Originally Posted By: ArcticDriver
Interesting that all of you say TWO years.
What evidence do you have to support that? Does the maintenance schedule in the Owner's Manual state 2 years?
The reason I ask is that I have always read and heard ONE year.
Here is what a Toyota Service Center instructs:
What are the oil change intervals using synthetic oil?
Only Toyota vehicles in which 0w-20 synthetic oil is required (except for the 2TR-FE and 3UR-FBE Engines*) have been approved for extended oil change intervals of 10,000-miles/12-months. (However, you should continue to check the oil level regularly and top off if needed. That will help your engine get the full benefit of synthetic oil.)
Vehicles in which 0w-20 is an option to 5w-20 mineral oil, (or 5w-30), will continue to require 5,000-mile/6-month oil change intervals, even if 0w-20 oil is used.
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1) In the US, the engineers and lawyers design to the lowest common denominator so there's some buffer room.
Case in point, the fuel warning light or range meter. There is easily 2 gallons and when the Fuel light goes on or the Range says Refuel now. Same with the oil recommendation. If humans were more like say a Star Trek Vulcan, when range=0 miles and fuel hits E, then the car would be exactly out of gas.
2) The OP's oil choice is better than the minimal synthetic oil requirements.
Therefore, a doubling of the printed recommendation from the engineers leads to the 2year rec. If you want to stay by the book, then the book is there, no need to post to ask for an alternate rec.
Additionally, I can see other Legal+Sales and marketting guys have a hand in that too. It is harder to justify a safety-only maintenance check where nothing gets done; so they may force that on you by having a required 1year service procedure.
From a sales perspective that's a win. But also from a legal perspective they want to CYA so they can say you missed a maintenance and that's why your car isn't working right.