htownplaya

I got my 10k (2nd oil chnage) at Toyota from what they told me that they use the same oil. I WAS WRONG! I called today to do a 15k Oil change and found out they use 5w30 NOT 5w20 which I called Lexus and I asked them.

Toyo = Quaker State 5w30
Lexus = Mobile 5w20

I wanted to do my oil chnage again at Toyo because its 30 bucks vs 60 at Lexus but I found out that used a diff oil wieght. I asked Lexus about it they told me that you SHOULD use 5w20 for RX350!

I would be carefull about this because you may Void your Warranty if you are using thr wrong oil....

Do you guys think I should buy my own oil and then pay for the labor to have Toyo change the oil? They told me they charge 11 for labor and 8 for the filteR?

salimshah

Each dealership may carry a brand of their preference [negotiated rates].

depending where in Texas, 5w20 may be ok weight ... check the user manual.

Here in central Texas I use 10-30 weight. I either replace the oil myself or take the Syntec oil to the dealer.

Salim

Boognish

That's some pretty thin oil. Is that what your owner's manual calls for or is that what your dealer wants you to use?
Typically the ONLY reason to run such a light weight oil is for fuel economy, not engine longevity.

htownplaya

What do you guys prefer? Should I go with the 5w30 next time??

I have no idea what the Manual says... This information was given by the service advisor when I called the dealership....

That being said, I dont know how correct they are with that information. Sometimes they have no idea what they are talking about.

cdnewton

Well, Quaker State has a 10 year/300,000 mile warranty if you change your oil/filter every 4,000 miles or 4 months. You can fill out the form online. That beats the Lexus warranty.

Seriously though, in my opinion, either 5W20 or 5W30 will work fine. If it makes you feel better, take your own 5W20 to the Toyota dealer next oil change. I certainly wouldn't change the 5W30 until you are due for an oil change.

fud

i have an 2005 RX330, and my dealership uses 5w30 oil. You are fine but just be consistent going forward and not switch every time.

Lexmex

Keep in mind too that with your generation of RX you have better flow for oil through the oil passages than I and others do with the first generation RXs (RX300).

Just my two cents, but for the price, I would use a Pennzoil Platinum 5W20 (or 5W30 if you want to go that route) over Mobil 1.

htownplaya

Well I just saw that Lexus did use 5w20 but I did ask the service rep and they told me its fine to use 5w30.

They said Lexus changed thier entire oil structure from 5w30 to 5w20 within the few years. He also told me that it should not Void Warranty? Can anyone confirm this? He did not know what it says in the manuals....

Anyone know what it says in the manuals?

banjo

They use 5 w 30 at Lexus of Austin....

banjo

That is for a 08 rx 350....5w30

dkidwell

2009 RX350 Owners Manual reads:

SAE 5W-30 is the best choice for
good fuel economy, and good
starting in cold weather.
If SAE 5W-30 oil is not available,
SAE 10W-30 oil may be used.
However, it should be replaced
with SAE 5W-30 at the next oil
change.

harleydjce

Texas and my part of the world have similar climates.

I use AMSoil HDD series 3000 5W-30. Any 5W-30 or 10W-30 should be fine.

If you are going to do frequent oil changes and want to save yourself some $$ going to any Dealer, invest in one of these:

http://www.quickoildrainvalve.com/

jfelbab

Same instructions in the 2004 manual, FWIW.

I personally use, and recommend, Pennzoil Platinum 5W30, a 100% synthetic.

RX330inFL

Bingo. Just the car companies using every trick to meet the CAFE standards. Also, the dealers do not want to have to stock too many weight oils if they do not have to.

They only warranty the engines up to 70K miles and even the lighter weight oils will get you there. Want to keep your RX for 200K? Think heavier weight oils and synthetics.

You can even go to a heavier oil if you want, say 5W40. However, your gas mileage will suffer some as a result. Thinner oil also means greater engine wear over time. Do you tow or any other type of heavy load driving? If so you may want to give that some thought.

My recommendation would be if you want to use 5W20, use only synthetic. Keep with 5000 mile oil changes. Do not stretch it. You can probably get away with dropping one full oil weight (eg. 5W30 down to 5W20) when switching from conventional to synthetic.

If you want to stick with conventional oils, would recommend staying with 5W30 at a minimum.

salimshah

Brand and type and weight of oil discussion is almost like discussing religion.

I suggest understand the basic(s) and adopt the one that makes sense to you

Oil -> lubrication (basic purpose) + additional -> cleansing and taking away combustion bye products.

Key element for lubrication is is the (mobility -> 1/viscosity). Viscosity is dependent on temperature --> read climate (environment) based on cooling mechanism of the engine.

Life of oil is based on predominantly on junk it carries + brake-down .. shearing (extreme stress, thermal).

Mobility is rated as weight [like 5, 10, 20, 30, 90 etc] [lower number thin and higher number thick 90-gearoil]. For cold climate one had to switch to lower weight and for warmer climate switch to higher weight. Mild winter 10, hot 30.

Brand and type affect the cleansing and breakdown etc.

Many years ago the weight was one number .. fixed weight and rightly so people have got accustomed to thinner 5 and thicker 30.

Now came the era of additives to provide flow stability and the oil weights had a spread like 5-30, 10-20 etc.

If any one takes the time and look through the owners manual you will see a band, which represents recommended climate and range of oil to use.

5-30 provides a wider range over 10-20, but will provide flow rate for hotter climate (30 side) and for colder climate (5 side). For mild climate [say 15 weight] BOTH have the SAME (within tolerance) flow rate. 5-30 is not thinner than 10-20. [Note the carry over from fixed wight has people confused. If the viscosity additives are working, then the oil should have the same mobility].

For central Texas 10-30 covers the climate and for me it is the narrowest spread that I am happy with .. so that is what I use. I personally do not prefer wider spread. Now If I was to drive my vehicle to say Montana or Michigan during winter, I may switch to 5-20. Iff (that is if and only if) I drive all over NA, I might opt for 5-30.

As I said in the beginning, my reasoning may not agree with others. Each to his own.

Salim