter is unlikely to clog because there isn't much to catch. Now putting a super duper filter on a neglected car would be another story.

If you really want good filtration, go for bypass oil filter setup (some with toilet paper!). Regular full flow oil filter is overrated on your well-maintained vehicles.

 

I purchase Toyota filters by the case. They very reasonable in price and are OEM. I think that Toyota knows best. I have been using them for 17 years without any problems.
W95c

 

Currently running Mobil-1 5W-30 Extended Performance & a Mobil-1 filter! 10W-30 in the warmer months. Change it every 5-6 K miles. Engine runs like a champ with 163K miles! A syn will keep your engine clean, provides better lube to moving parts, & flows better at startup! I want my Camry to last forever so I use what works the best....

 

Amsoil found out the hard way. Some of their 25k oil filters for various engines were discontinued or not recommended. Some filters were rebadged for 15k intervals. Some engines load the oil up with combustion byproducts, or simply overcook the oil over time,.... These engines are usually called sludged monsters. I know that Amsoil pulled their super EAO filter for several Toyota engines. What does that tell you? If the filter has a bypass, why would it be an issue? Bypass is definitely not an acceptable bandaid for clogged filter media. Its there to protect the media and not your starving engine. Filter doesn't fail but your engine does. Great!

Synthetic filters supposedly flow well(when new). But, if they do filter down to a finer micron, how long will that flow last before that fancy filter simply loads up more quickly and becomes a clogged restriction or is bypassed? Cheap filters flow just as well but don't load up as quickly, and keep flowing. Sure, all particles add to wear. We just don't keep vehicles million miles long enough to see the difference. A synthetic filter, in bypass, won't filter better than a cheap filter not in bypass.

Don't fall for the $13 oil filter when that $4 filter will provide you all the wear prevention(flow and pressure) that your engine needs. It'll filter what needs to be filtered without going overly restrictive in a full flow circuit.

At what point does over filtration's oil starvation perform better/worse than under filtration's full oil flow? What does your engine need to survive? oil flow! There are those of us that believe that full flow oil filters are useless appendages. Either go bypass oil filter, or don't bother. Automakers don't bother. Industrial and commercial equipment don't short change filtration like automakers.

If you have an accurate oil pressure gauge, you can compare your pressure among different filters. Stick with one oil brand/weight when testing PSI. A healthy engine should be immune to oil and oil filters. Problem is, engines are manufactured with clearances/tolerances/materials/ethics which mean that many engines aren't even healthy when new, let alone the 10-20 years of wear inducing driving on our vehicles that we own!

If you remove your balance shafts, you'll have surplus oil pressure/flow for whatever fancy filter you want to use. If you install a higher volume oil pump, ditto! Stock tired oil pump, and we've seen plenty replaced in these forums, isn't what I'd want to use with an overpriced oil restrictor.

If you want more media, use a bigger filter. Oil filter drainback shouldn't be an issue unless you store the vehicle for days without driving, in which case ALL filters will drip dry.
Just about all oil filters, in the sizes that we can use, have BPV and ADBV. Nothing wrong with the OE filter other than I'm not driving 90 minutes to pick one up, and don't shop online when I don't have to. I also don't stockpile parts anymore. I also haven't seen superior engineering in OE filters. Lowest bid part!!!

Synthetic oil is a no brainer. We do have known issues with Toyota engineering repeating itself over and over(oil consumption, sludged engines, coked rings). Synthetic oil is a band aid and 'could' prevent those issues. Synthetic oil doesn't make up for ignorant owners but its a start. Other band-aids are oil coolers, increasing oil sump capacity, using a high volume and/or higher pressure oil pump.... which is easiest? Prevent severe oil oxidation and thermal breakdown by using a synthetic oil that can tolerate those oil temperatures, low oil levels, and negligent oil change intervals. Synthetic is a pretty big bandaid for many engines and owners. You can't beat that cold flow pumpability of a synthetic for us Northerners. Don't forget the superior film strength boundary lube capability of a that synthetic oil for when there is no flow/pressure(starting, or load change).

This thread is not about air filtration, which is more critical than oil filtration when compared to engine life. Concerning transmission filtration.... its another 'failure' effort by automakers.

 

I like to used rolled up newspapers and recycled canola oil... but that's just me.

 

I have bypass oil filters that use shredded compressed newspapers. Its one of the best medias out there. Problem is that the housing holds about 3-5 gallons of oil and doesn't fit anywhere on the Camry. Probably would be able to go 100k OCI on it if you don't mind a 50lb filter bolted to your hood.

Canola based oils work really well. Coconut, castor, rapeseed, lanolin, jojoba, palm....based additives and oils are available for various industries. Can be costly. And, its hard to get brain dead consumers away from the cheap habitual mineral oil addiction. Were just finally getting them to slowly switch over to synthetic after 20 years of anti-synth negative kowkrap.

http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/ncnu02/v5-029.html
http://renewablelube.com/
http://www.getg.com/autoOil.php

Most recycled vegetable oils are best used to make soaps and bio-fuels. I wouldn't recycle used cooking oil into a lubricant(yet). A good GMO virgin plant seed oil will be the lubricant base oil of the future.

 

Oh wow... Didn't expect this much conversation. Hot topic I see.


But I still didnt get a real answer there seems to be no right or wrong answer this topic is too opinionated. but im going down the path of using synthetic still not sure of brand but leaning towards royle purple...

 

I thought the Supertech filters are made by Champion Labs. But they don't really have a conventional bypass valve with a metal spring. The basic Purolator don't filter as well as the Pureones or Mobil-1s. Maybe go with the Purolator-made Motorcraft FL910s or the larger FL400s.

^ Maybe Pennzoil Platinum or Ultra, then Mobil-1 from Walmart? The Ultra and Platinum supposedly are cleaner than the runner up Mobil-1 among the store shelf brands. Plat is 8% cleaner than Mobil-1 and 17% cleaner than Valvoline Synpower. Ultra is even better.

http://pennzoil.com/motor-oil/pennzoil-platinum-full-synthetic-motor-oil/

 

^

What about royal purple ? How does it stack up to that

 

Royal Purple is a great oil, however its like wearing your tuxedo to a nascar race.

Its not gonna make a difference and isn't worth it in the camry.

These toyota engines were designed to run on whatever oil. People have gotten 350k+ miles out of these engines with 50 cent filters and bulk barrel oil at less than 1$ a qt.

Oil now a days is a non factor. If you change it on time and use ANY brand your not gonna have issues.

People get heated up about this topic since just about everyone knows how to change their oil, and everyone wants to think their doing the best thing.

 

Unless I'm imagining this, but I don't think I am, I noticed some slight power improvements/responsiveness, or just overall improvement, when I switched from Valvoline High Mileage (conventional) to Mobil (conventional). A lot of people on this forum recommend Mobil or Mobil 1 for the Camry too.

I used to change the filter every other oil change, but now I am doing it pretty much every time. It makes sense to me to use a better filter if the engine is older, more used. I think it depends on the quality or state of the engine you have, and how much gunk it has built up over time.

A friend of mine swears up and down about Royal Purple, but he doesn't have a Camry either. I'd say it is probably really good oil, but a bit overkill.

 

RoyalPurple, albeit expensive, makes a great product. I'm irked that they dumped Synerlec for an OTC SN/GF5 eco-friendly mainstream API additive package. Their Synerlec 5w30 was the coolest running oil in some of my smaller air cooled SAE30 required engines and is now called HPS oil, but HPS isn't available in every imaginable SAE weight anymore. RP still won't make me a 0w30 oil, either API or HPS. I recommend them just like I recommend every alphabet brand of full synthetic oil.

Oil a non-factor???? tell that to anyone with sludge, crud, varnish, noises, consumption, leakage, compression mpg power loss,..... there isn't a vehicle forum without regular oil related problems and owners begging for help. There is no such thing as oil overkill if someone is trying to push their vehicle to the limit of ownership, whether it be power, smoothness, MPG, longevity or.... And, nothing wrong with wearing a tux to a nascar race if you're hanging with the right crowd. You choose your status!

 

I think he meant to say that oil is a non-factor if you do regular changes with the latest SAE certification regardless of brand or dino/synthetic.


However, even for older cars that were designed to run on older dino oil, you can still enjoy benefits from new synthetic oil. For me, the main caveat is that synthetic oil flows better when cold, which (sounds like it) substantially reduces engine wear during the warm-up phase.

However, there isn't much data to back up these claims. Which is why oil threads are constantly being debated. What is known is that synthetic oil is basically required for high performance engines, as sports cars rarely come out of the factory with anything other than synthetic.

Me? I think if synthetic is engineered to withstand a harsher environment, I'd like to put it in my engine.