OCI when kilometers are VERY low

[GoshiTheQuaker]

So my car (19 camry hybrid) says OCI of 16,000 Km or 1 year whatever first.

It has been almost 1 year but have only driven 2000km.

Would it be necessary to change it or can go further considering extremely low milage?

I have a jug of Mobil 1 Advanced fuel economy 0w16 but it is only SN+ rated. Was planning on maybe refunding it and waiting on a sale of Mobil 1 (or whichever brand) 0w16 SP whenever that happens. No idea when, it could be months.

PS: Oops sorry for 2nd thread. Can a mod merge maybe?

 

[supton]

I forget if SP is required? TBH I never looked...

Personally on an expensive vehicle I'd probably just buy the right oil and sleep well at night. And since the manual says 16k or 1yr, whichever comes first, I'd change it. Small money in the scheme of things. More than a few here will drop oil early, as early as this, on a brand new car--myself, I wouldn't, but there's that too.

 

[mahanddeem]

Change it if it's been 1 year. Peace of mind plus legally maintaining warranty.

 

[Oliveoil2]

One year, per manual.

 

[nobb]

Other than for warranty purposes, changing by time interval really isn't necessary provided that the engine isn't short tripped and gets up to operating temp for longer periods of time when it is used.

 

[kschachn]

PS: Oops sorry for 2nd thread. Can a mod merge maybe?

Moderators do not read all posts in all threads so you should PM one directly.

 

[GoshiTheQuaker]

Other than for warranty purposes, changing by time interval really isn't necessary provided that the engine isn't short tripped and gets up to operating temp for longer periods of time when it is used.

Yeah it's always short trips tbh. Granted only less than 2000km in a year.

 

[jstert]

my snowbird, warm place, toyota yaris is parked about half the year on a battery tender. i change oil at about 18-20 month intervals, which is usually 3k miles of suburban tooling around and 45 minute highway trips. usually it gets 5w30 semi synthetic kendall or valvoline for $20ish at a quick lube. in november i took it to a recommended japan specialty garage for a comprehensive 60k mile service. mechanic said it’s in fine shape, it got his shop’s 5w30 full synthetic toyota genuine motor oil, which costed twice as much (observation, not a complaint).

o.p.’s camry is more complex, newer and expensive than my plain, cheap and robust little yaris. if i were o.p., i would change the camry’s factory oil now then go to a one year oci with any decent 0w20 synthetic (i simply cannot see using a 0w16 oil regardless of owner’s manual but that is me and another story).

 

[GoshiTheQuaker]

my snowbird, warm place, toyota yaris is parked about half the year on a battery tender. i change oil at about 18-20 month intervals, which is usually 3k miles of suburban tooling around and 45 minute highway trips. usually it gets 5w30 semi synthetic kendall or valvoline for $20ish at a quick lube. in november i took it to a recommended japan specialty garage for a comprehensive 60k mile service. mechanic said it’s in fine shape, it got his shop’s 5w30 full synthetic toyota genuine motor oil, which costed twice as much (observation, not a complaint).

o.p.’s camry is more complex, newer and expensive than my plain, cheap and robust little yaris. if i were o.p., i would change the camry’s factory oil now then go to a one year oci with any decent 0w20 synthetic (i simply cannot see using a 0w16 oil regardless of owner’s manual but that is me and another story).

I'm in canada btw and its 0C and below in the winter right now. Why I feel 0W16 is perfectly fine here but correct me if I'm wrong. If i lived in a warmer place I'd definitely run 0W20

 

[kschachn]

I'm in canada btw and its 0C and below in the winter right now. Why I feel 0W16 is perfectly fine here but correct me if I'm wrong. If i lived in a warmer place I'd definitely run 0W20

They both have a 0W winter rating. And unless you’re starting unaided at -35 or so then an oil with a 5W winter rating would also be appropriate.

 

[PimTac]

Just change it yearly.

2000km a year is very low mileage for any car and particularly for a hybrid since the engine is not running all the time either.

 

[madeej11]

I'm in canada btw and its 0C and below in the winter right now. Why I feel 0W16 is perfectly fine here but correct me if I'm wrong. If i lived in a warmer place I'd definitely run 0W20

Yeah but 0 celcius is only 32 farenheit. Both are 0w which is the winter rating.

 

[Kira]

The OP did say, "...it's always short trips..".
That that didn't ring the alarm bell here is amazing.

 

[supton]

The OP did say, "...it's always short trips..".
That that didn't ring the alarm bell here is amazing.

I figured, with only 2,000km in a year it had to be short trips.

Being a hybrid the engine cycles a lot. I need to learn how to use EV mode on ours, as it’ll always start up leaving the garage it seems (I think it’s to get the engine warm?). I don’t know the OEM does anything to safeguard against this sort of thing (guess I’ll find out in a few years).