What weight oil

What weight oil do you run in your tundra? I was reading the manual and it says to use 0W-20. It said that you can run 5W-20, but on the next oil change to go back to 0W-20. Why do they recommend that light of oil? There are several people here (where I live) that are telling me that it's really better to run a thicker oil. When I had my RAM, I did exactly what the manufacturer recommended which was 5W-20 synthetic blend. Then eventually switched to a full synthetic oil at about 70k miles. In my manual, I think it says 0W-20 SAE oil. Is that synthetic or non synthetic? The truck I just got is a 2015 and it only has 38k miles on it. I live in Houston, TX and it gets pretty hot here in the summer. Doesn't' get real cold here either.

So what do you run in your truck?

 

I run 5w-30 and whatever is the cheapest on the shelf, but that's just because I don't care anymore ! Lol

 

Just run 0w-20. That’s what it calls for. I think they switched viscosity at some point on th 2nd gen. But I don’t know if anything changed inside the motor like tolerances. Probably just switched for economy. Either way I just go with manual and live with it.

 

I read somewhere that 0W-20 is a synthetic oil. Is that right? The guy that will be changing my oil, will try to talk me into a heavier oil. He and I went round and round when I had my RAM. He kept telling me to run a thicker oil. Said it helped lubricate the moving parts better on start up. Then another guy I know that used to own his own shop and builds race cars and hot rods, also told me to run a thicker oil. With the issues I ended up having with the hemi engine, I wish I would of run a thicker oil in the beginning. But this is a toyota and I feel it's built alot better than the hemi. I was just curious what everyone here was running and why.

 

There are a few tundras now with 1 million miles on them that are using this oil grade...
Toyota knows they're engine best, I stick with 0W-20, heck you can buy the genuine toyota oil from the dealer for like $6-$7 a quart. Pretty good price.

 

Thanks. Maybe I will get it from the dealer. Hadn't thought of that!

 

As long as the cooling system is doing it's job, the engine is going to run about the same temperature in Minneapolis as it does in Houston...the engine thermostat regulates engine temperature to around 200+ deg F. It may seem a lot hotter when you lift the hood in Houston, but engine temperature is actually about the same. Ease of cranking in the winter is another matter, but 0W works great for that. Toyota would not recommend 0W-20 viscosity oil if they thought such recommendation was going to generate a lot of warranty claims in climates where ambient temps run hotter.

0W-20 viscosity oil (and maybe 5W-20 also) is only made as synthetic and synthetic blends.

I believe the instruction to change back to 0W-20 at the next change is not for engine mechanical reasons, but for Toyota to keep the fleet fuel efficiency they promised the feds.

 

Variable Valve Timing. The oil is critical in the way the 5.7 adjusts its timing.

 

0W-20 Mobile 1

 

Make sure to get a filter and drain plug gasket too!

 

0w-20 and 5w-20 are the exact same thickness after your motor runs for 5 minutes. Question the insight of the oil man talking you into a “thicker” 5w-20 oil

 

Actually, I’ve had a lot of different vehicles in my life. Different vehicles require different oils. By that I mean, when I had my corvette, I ran Moble 1. 10w30. In a Vette, everyone ran Mobile 1. That’s what came in the Vette new. When I got the RAM, I was told to run 5w-20. Found out the guy that was changing it wasn’t doing that. I was pissed because that’s what the manufacturer said to run. When I found out he wasn’t using the 5w -20 I told him it bothered me that he never asked me if I wanted to run a different weight oil than what the manufacturer recommended. Then, when he sold his shop to another guy, that guy was trying to get me to run a heavier oil. Now I do know that the “W” isn’t weight. It’s for winter. Years ago they didn’t have 10W-30, they just had 30w oil. When I lived in Nebraska, I ran straight 5w oil because my truck wouldn’t start if the oil was too thick. So I ran 5w oil. Also had to start the truck up and drive it for 20 minutes every night, then brought it back and plugged an oil dipstick heater into where the dipstick went.

I asked my question here because I wanted to know what everyone is running in their trucks. I haven’t owned a Toyota truck and so I thought by asking here, I would get feedback on what you all run and why.

I also know that with the newer engines, they have now changed the oil due to velosity and MPG so the manufacturers can get a better over all MPG (laws that the government is requiring for manufacturers).

Now with the RAM, some guys ran the recommended oil from the manufacturer, some didn’t. When I bought my RAM bran new, the salesman told me to always run synthetic blend and never to run full synthetic. When the truck hit, 70k, I had guys telling me to switch to full synthetic. I called the dealer and asked them if that was a good idea. They said yes because of the high miles.

Bottom line, I thought by asking other people that owned Tundras would give me something to think about and see what others were doing. On all other forums I’ve been on, for my Vette, my RAM, my Jeep Wranglers... never did anyone question or make fun of someone asking this type of a question. And believe me, this was asked by many people on other forums.

Maybe I need to not ask anymore questions on this forum if I’m going to be made fun of and excused for being a girl!

 

I run this... get it delivered to the door on Amazon. Been using it for years in my cars. It’s a high performance oil recommended for BMW and Porsche, etc. Cost only a little more. I change every 5k. Using good oil and filter changes is cheap insurance IMO.

 

Lots of shenanigans on here. The oil questions seems to be asked frequently and debates get started and some heated.

This is a great forum, ask away.

 

I run either Mobil 1 or Valvoline Synthetic 5W30 in my supercharged crewmax

 

Actually I did a search on oil. Didn’t find a specific thread about what type of oil people use. The last thing I want to do is get heated or start a fight

 

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Liquid moly looks interesting. There really arent as many true true high class synthetics on the market any more. They have mostly blended and downgraded, but still are better than oils of the past

 

The "W" represents cold weather viscosity. The upper number such as "20" for example, represents normal engine temp viscosity. The "0, 5, 10" before the "W" represents the recommended cold weather viscosity for your engine......

 

Liqui-Moly is a great oil to use. I run their 5W-40 Leichtlauf High Tech in almost all my European cars. I also run an Import repair shop and it is my oil brand of choice for my customers as well. I got on board with their products about 2 years ago. They also have some really knowledgeable guys on their team and are constantly improving their products. When I bought my Tundra one of the first things I did was check to see if Liqui-Moly offered a compatible oil for the 5.7. That being said the part number you want to use is 2207 (1 Liter) or 2208 (5 Liter) since they are developed for Toyota & other Asian/American vehicles calling for a 0W-20, Amazon also carries this one. The part number you are running is spec'd for Volvo and although I don't recall how they are formulated a little differently.

 

They market oil like health supplements and energy drinks nowadays. I have had good luck and trust this product. It’s not that much more money. My German was still running strong at over 260k when I sold it. It was recommended for the German cars and when I started using it, I thought it was soaking up a lot of deposits when I changed the oil because it looked dark, but then I realized, it turns red quickly when heated.

 

Yes. Thanks. Good eye and you are correct. I did a quick search for a pic and then saw the Volvo designation and thought to update the post to say it’s the brand and not that particular version.

 

Justin, how much per qt? My 14 is due for a oil change. Not worried about price but curious of course.

 

You'll find the Search feature is sometimes oblivious to the subject being searched. There really are a lot of threads about oil brands, weights, change intervals, etc., and with so many "experts" posting to them, members can get tired of hearing it. Knowing the potential for heat, I would have foregone posting, except I saw you were a newbie Texas gal.

Oh, and btw...I use Mobil 1 Extended Performance 0W-20, and I don't care what anyone else thinks is the right oil to use. I use only Toyota standard filters, and drain plug gaskets. Change the oil at 10K mile intervals (also a common topic of contention), or at least annually like Toyota recommends, and the Tundra and you will grow old together.

 

I use Amsoil 0W-20. I change it every 20K.

 

These threads are just annoying. It's been covered a million times with 50 one way and 50 another. Just run what the manufacturer recommends. They designed the engine and know the tolerances. Toyota is known for reliability, not gas mileage. They have made minor changes over the years. As mentioned above it doesn't matter where you live the engine cooling system is designed to regulate and keep the engine operating a certain temp wherever it is. Additionally I don't think a thicker oil lubricates faster on startup as it doesn't flow over and cover things a quickly as a thinner oil would. At the end of the day use what is recommended. If you want better protection use a higher grade oil. Personally I use Amsoil signature series and change ever 5k.

 

On other forums I've been on, I do realize a lot of people seem to get irritated when someone asks the same question over and over again. It never bothered me because I felt if I didn't want to look at it or comment, I could just ignore the post or scroll on past it. But I get it. And for what its worth, I did do a search several times on this forum. Typed in what kind of oil, typed in just oil, typed in oil recommendations...nothing came up where a post was just about the type of oil. Sure, I could scroll through all the posts that mentioned oil, but then I found myself reading about all kinds of things and not just oil in one thread. So I thought I would simply ask the question. For me, I find it interesting what everyone runs and why they do it. Then you have all the different brands of oil to consider as well. When I first started driving back in the late 70's, my dad told me to always use the same brand of oil. Things have changed over the years with vehicles. Oils are different, brands are different. Which is why I was interested in what everyone was using on their Tundra's.

As far as changing my oil goes, I won't wait 10k miles to change it. I will do oil changes every 4000-4500. It's not that expensive and for me, I would just feel better knowing it's changed more frequently.

Thanks again for the information. I do appreciate it!

 

Sorry to annoy you! It truly wasn't my intention to annoy anyone!

 

Actually it can matter where you live. When I was in AK in 2012 it could be -50 degrees in Fairbanks, days on end during that winter. I noticed it got up to 90 degrees the following summer in Fairbanks. That's a 140 degree temp change. Can you post Amsoil specs that can handle that extreme temp difference?

 

Myself, I'm quite happy. I was born in Texas, 63 years ago, Corpus Christi. Nothing gets by me nowadays.

 

Our search function does sort of suck Cindi. Hang in here. Plenty of us that have been here a while will steer you in the right direction!