Im going to be having an oil change done by one of those (quickie lube places) because im going to be out on business. I have an 07 v6 SE. As with all of these places they ask which oil grade i want or kind. What kind do I say? Or what grade? Usually they have like 3 grades. Any info would be really helpful I dont want to get the most expensive if its not necessary nor do I want to get the cheapest if it is not appropriate.

 

There many brands of oil which ever you choose is up to you. Ive always used Valveonline Castrol or Mobil 1. Ive always found them to be good oils.
There are many grades of oil weights whichever you want to call it. Heres how it works
Oils main job is to keep the engine clean, lubed, running cool ect. The grade usually 5w20 5w30 or 10w30 ect. Theres many of them as well which can be consfusing at times. Oil weight is measure by cold and hot . For ex: 5w30 The 5 weight is when the oil is cold and 30 is the weight when its hot. The reason being is the the less the weight when its cold the easier the oil can get to the top of the engine and lube it to prevent cold engine damage. Once its heated up its a 30 weight and is thick enough to protect your engine.( most engine damage is caused when the engine is cold )You should use the proper grade that your engine calls for. Being toyota its probably 5 or 10w 30.If you live up north id recommenda 5w30 weight.You can easily find out which grade you should use by your owners manual or under the hood on the oil cap. However there are synthetic oils as well. Synthetic oils have man made additives to help the engine run cooler, the oil is naturally slicker to help it move around easier and boost performance of the engine resulting in better mpgas well. They have alot of additives to prevent engine wear ect. One good thing about a synthetic oil is you can go longer on the oil change. Instead of the normal 3,000 miles oil change you can go 4 or 5 k. Theres also synthetic blends. Which are good too but youll have to read about it more to decide for yourself what you think you need. Synthetic oils are better for someone who travels alot or puts extreme conditions on an engine such as idling for long periods of time stop and go traffic its really good for anything to be honest.. Id recommend using synthetic if you decide to keep the car for a while. It has many benifits. However there are some that think synthetics are a waste. You must make that decesion yourself.

Be sure to read your owners manual. It will tell you the grade and type of oil you should use.

 

Thanks for your response very informative and helpful.

 

i think your car still calls for 5w30, but it may require 5w-20. i'm not really sure. Anyways, no matter where you take it, just make sure you watch them do the work so they don't cheat you, and check the oil level right after to be sure all is in order, and that there isnt a leak coming from the bottom of the vehicle. Any major oil company will be fine. If you're having a shop work on it every 3000 miles, just get regular oil, its not worth it to pay so much more for synthetic from places like jiffy lube etc. Use synthetics if you plan on doing it yourself.

have fun with the car!

 

Oh yea note!!!
Dont go by the owners manual for oil changes or the idiot light. ( Maintenace Required Light) If your not gonna use synthetic do it every 3k . I believe newer toyota model call for 7500mile oil changes. This is to long and will do more harm than good. I wouldnt even go 7500 on synthetic and feel safe. If this is a lease get the cheapest oil and just rag the crap out of that thing

 

just check what the dealer reccomands & check what kinda oil was used in ur car ... if its a good brand ... then just stick to it .. otherwise go 4 a better brand.

best of luck

 

manual calls for every 5k.

you dont have to do it every 3k either ..thats for older cars. anything past 3k just check for color ..it you think its too dark then change it. the newer cars have a tighter fittings so less build up in them unlike the older cars.

 

Listen to the dealer suggestions for the viscosity. Not for the duration/life of the oil.

 

I use mobil 1 and that q advance torque power in my explorer. I love synthetic. I will always use it and strongly recomend it. But i do do my own oil changes, i do not trust those places. i only have them do my diffys and T/C!

 

i work at a toyota dealership and we put pennzoil 10W30 in all of the vehicles.
on the oil cap they should have a recomended weight. and i wouldnt go more than 3000 miles without an oil change whether your running synthetic or not.
ive heard good things about synthetic oil and bad things. if i were to run synthetic i would put mobil 1 fully synthetic. and once you go with synthetic your not supposed to go back with conventional oil.