First oil change - perform soon and then often

[Bridge1821]

Recommendation: Change the motor oil soon, and often. When you see the junk in the used oil you'll be glad you did. A magnetic drain plug will help, too.

 

[Wubzy]

Recommendation: Change the motor oil soon, and often. When you see the junk in the used oil you'll be glad you did. A magnetic drain plug will help, too.

how soon?

 

[Bridge1821]

How soon for first oil change? I recommend within the first 500 miles, then again at 2,000, again at 5,000 and at 5K intervals thereafter. At 2,000 you can judge how much metal is visible in the used oil and change before 5,000 if it's dirty with metal visible. I use Toyota 0w-16 full synthetic oil and Toyota filter in my Lexus NX, but 0W-20 which is what I think Toyota is recommending for the 4Runner now.

 

[dirtwheeler]

how soon?

The manual doesn't recommend a special first time oil change as far as I can tell: "Toyota recommends obtaining scheduled maintenance for your vehicle every 5,000 miles or six months, whichever comes first." (T-MMS-254Runner.pdf)

There's a discussion on this topic here: https://www.toyotanation.com/thread...l-change-by-1000-miles-to-regular-oil.1792693

TLDR summary: The OP shared an experience at a dealership where a technician mentioned that all 2025 Toyotas come with break-in oil and suggested performing the first oil change between 500 to 1,000 miles. However, this information is not found in the owner's manual (I verified this). Other folks responded with skepticism about the existence of break-in oil in modern Toyota vehicles (I've seen no official evidence of this myself). Some owners advocate for early oil changes to remove potential manufacturing debris, and others trust Toyota's maintenance schedule.

I trust Toyota, but still I plan to do an oil change myself at 500 to 1,000 miles so I can inspect the oil myself. I'm sure some people will tell me I'm wasting money and time on the 500 to 1000 mile oil change, but I don't think there's an argument that this will be bad for the vehicle.

Also, if you haven't read about the break-in procedures for how you are supposed to drive your 4Runner in the first 1,000 miles, you can read about this in the manual. You can get an electronic copy of all the documentation (including manuals) from the Toyota website (makes it easier to search for things). Since you are planning a road trip, you might want to look at this break-in procedure ASAP if you don't think you're going to own the vehicle long before the road trip.

Great looking vehicle! Everest was my original choice, but I've got an Underground ORP on order... hopefully getting it "soon".

 

[sapperfitz]

How soon for first oil change? I recommend within the first 500 miles, then again at 2,000, again at 5,000 and at 5K intervals thereafter. At 2,000 you can judge how much metal is visible in the used oil and change before 5,000 if it's dirty with metal visible. I use Toyota 0w-16 full synthetic oil and Toyota filter in my Lexus NX, but 0W-20 which is what I think Toyota is recommending for the 4Runner now.

Wow. Have you had some engine issues in the past which lead you to not follow the manufacturer's recommendations?

 

[LLL1990]

how soon?

The day you bring it home from the dealer do the first oil change then change it once a week thereafter. And make sure you use the most expensive, overpriced oil known to man. Never use a Toyota oil filter, you have to use Wix.

Sure this seems excessive but oil is cheaper than an engine.

 

[Wubzy]

The day you bring it home from the dealer do the first oil change then change it once a week thereafter. And make sure you use the most expensive, overpriced oil known to man. Never use a Toyota oil filter, you have to use Wix.

Sure this seems excessive but oil is cheaper than an engine.

Okie dokie artichokie

 

[CrispyTacoLover]

How soon for first oil change? I recommend within the first 500 miles, then again at 2,000, again at 5,000 and at 5K intervals thereafter. At 2,000 you can judge how much metal is visible in the used oil and change before 5,000 if it's dirty with metal visible. I use Toyota 0w-16 full synthetic oil and Toyota filter in my Lexus NX, but 0W-20 which is what I think Toyota is recommending for the 4Runner now.

That schedule is a bit rigorous for most people. These days I do the first sometime between 500 and 2000 miles. If it’s close to 2k miles, my next would be at 10k, and 5k intervals after.

 

[shine]

If you want to be more scientific about it, consider sending in a sample to https://www.blackstone-labs.com/ and find out what contaminants are in your used motor oil