How Bad Did I Mess Up?

Joined
Apr 20, 2014
Messages
3,708
Location
Franklin County, PA
Morning all, I changed the oil in the Tacoma last weekend and I had an abundance of Castrol Edge 5w30 (black bottle) so I decided to use that instead of the 0w20. Lots of people have been doing it, so figured it wouldn't hurt. The viscosity is not my concern, but I looked on the bottle the other day and saw it was GF6 and not the GF6A that is specified in the manual. How bad is this really? I'm not the greatest on keeping up with the specs of everything. This oil change will get me though the winter and approx 4K miles before it gets changed again in the Spring.

EDIT: Engine is the T24A turbo.
 
Seriously, I doubt it would hurt anything.
The rub is that if something goes wrong with that turbo and that oil is in it, you may have provided Toyota a reason to say "Too bad, so sad."
 
I am aware of the possible warranty ramifications, and one could argue the manual outside of the US, but I don't want to get into that huge debate. However, I may have opened a can of worms here. :oops:
 
I am aware of the possible warranty ramifications, and one could argue the manual outside of the US, but I don't want to get into that huge debate. However, I may have opened a can of worms here. :oops:
Well, after our first "free" Dealer oil change in the LC w/ its 0w20 recommendations under the hood and in the manual, there was a windshield sticker that said "5w30 synthetic"......:)
 
As @Glenda W. and @wings&wheels have said - no such thing as GF6.

ILSAC GF6A is backwards compatible with older specs

ILSAC GF6B is a new standard, not backwards compatible, and only applies (thus far) to 0w-16 and 0w-8.

Here's a screenshot of the page in the manual.

db9pwlV.jpg
 
I wouldn't worry or change the oil out. The vehicle will suffer no issues because of the GF-6. You could run into an issue if you suffer an engine problem and have to deal with a dealer employee sticking to manual recommendations. With Toyota having had to replace so many engines, this possibility could be elevated...slightly.
 
Well, after our first "free" Dealer oil change in the LC w/ its 0w20 recommendations under the hood and in the manual, there was a windshield sticker that said "5w30 synthetic"......:)

My only reason for going with 5w30 is to combat fuel dilution, which may be just in my head. However, just the summer oil change the oil smelled something awful of gas. We all know in the winter the engine stays in open loop for longer, thus using more fuel. This might be a stupid reasoning from me, but it made sense in my twisted mind?

Yes, without proper oil analysis this is all pure speculation and hearsay.
 
I have already been there and done that on this issue. According to the Toyota Corporate Service Manager in my part of the USA and my local Toyota Dealer Service Manager, by telephone, I can use up to 5W-30 in my 2025 Toyota that "recommends" 0W-16 year-round with no warranty issues at all. Did they write that on paper for me, no. Everybody already knows this here, but in other parts of the world Toyota "recommends" 5W-30 year-round in the same exact engine I have. This was pointed out to me back then, 0W-16 or 0W-20 is recommended, not required. If you have a Toyota Field Rep. or Service Manager that wants to be a jerk in your area, they could find an excuse to decline your warranty for about any reason I would guess. Overall though I think they try to take care of their customers. I would run a 0W-30 "LSPI" rated oil year-round if your Toyota is turbocharged. If it makes you nervous and you may get ulcers, follow the book. 0 or 5W-30 won't cause engine damage, however.
 
Back
Top Bottom