There is no "sensor" on the planet that can tell you when your oil needs to be changed.Originally posted by: Amused
Originally posted by: dirtboy
My car has a default change cycle of full synthetic every 7,000 miles. It has an oil sensor in it that will adjust the time based on my driving habits.
I routinely drive short distances in stop and go traffic. The sensor extended my limit past 7,000 the first time and it's looking like the next will be over 7,000 miles again.
Now if the engineer who designed the engine said I should change it every 7,000 miles, who do you think is more right: you or them? I'd have to say that if the engineer felt like it needed to be changed every 7,000 miles then you should.
My roommate used to have a BMW and under their free maintenance program, they wouldn't change the oil until he reached 15,000 miles, which was recommened by BMW. Should he have changed it sooner? I don't think so...
Exactly.
Cars that come with free service have VASTLY longer intervals than cars that do not.
Answer the why to this question, and you'll have the answer to this entire thread.
It's still a guess. It's programmed with the same logic that you're supposed to apply when you read your service manual...
All I'm trying to say is that there are certainly instances where a shorter interval is warranted. The only way to truely know is to get your oil analyzed.
Because of this, the only thing you have to go on is worst case. In the worst case, you will need to change your oil after 3750 miles.
It's not really that hard to understand. You can say that it's overkill for "most" drivers, but not all.
Also remember that you can't always go on miles alone. We had the oil in my Dad's Camry analyzed after 4800 miles.... and 8 months. Obviously, he takes short trips.
Because of this, the oil was 2% fuel, borderline absolutely unacceptable. That's why short trips are the worst, and highway travel is important.