davyjordi

So I was watching some video on YouTube and 0w16 oil came up with regard to GDI primarily four cylinder engines that are turbocharged. Anyhow, I was wondering if anyone has switched over from 0w20 to 0w16 in their cars, those of you who particularly own IS 200t/IS 300 RWD models with the 2.0L turbocharged engine. I know that Toyota has a proprietary 0w16 oil made by who knows what company, but I know that the company is using it in some of their products. That said, 0w20 oil seems to still be the norm for our engines per the Lexus dealership.

If I were to change to 0w16 oil, could Lexus Corp. deny a claim against me in the event that I encounter a catastrophic failure? I mean, I feel that the lower viscosity oil should be used in our cars, but I'm not in a position to change oils as I have an Lexus extended vehicle service agreement until 2026, bumper-to-bumper.

Anyhow, thoughts? Opinions? Guidance?

davyjordi

Or is a higher viscosity oil recommended for better wear protection? I'm reading conflicting information about how thinner viscosity oils may reduce wear on select modern Toyota and Honda engines, but then at the same time am reading that engines not specifically designed with thinner viscosity oil, 0w16 in particular, may develop premature wear due to their lack of protection under 'normal' conditions. So maybe I don't feel as though lower viscosity oil should be used with the 2.0L turbo, but I dunno...

Flash5

From my research in the past over the new ILSAC GF6 standard, it has GF-6A which is backwards compatible and has new standards to it such as LSPI testing etc. GF-6B is only for 0W-16 oil because it’s not backwards compatible since hardly any engines have been designed around that low viscosity oil. Unless Toyota/Lexus specifically tells us to switch to 0W-16 oil I wouldn’t. The ILSAC GF-6A 0W-20 oil will address issues such as LSPI and other attributes related to turbocharged GDI engines.

davyjordi

gotcha. thanks!

Flash5

Keep in mind that the API implemented the SN PLUS certification as a bandaid until ILSAC GF6 came out. SN Plus tests for LSPI in oils and thus if the oil is SN Plus rated than it’s good for turbo charged engines and GDI.

davyjordi

Yeah, I know, I'm just super cautious with this car (as I was with my previous) as it's my daily and I'm not a student anymore or something who has the liberty to tune the car and potentially cause for problems that would be covered by a Lexus-backed warranty. I would love to do this and that to the car -- a tune in particular -- but I also have to have reliable transportation to get to and from work (I have a roundtrip daily 55 mile commute) from August through the end of May (I teach kindergarten). So, I was able to purchase a bumper-to-bumper VSA warranty extension for a grand extending the coverage until 2026 with unlimited mileage. That's a steal for anyone who's ever purchased a Lexus VSA, but no one is buying cars right now, so I got a great deal. Anyhow, the point is, I want the car to last and I'm trying to ensure that I do all of the things necessary to increase longevity. Like, I'm going to have the oil changed every 5k miles even though the service intervals call for oil changes every 10k miles. It just makes me feel better with the amount of driving that I do during a large portion of the year to change the oil more frequently. Anything else I could potentially do, I'd do as well. But it seems as though I've got my bases covered. How I'm going to treat the transmission down the line, well, I have no idea yet, but I have time to think about that.

Flash5

Yeah I understand completely. I’m doing 7,000 mile oil changes just because I use Mobil 1 extended performance but I think I’m going to switch to Amazon oil and do 5,000 miles as well because I’m starting to think that there is a little fuel oil dilution as my oil smells a little like gas. Either way oil is cheaper than an engine lol.

davyjordi

yep, that's for sure. i've always used mobil 1 extended performance, but i think i might try the relatively new pennzoil platinum synthetic made from natural gas the next time i have my oil changed. https://www.pennzoil.com/en_us/produ...-platinum.html

Flash5

I don’t want to spend a lot of money on a synthetic oil if I’m not going to run it more than 5k miles personally. That’s why I’m going to go with Amazon full synthetic.

davyjordi

i'm willing to spend the extra money because i plan on keeping this car even when it's time to buy a new one. i just really like the way it looks. haha.

Flash5

I plan on keeping it forever myself, but I’m not going to buy super expensive synthetic oil for no reason lol. That’s just me though. Amazon full synthetic will do the job for 5k miles haha.

davyjordi

I suppose so. Maybe I should rethink my logic...

The overprotection comes from my experience owning a 2IS when the transmission failed and had to be replaced. It had 56k miles on it at the time. Rare for sure, but it did happen and if it weren't for the VSA that I had with Lexus that cost would have come out of my own pocket.

Since then I've been extremely overprotective of my cars with regard to maintenance. Like, they've been ultra hyper maintained.

Flash5

If you have that super long warranty, there’s no need to be hyper protective haha. Yes be disciplined with maintenance, but don’t gotta go above and beyond. That’s my opinion though. Either way, it’s your car I’m just giving you my input. (:

davyjordi

i knowwwwww, i just can't get the 'something is going to fail' thought out of my head if i don't use the best quality anything of everything out there mentality gone. i get what you're saying, though. i just don't think i'd be satisfied with amazon oil, however. haha. mobil 1 sure, amazon not so much even though they have earned the same api rating.

Flash5

If you’re willing to spend the money on the best oil there is and still change it out every 5k miles go for it haha. I’ll use Amazon oil and then we can compare at 100k miles and see how our engines are doing lol.