How much are oil changes?

[yuppicide]

In February I bought an 09 Corolla LE. The other day I was out and some dude was eyeballing my car when I got out of the store. Turns out he owns a 2006 Corolla LE and was just looking it over. We stopped and chatted for a few minutes.

He told me they charge him $60 for oil changes at the Toyota he bought his car from. Is this a pretty normal price?! When my time comes should I get my oil changes done at my dealer or just go elsewhere where it might be cheaper?!

[Leighcm]

I think I mentioned this in another post, but here goes:

If you service your car at the dealer, here are the benefits:

1.) Factory trained mechanics that are ASE certified.

2.) History is on record if you need a warranty repair.

3.) You can complain to Toyota corporate if there's a serious issue.

4.) They have the proper Toyota recommended maintenance schedule.

5.) If you establish a good relationship with them, they will sometimes even get things covered when you're out of the factory warranty.

If you service your car somewhere else, here are the benefits:

1.) It's a little cheaper in the short term.

Haven't you heard the horror stories about Jiffy Lube, etc. forgetting to put drain plugs back in, forgetting to put oil in, etc.? If your car breaks down because of something those guys do, you're not under warranty.

It's only twice a year...spend the extra $80/year and get it done right.

[yuppicide]

Thanks for the reply. Guess I'll just get it done at them.

[XR2003]

Since your Corolla is the new 09's stick with dealership oil changes for now.

Better still if you are mechanically inclined you can do the oil changes yourself.

I would recommend the OEM oil filters though over aftermarket name brands like Fram or Wal-Mart specials.

But the the 2006 Corolla owner should look into changing his own oil or if he knows a reputable mechanic shop to go there.

$60 oil change better include synthetic oil use as with regular oil and filter change In My Opinion should cost around $20 - $30.

[yuppicide]

My oil was low the other day so I had to put more in. I was unaware if it needed regular or synthetic so I called the dealer. He told me to put in whatever feels better to me. Something like that. I forget his words exactly, but he stated that cars usually come with regular oil because it's cheaper.

Does switching to synthetic make a big difference and if so what kind of difference?! Better performance? Better mpg? Longer life?

If I switch to synthetic I should drain out all the old stuff and put only synthetic in, right?

I went last week to do my first oil change ever at the dealer. I was happy because the first one is free. Maybe next time I'll get synthetic if it's worth it.

[Leighcm]

Regular oil is cheaper. Synthetic will easily run double or triple the price. Choose one or the other, and don't mix them. However, in a Corolla, regular oil is fine. Your car is going to run forever anyway, and the synthetic won't give you a significant edge. Just make sure you do your regular maintenance, and 200k is easily attainable.

[XR2003]

This is what I did, used regular oil till my warranty expired.

Switched to synthetic - loved it ever since.

I plan to have my Matrix for a long time.

While costing more $$$ - there is a piece of mind while using the synthetic stuff.

I noticed little things ever since I switched.

1) Car runs smoother

2) Starts quicker, easier - maybe only a split second difference, but a difference nonetheless.

3) With regular oil, I noticed the oil would get darker/dirtier before the 5k mile interval change. With synthetic, even @ 5k - it still ran smoothly and the oil seemed a golden brown rather than almost black with regular.

I prefer to use Mobil 1, but other brands out there are okay to use.

To save a few $$$ you can use those Synthetic blends. Honestly synthetic should be used for vehicle that are forced induction (turbos, supercharge, etc.) or for full blown race cars.

A peace of mind is a valuable thing and a lot of people are starting to see the benefits of synthetic and are switching.

[1993 4-Runner]

Do it yourself everyone else will only bend you over.....I use penzoil only and factory filter i buy by the case so they come out to less than $5 a filter