For those that may be interested...

2013 Toyota Corolla
Blackstone report at about 150,000 miles.

The automatic transmission report is in the Transmission section.

Gnarls.

If you don’t pay extra for TBN then your choice of OCI can’t be validated!

Hi b...

The report is excellent.  Since I don't plan on extending the use beyond normal (which would be 10,000 miles according to Toyota), how much active additive is left is irrelevant.

Also the % of insolubles is half the average, so the wear factor is very low.

I will continue to change the oil and filter every 5,000 miles, and continue with STP synthetic (slightly less expensive than Mobil 1).

Working from home since the beginning of March, it took 11 months for me of go 5,000 miles.  When I was driving into work every week, I was changing the oil and filter about every 12 weeks.

The Toyota dealer did the oil changes every 10,000 miles according to the book up to 50,000 miles.  After that I started doing the oil changes and I did them every 5,000 miles.  I also switched from 0W-20 to 5W-20.

My Corolla is my 14th Toyota.  So far, so good.


Gnarls.

Why would you change from 0w to 5w?  The only real difference is that it’s thicker at startup temperatures and 5w can be brewed using conventional base oils unlike 0w that pretty much forces the true synthetic base oils.  This one puzzles me a bit.

The only downside that I know of for a 0w is that a lot of viscosity modifiers have to be added for something like a 0w-40 which leads to a shorter oil life due to the VII shearing and the viscosity falling outside of specs.

Hey b...

I'm sure there are things I do that will puzzle you.  Let me help you...

The average ambient temp here in the summer months is 100d F.  I'm not concerned with a "cold start".  My engine is already at 100d F when I start it at 4:00pm in July.

The price of a quart 0W-20,  like Valvoline Synthetic, is $6.97.  The same oil 5W-20 is $3.97.

Also, 5W-20 was much more available on the shelves when I go to  buy it.

Does that help? 

Gnarls. 

Agree that the price point is a factor and cold startup temperatures in AZ are not a concern. For the sake of argument, if you’re worried about cost you should follow the Toyota recommended OCI that is about double what you’re doing or if your goal is to do better then 0w-20 is the better oil.  Twice the price for twice the cost less the time spent messing with oil changes makes sense to me.

Hi d…

Yes, you bring up a good point.

So, by the results of the report according to Blackstone, what I’m doing now every 5K oil change is working great, right?

There’s no point to use 0W-20, even if it is somehow rated better than 5W-20… my engine will NEVER know the difference.

For me, cost is always a factor in my decisions.  However…. As I have witnessed with my engine rebuild, the cost (money spent) doesn’t always give me the results I wanted!

So at twice the price for 0W-20, will I get twice the results?  I don’t think so.

Will 0W-20 allow me to go more miles between oil changes than 5W-20?  I don’t think so.

However, I believe your point is that I should extend the OCI, reduce labor and cost. 

And yes, that is exactly what I’m going to do. 

Assuming for now that my 20K+ miles per year is now 5K+ miles per year, I will go to 7,500 miles on this oil change. But… that will take approximately 18 months!

Because I’m a very curious person, I will send a sample to Blackstone at 7,500 miles to see the results.  If results are acceptable, I will consider going to 10,000 miles on the next oil change.

It is my belief that premature engine failure due to oil lubrication properties is almost non-existent in typical vehicles driven for common use and maintained per the manufacturer.

Gnarls.

UPDATE:  September 18, 2022

For those who may be interested, here is the UOA report from Blackstone Labs.

I am surprised at how well the oil does after 10,000 miles.

The report is also a testimony to the quality of the Corolla engine.  I believe it has been labeled "the most reliable automobile in the world", depending on who's comparison.

Although Blackstone suggested going to 12,000 miles on this oil change, because I switched back to Mobil 1 synthetic 5w-20, I will only go to 10,000 miles again and send a sample for the Mobil 1 synthetic oil.

The cost of STP synthetic is about 25% lower per quart than of Mobil 1 synthetic.

Gnarls.

UPDATE: 2-11-24

Just in case someone is interested.....

I watched 6 Youtube videos on how to change spark plugs on 2013 Corolla L1.8 engine.

Several were identified as an “auto shop” type business.

I was not surprised that all of them were showing everything from using wrong spark plugs according to the Toyota Owner’s Manual, wrong procedures, using incorrect tools, using anti-seize on the plug threads (Denso clearly states do not use anything on the threads), dropping the spark down the coil tube, not using a torque wrench, and just a plain waste of video time with stupid dumba$$ commentary.

I posted a comment on two of worst videos.

This morning, I replaced the spark plugs and the coils.

I bought 4 Hitachi coils, a 4-pak of Denso plugs, and a 14mm plug socket.

I used a 3/8” swivel between the socket and a 6” extension.  It worked perfect for sliding it into the coil tube, and I did not have to bend the plastic windshield wiper cowling as shown in those videos.

I also used a 10mm socket and a 10mm open-end wrench, a small flat head screwdriver.

The screwdriver was needed to very gently pry up the little tab-lock on the coil connector to pull it off the coil.

I used the 10mm wrench on the bolt on the first coil because there’s an electrical connection right above it and the 10mm socket won’t quite fit over the head of the bolt. I try avoiding unnecessarily removing anything plastic on the engine to minimize risk of breaking the connector.

I took compressed air and blew off all the area on the top coils and connectors to prevent any debris from dropping down into the coil tubes and into the combustion chamber while the plugs are being removed and replaced.

I did each plug and coil replacement one at a time.

I used my clicker torque wrench at 18 ft. lbs. to torque the plugs.

I put a little tiny dab plug boot lube on the inside of the coil tube where it will seat onto the top of the spark plug.

The plugs and the coils had the original 169,432 miles from the factory.

The original plugs have a gap average of .052”, so they needed to be replaced. The Denso Iridium plugs are factory gapped at Toyota spec .044”.

My total cost from Amazon was $297.40. It took me about 45 minutes, and I am slower than most.

Gnarls