Oil change?

[Sniper82]

I have my oil changed at shops because I live in apartments. Anyway on the sticker they put on your window it says change oil at a certain amount of miles or at a certain date. Should I actually change it if its past the date but not the miles? Is it that important or should I go by mileage?

 

[Summitdrinker]

depends on the driving conditions, the oil, the engine condition
it's best to change oil every 6 months even if the miles are low, oil can turn acidic, and pickup moisture

 

[jagec]

Depends. If you:

Live in an area with wide temperature swings (very cold in the winter, very hot in the summer)
Live in an area with a lot of snow/rain/salt on the roads
Live in an area with a lot of dust
Make lots of short trips
Drive in lots of stop-and-go-traffic
Use non-synthetic oil

Then you want to change the oil more often.

If you
Live in an area with mild conditions and no dust
Do lots of freeway driving
Use a synthetic oil

You can extend your change interval by a surprising amount. Some people who get their oil analyzed go out to 20,30k...BMW recommends 15k these days. But unless you're actually getting your oil analyzed, it's better to be safe than sorry.

If you live in fairly mild weather and/or keep your car garaged, and only take it out on longer/freeway trips, I'd extend the OCI a bit more.


BTW, what timeframe did they specify? How many months/miles from the last change? Oil change shops usually use a crazy short interval like 3 months/3000 miles.

 

[theslickvik]

I usually change every 3000. There is a noticeable improvement in engine response and smoothness following an oil change. in my mind

 

[thedarkwolf]

In your mind being the key there.

 

[Jahee]

Originally posted by: jagec
Depends. If you:

Live in an area with wide temperature swings (very cold in the winter, very hot in the summer)
Live in an area with a lot of snow/rain/salt on the roads
Live in an area with a lot of dust
Make lots of short trips
Drive in lots of stop-and-go-traffic
Use non-synthetic oil

Then you want to change the oil more often.

If you
Live in an area with mild conditions and no dust
Do lots of freeway driving
Use a synthetic oil

You can extend your change interval by a surprising amount. Some people who get their oil analyzed go out to 20,30k...BMW recommends 15k these days. But unless you're actually getting your oil analyzed, it's better to be safe than sorry.

If you live in fairly mild weather and/or keep your car garaged, and only take it out on longer/freeway trips, I'd extend the OCI a bit more.


BTW, what timeframe did they specify? How many months/miles from the last change? Oil change shops usually use a crazy short interval like 3 months/3000 miles.

You mean less often?..

 

[boomerang]

Crack open your owners manual and change the oil and filter per the recommendations there. The company that has to warranty the motor in your car knows best.

Really smart people will disagree.

The oil change place is in the business of selling you oil changes. They'd be really happy if you changed it once a week.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: Jahee

Originally posted by: jagec
Depends. If you:

Live in an area with wide temperature swings (very cold in the winter, very hot in the summer)
Live in an area with a lot of snow/rain/salt on the roads
Live in an area with a lot of dust
Make lots of short trips
Drive in lots of stop-and-go-traffic
Use non-synthetic oil

Then you want to change the oil more often.

If you
Live in an area with mild conditions and no dust
Do lots of freeway driving
Use a synthetic oil

You can extend your change interval by a surprising amount. Some people who get their oil analyzed go out to 20,30k...BMW recommends 15k these days. But unless you're actually getting your oil analyzed, it's better to be safe than sorry.

If you live in fairly mild weather and/or keep your car garaged, and only take it out on longer/freeway trips, I'd extend the OCI a bit more.


BTW, what timeframe did they specify? How many months/miles from the last change? Oil change shops usually use a crazy short interval like 3 months/3000 miles.

You mean less often?..

No... More often.

Temperature swings are harder on oil.
Snow, rain, and salt on the roads mean that the engine is ingesting more moisture and also some of the salt, which puts a burden on the oil as it is the oil that absorbs these.
Lots of dust means more particles in the oil.
Short trips are very hard on the oil; when the engine is cold there is more blow-by so the oil gets contaminated by fuel but never has a chance to heat up and have the fuel contamination evaporate out of the oil.
Stop and go traffic is harder on the oil since you are accelerating more often and acceleration is when the most blow-by occurs.
Finally, non-synthetic does need to be changed more often than synthetic.

ZV

 

[SearchMaster]

I've always gone 5-6K miles between changes, dino oil from quickie lube places. More from being busy and lazy than anything else. My cars have always lasted very well, but that may be luck more than anything else. My first car was driven 160K+ miles (~15 years) before I sold it, my current car has 160K+ in 7 years, and seems to be fine.

 

[Thump553]

Like a prior poster said, look at your manual. This 3K/three month thing is almost entirely a marketing ploy by the lube places to sell more jobs. I've owned cars for 40+ years, in New England or the upper midwest (harsh conditions both places) and change my oil every 5K miles/six months. Most manuals I've read say 7500 miles in normal conditions, but I do it at 5K because it's easier to remember. I can't remember the last time I had a car last less than 200k miles and I've never had an oil related engine failure.

 

[Vette73]

Originally posted by: theslickvik
I usually change every 3000. There is a noticeable improvement in engine response and smoothness following an oil change. in my mind

I agree. Its all in your mind.



Most cars/trucks that are not turbo and don;t tow etc... can get by at 5000miles or 6 months easy on todays oils and most filters (NOT Fram)

 

[Sniper82]

Originally posted by: Marlin1975

Originally posted by: theslickvik
I usually change every 3000. There is a noticeable improvement in engine response and smoothness following an oil change. in my mind

I agree. Its all in your mind.



Most cars/trucks that are not turbo and don;t tow etc... can get by at 5000miles or 6 months easy on todays oils and most filters (NOT Fram)

I have my oil changed at Wal-Mart so they slap Fram on there. Should I consider oil changes elsewhere?

 

[boomerang]

Originally posted by: Thump553
Like a prior poster said, look at your manual. This 3K/three month thing is almost entirely a marketing ploy by the lube places to sell more jobs. I've owned cars for 40+ years, in New England or the upper midwest (harsh conditions both places) and change my oil every 5K miles/six months. Most manuals I've read say 7500 miles in normal conditions, but I do it at 5K because it's easier to remember. I can't remember the last time I had a car last less than 200k miles and I've never had an oil related engine failure.

First off, :beer:

I too, used to change every 5,000 miles because it was easy to remember. My cars of late have had oil life indicators. Most of the time they show the need for an oil change around 10,000 miles. Newer oils are far superior to oils of old. Modern machining methods along with modern tooling and materials have led to far more closely held tolerences. Modern day engines just don't require oil changes as frequently.

Nice to hear a voice of reason. Another one for you sir! :beer:

 

[boomerang]

Originally posted by: Sniper82

Originally posted by: Marlin1975

Originally posted by: theslickvik
I usually change every 3000. There is a noticeable improvement in engine response and smoothness following an oil change. in my mind

I agree. Its all in your mind.



Most cars/trucks that are not turbo and don;t tow etc... can get by at 5000miles or 6 months easy on todays oils and most filters (NOT Fram)

I have my oil changed at Wal-Mart so they slap Fram on there. Should I consider oil changes elsewhere?

Fram filters have been around for as long as I can remember and I'm rapidly closing in on 54 years of age. If they were as bad as everyone here seems to think, they'd have gone under a long, long time ago.

Sleep easy, your Fram filter is doing a fine job.

 

[Vette73]

Originally posted by: boomerang

Originally posted by: Sniper82

Originally posted by: Marlin1975

Originally posted by: theslickvik
I usually change every 3000. There is a noticeable improvement in engine response and smoothness following an oil change. in my mind

I agree. Its all in your mind.



Most cars/trucks that are not turbo and don;t tow etc... can get by at 5000miles or 6 months easy on todays oils and most filters (NOT Fram)

I have my oil changed at Wal-Mart so they slap Fram on there. Should I consider oil changes elsewhere?

Fram filters have been around for as long as I can remember and I'm rapidly closing in on 54 years of age. If they were as bad as everyone here seems to think, they'd have gone under a long, long time ago.

Sleep easy, your Fram filter is doing a fine job.

And of course you know Fram has been bought out since that time and changed right? Also they have had several recalls on oil filters and many cars even have morning knocks because of their poor drain back valve. etc...


If at wal-mart ask them to use a SuperTech oil filter. Its made by Champ Labs and is known as the E-Core filter. I have one of them on my Corvette and run it for 8k or so.