for the guys that are into recreational oil changing...

http://www.dtsc.ca.gov/TechnologyDevelopment/OPPTD_FLY_High-Efficiency-Oil-Filters.cfm

shock, horror, they used oil analysis to arrive at these recommendations!

 

If the vehicles belong to them, they can do WTF they desire with them...

 

C'mon, jim. It's a great way to get your hands dirty and have a few beers.

 

Another one into the killfile bucket along with the cross poster.

 

If you drive your car like a fleet vehicle than this might apply. If
you are the typical driver you better stick to the manufacturer's
recommendation.

 

3M miles on 120 vehicles averages to 25K miles per vehicle. What's
that, about a year on a fleet vehicle? That's supposed to be
convincing?

 

when i posted this - i was thinking of the people that do what their
granddaddy did, even though combustion technology, fuels, oils and
engine metallurgy are dramatically different these days. i was hoping
to enlighten, but i guess i'd forgotten just how rigidly proud some
people are of their ignorance and ability to keep their head stuck
firmly in that sand.

next time you get sick, doubtless you're going to resort to burning
camphor and bread poultices. those "doctor" people and their
new-fangled "technology" and "drugs" clearly don't know what they're doing.

 

I've always thought the 3,000 mile habit is stupid and wasteful for
the average passenger car. Mine typically go 5-6,000, another benefit
of changing my own is that I leave a lot less old oil in the pan than
the average Jiffy Lube by letting it drain all night.

 

Does that really matter?

Of course, not going to Jiffy Mistakes is a good idea.

Jeff

 

The article linked above is a good read and helps reinforce my belief
about going with the manufacturer's recommendations on oil change
intervals, or even longer.

The owner's manual for my 2003 Civic says to change the oil every 10k
miles or every year, whichever comes first, using 5W20 non-synthetic,
and assuming no extreme conditions, per what is explained to be
"extreme" in the owner's manual.

The wikipedia entry for "motor oil" talks about how oil standards have
changed, driving the increasing interval over the decades.

 

of course not. the percentage difference it makes is vanishingly small.
and that's not including the fact that some engines have oil
deliberately pooled in locations that don't drain - to protect cam
shafts for instance. new oil simply dilutes - unless the engine is
completely stripped and cleaned, it's never a complete "change".

 

I could give a shit less about oil analysis. Toyota tells me when to change
my
oil. THEY are the authority, in my case, because they warranty my engine.

 

Then there's the risk that your wife will drive it to work in the
morning, not knowing there's no oil in the engine...

 

On the other hand, changing the oil yourself will significantly cut down on
other needed repairs to your vehicle because it eliminates the opportunity
for other hands to cause problems.

 

Well, if someone else paid for the oil analysis I wouldn't mind
running the oil until the magic numbers said to change the oil.
I like my mom's Buick, the computer tells her when to get the oil
changed. It didn't tell her to get the manifold gasket changed that
started leaking but I'm sure GM is working on a sensor for that.

 

That may be the case for normal driving condition. Most people drive in
severe conditions.

 

well, he "changed" oil by adding when it was a quart or two low.

enlighten?
Jim, you never enlighten, you issue directives.

generally, drug researchers don't make unqualified long term claims
based on short term tests.

let me put it another way; you'd have to be an idiot to believe you
can project the results from a year test on fleet vehicles to 10 years
or more of normal passenger car use. not to mention folks in cold
country are rightfully skeptical of tests conducted in CA.

are you familiar with engineering personality disorder?

just kidding....

 

Pretty sure he was directing the original post at the people that go far
beyond the manufacturer's recommendations. Believe it or not, there are
still some people out there doing two to three times the number of oil
changes that the manufacturer recommends (i.e. 3000 mile oil changes)
because they don't understand that excessive oil changes provide no
additional benefit (and may actually be bad for the vehicle). I've never
met one of these people in real life, but I've read their postings so
they probably exist (maybe they are only in states that lack good public
schools).

If 3000 mile oil changes are "cheap insurance" why aren't they changing
the oil every 1500 miles or every 750 miles, and buying as much of that
cheap insurance as they can get?

 

Are you nuts? If I drove my car like a fleet vehicle, I'd exceed
every service recommendation. It's not worth driving a fleet vehicle
if you're not beating it like a rented mule...

 

The 3000 mile guys are usually old-timers not willing to change.
There is not enough evidence on the planet to convince my father that
getting the oil changed at 6000 or 10000 is OK. He was brought up on
3000, and that's how it'll be until he dies.