Warranty
I agree that using synthetic would be your best option. My personal suggestion would be to first-of-all, change your oil every 3,000 miles, regardless of the grade of oil you use AND what your owner's manual suggest. Your best idea would be to use a synthetic blend for your first and second oil changes and between 9,000 and 12,000, switch to a full synthetic. The synthetic will improve and maintain your already impressive fuel economy while reducing engine wear, as mentioned before.
The only thing I would like to correct about anything mentioned before, is that you will NOT void a warranty by servicing your vehicle anywhere other than the dealer. A requirement of service at any one particular service station would be considered monopolizing, and is illegal in the United States, and I'm sure in many other countries as well. You're welcome to go to any station for any or all of your service. The warranty states that you must perform services on time (check your owner's manual), and you should keep all of your receipts. You may even opt to perform your own maintainance, but keep the receipts showing that you purchased enough oil (6.4 quarts for the V6) and a replacement oil filter. I haven't done this before, but I'm sure if you speak with someone at the stealership, they will tell you the same. Be careful for tricky talkers.
Hope that helps you out in saving some time or money or both! I would only go to the stealership for warranty/recall work. They don't necessarily have any more knowledge about your car then any other mechanic... Don't give them anymore trust because of their name.
On a side note, I spoke with a lady regarding a car problem she was having. I'm not going to name names, but the Toyota dealer that she chose to visit offered to fix her problem for $800... said her charcoal canister needed to be replaced. Just from her description of the problem (loss of power, reduced ability to climb hills, and the "Check Engine", "TCS" and "ABS" lights were all illuminated), I explained that a vaccum line was disconnected or missing at the air filter box (I've seen this many times). I reattached the vaccum line and disconnected the battery (to reset the computer and allow recalibration of the emissions control system). Long story short, a misdiagnosis could have costed a lot of money to replace a perfectly functioning part, and wouldn't have solved the problem. I fixed it in under one minute for free. Somehow the dealer knows best though. Think about it.
Phil
|
