High Mileage Motor Oil?

I jut bought a 2006 Tundra 4.7 with 160,000 miles. It has been regularly service at the local Toyota dealer. It was due for timing belt replacement and the dealer replaced the timing belt.water pump, and serpentine belt last week. I think i am good to drive it awhile now. There is a slight weeping around the bottom of the valve covers. I am thinking of going with high mileage oil at next oil change and see if that slows the weeping. What would fellow Tundra owners think about this. The dealer gave estimate of $500.00 to replace the valve cover gaskets. I will only drive the Tundra about 4,000 miles yearly. Almost all in city driving.

 

I wouldn't worry about it.

If I did worry, I would try tightening down the valve cover bolts before anything else.

 

It may or may not help your oil leak. But I am a believer in "high mileage" engine oils. I was skeptical at first but when I first tried them many years ago I noticed less oil consumption between oil changes and less oil seepage from seals and gaskets. First thing I do when I buy a used vehicle is change the oil to"high mileage". Others may have different opinions, though.

 

I just put "high mileage" engine oil (full synthetic) in my 263,000 mile 1997 T100 with the 3.4L V6 for the first time. Cleaned off the oil seepage. Will need a few thousand miles to evaluate. It does not consume oil and never has.

 

The valve cover bolts are (apparently) notorious for coming loose, perhaps because of the rubber gasket/washers?
I had some seeping going on too on one side and had read that they come loose, so I went to tighten them and found they were basically all finger tight.

 

HM oils won't hurt .. but they may also not help if the gasket is too far gone.

 

$500 is a good price as I think I spent about $180 on all new OEM Toy parts to do the VC’s DIY.

Also, as others have mentioned, you can snug down your bolts. There are 9-10 10mm bolts per side. Mine became loose and I tightened them down 3 times over a two year period to hold off repair, but eventually they needed replacing. Change that PCV valve, too.

HM oil has worked on my truck to slow some very slight weeps in other places. Keep in mind, HM oil is very detergent and you’ll want to change your oil quicker a few times after first using as the sludge reduction in your engine takes place.

 

This is good advice. I snugged mine down earlier this year. Just be careful, we had another number snap a head off his bolt. The torque spec on these bolts is inch pounds, not ft lbs.

 

Thanks, I just read that the proper torque is 53 inch pounds. I will double check that before i begin.

 

Thanks, I'll try the torque and HM oil.

 

I don’t have any scientific data, but I think high mileage oil is mostly hog wash. Just use 5w30 (insert brand) every 3-5k and you’ll be fine.

 

I was thinking the same about high detergent oils. How about filling it up with
10w-30 Diesel oil! I suspect that will have way more than enough detergents and should be changed out at 500 to 1000 miles.

 

Yep, retorque them and see if that fixes it. If that doesnt just replace the gaskets, its a really easy job to do yourself. New gasket set is $35 and get the Toyota FIPG for the corners.

$30 FEL-PRO VS 50592 R Engine Valve Cover Gasket Set for Toyota Tundra

https://www.amazon.com/Fel-Pro-VS50592R-Valve-Cover-Gasket/dp/B000Q0VU6M

$21 Toyota Genuine Fluid 00295-00103 Formed-in-Place Oil Pan Gasket - 3 oz. Tube

https://www.amazon.com/Genuine-Toyo...576799778&s=automotive&sr=1-4#customerReviews

 

I had a buddy that was all into old school v8s and such and that's the only gasket maker he would use besides maybe yamabond. I seem to remember him saying it was especially good at sealing the intake valley to manifold surface on SBCs. Pretty funny how everything besides Chev or dodge was jap crap to him but he liked Toyotas sealant haha.

 

Haha my buddy wanted me to get a custom plate that reads "JAPCRAP", maybe if I use 4s instead of A's I can get away with it.

 

For Professional Use Only.

 

Personally I take messages like that as a challenge.

 

I like high mileage anything if/when available. I’m also cheap too so I usually run Napa brand synthetic since it’s what our shop buys in bulk. BG MOA or RF7 is also good stuff.

 

I pretty much categorically dismiss any 'fix' based on just pouring a bottle of something in somewhere....unless the problem is specifically that you don't have enough fluid in said place.

 

I agree. But I don't look at "high mileage" engine oil as a "fix" like pouring head gasket repair in your coolant. It's more like "aid" to help your engine run better. Like my insulin and heart meds. They don't fix me just keep me running better. Every one has their own opinion on oil and I respect that but for someone considering using it I think it's worth a try. It won't hurt your engine but it might help.

 

Thinking of starting with high mileage oil as needed to top off rather than changing oil out all at once. Any thoughts on combining high mileage oil with regular oil? I only drive 2 or 3 k yearly. It likely will need .5 qt before next scheduled change

 

It won't hurt to mix them you just won't get the full benefits of the oil until you do a full change. I also switched to using Chevron Havoline oil. Found that Walmart sells these 6 qt. boxes for $15 one day when searching on the internet.

 

I have an 05 RCLB with the 4.0 and the timing cover leak. When I got it, the timing cover leaked real bad with small puddles of oil every morning, would be half-way between the dots in about a week. I put in Mobil 1 High Mileage synthetic and it has helped slow down the leak.

 

After listening to a Carcast podcast a few years back with one of the main guys behind Joe Gibbs racing and their oil, I thought I'd give some HM oil a try. From what I remember, HM oil has Zinc added to it, which is one of the main things an older engine needs to help "restore" gaskets and help the motor. Don't jump my s#!t if I'm not correct on this.
Been running Valvoline HM in our Odyssey, and a few oil changes ago I switched to Pennzoil Platinum HM Synthetic for the Tundra. Our Mini has been running Mobil One since it was purchased.

 

Zinc is actually good for the cams and other metal to metal contact points. HM Oil has the most Zinc in it compared to non-HM Oil.

Problem with Zinc is if you use too much it can fowl your catalytic convertor. There is a fine balance which I discovered when mediating this past summer. I discovered Zinc was so good that I’d start using Racing Oil with extremely high amounts of Zinc. Then I discovered its not a good idea due to ruination of the Cats.

Another idea hit me when I read some people delete their cats for better horsepower and can then run Racing Oil because the Zinc has nothing to ruin. Then I read its illegal to delete Cats. Then I read my state doesn’t check for Cats so I read some people do it anyway and the Zinc is super helpful for their engine they reported.

The high mileage oils also contain ‘seal enhancers’ to ‘recondition’ old shranked up gaskets to slow/stop weeps.

 

R

redline oil has very high amounts of ZDDP. It’s one reason why it’s not API certified but they guarantee that it would meet or exceed the specification anyway.