Romadoc

For a 1998 ES300 with 54,000 miles, I'm thinking of changing to synthetic oil. Is this necessary for a car driven only 5K annually (practically all city). The cost is about double if done by local mechanic ($60). The local Lexus dealer does not even do synthetic changes.

Slooooooow

iTrader: (1)

That's very close to asking a religious preference.
Simple use of the search button would take to you a thread titled "What kind of oil do you use" and from that thread you'd learn that our newbs, our ASEs and our veteran pros are going to give you the full spectrum of preferences:

• Synthetic oil saved my engine AND cured my bone cancer
• Dino oil got me THIS far, and I'm not changing now
• Changing from dino to synthetic oil on a higher mileage vehicle can expose extant leaks
• I like pie
• and others...

There are sites that focus completely on oil discussions - I can't recall the names right now - something like BobsOilyBrain.com and those add value to your research as you determine your own answer.

Good luck!

Choas

My vote is for the pie keeps my engine running smooth but that all ''depends'' lol.

alaskaty

I'd imagine with that low of miles you could get away with switching without any "new" leaks showing up.

llcoolpass

the old saying that switching causes leaks is just that-- old. current syn oils dont cause leaks to pop up

92ES5sp

I like pie!!

BadViper22

I haven't had a chlamydia outbreak in years since i switched, thanks synthetic oil!

kphu

iTrader: (8)

I use synthetic only because I do my own oil change and their's a cheap-o brand that I buy from Walmart $13 for 5 gallon jug so $20 for full synthetic is a good deal to me. It would cost me $25 just to get regular convention oil from jiffy lube.

I also do oil changes at 4k intervals instead of the 3k interval since I'm using the synthetic.

maniax

iTrader: (3)

i used synthetic for awhile then switched to regular oil. never felt the difference. I am the type of person that would say "as long as you change your oil every 3-5k miles, regular oil will do just fine!"

Slooooooow

iTrader: (1)

And the car nut's Bloody Knuckle Award

for today's top creative answer goes to....

BadViper22!!! *Fanfare here*

Choas

^Sweeeeeeet

smokesgtp

Mobil One, buy the EP too it's got double the detergents. with a quality filter like M1 or K&N. I Don't run conventional in an engine that has a preponderance to sludge. Syn is superior in every category, However if I did not change my own oil it might be a different story. 70$ at jiffy lube? I don't think so. I switched at about 55k, the rear valve cover just started dripping a tiny bit recently at about 80k, seems a little premature to me. I'm sure if I switched back to conventional it would stop it, but I'm thinkin of puttin some of that valvoline high mileage full synthetic in for a change or two see if it stops the seeping.

BadViper22

Haha, ty, I feel special.

+1 for WalMart's big jugs of Mobil 1

X72

Romadoc, if the car is driven frequently for very short trips in the city, I would say that the engine is better off just changing the oil every 6 months and using whatever oil is on sale. 2 oil changes a year for your 5,000 mile per year scenario is better than one oil change a year with synthetic oil. The reason, fuel dilution of the oil and flushing out the contaminants held in the oil. I know that this is not what you want to hear but I believe that 2 oil changes a year is better. But if you are ignoring other maintenance (like automatic transmission fluid and coolant drain and refills), then go for the once yearly change.