chuuck1e

I have a 2022 NX 350h purchased in March 2022, and am not driving it much. I have only 5,000 miles after 18 months of ownership, mostly city driving. I changed the oil once in March this year at the free 12 month service at 3,000 miles, and have driven about 2,000 miles since.

I am taking the car to the dealer this week for Special Service Campaign 23LC01, and was thinking about getting the oil and filter changed during the visit. They quoted me $190 to change the oil and filter, so I definitely am not having them do it. But I wonder if once a year is ok with the low miles I am driving, or if the low miles/short trips is a reason to change it more often. I am in Southern California, and it is never driven in cold weather below 32 degrees or other severe conditions as discussed in the warranty and services guide.

i called two local dealers and four local independent shops, and they all said they do not believe there would be an issue with only changing the oil once a year.

I was very surprised when the local dealer quoted $190 for an oil/filter change. I do not believe I have ever paid more than $70 in the past on any of my Acuras/Hondas/Toyotas. One local dealer has a $90 special on changing the oil/filter, so if I do change the oil more often, I will probably take it there. The independent shops all quoted me around $110, which I assume includes a Lexus premium. I was tempted to call back and see what the estimate would be on a RAV4.

JasDmw

I believe once a year is suggested in the manual. That way you protect your warranty and the cost is really minimal. Some here do their own changes, I prefer to get it done..

Take it to a Toyota dealership. They have the right parts and know the car better than independents. I had my oil changed last week at a local Toyota store which is closer to home than the Lexus store. They did it for $89.00 plus tax. I wanted it done now to rest my schedule; car gets serviced 2X a year, spring and fall, for seasonal tire swap and annual oil change. It's too early for the tires but the mileage worked out best so I can wait until March/April next year to swap the tires.

Droid13

LOL, yup. Same engine, same oil filter, same oil, fun to see if they charge less

You've correctly pointed out that short trips are your biggest concern, because of potential water contamination in the engine oil. This is a known issue with the engine used on the RAV4 and NX (and many other Toyotas) and there is a TSB about it. It mainly warns about the condition for short trips in freezing conditions, but if you do experience "quite cool" conditions during winter, something to pay attention to. Check your oil (even more) regularly in winter, if it starts to turn milky, change it immediately regardless of distance or time. The other option is perhaps easier and more fun, just go for a 45 min road trip once in a while.

GoneSkiing

Once a year is fine if your not putting on the miles.

lexsc4

We have 3 Lexuses in the household and I always do a 6 months interval, no matter what the miles driven. We do a lot of short trips and I think this is best IMO.
Cost is ~$45 parts (Walmart Mobil 1 + Toyota Oil filter) + $40 labor at my local shop. Total cost per year $85 each time *3 cars *2 times per year = $510.
In fact I went to have my wife's 2024 NX350H oil changed at 1K miles, the guy looked at me and though I was wasting time and money : ). Did the same thing on the other 2 cars at well. : )

Sonduren

For those wondering and want a guide on how to do this:

jsmith

Is it feasible to drain a quart out then jam the plug in? I have an overfill and would hate to bring it back just for that. I have an electric pump I used on my previous cars to do this but on the 350h, it only pulled less than half a quart. I figure it's overfilled by at least a quart, I think they dumped more than 5 qts in...

SgtLip

@jsmith If you completely remove the plug you would have to be pretty fast to get it back in and tight before losing too much oil. I think I'd crack the seal on the plug or maybe a little more and let it drip out then when you think you have enough oil drained, tighten the plug back up.

EDIT!!!! I just watched the video above. It looks like there is no oil drip/stream from the plug when loosened. BUT, there was when he cracked the seal on the oil filter. There is a slow drip/stream that you should be able to control by start and stop. When you think you have enough oil removed, tighten the filter back up. BUT REMEMBER to check the oil level to make sure you didn't remove too much.

jsmith

Yeah I saw that, never did it that way before. That might not be enough as it looked like oil that came out was only from the filter and no further than that, probably another half quart. I think they used the 5.9 qt of the GAS 350 instead of the 4.6 for the 350H.