I don't know what to think! :-\

[BLINGMW]

I guess modern cars are finally coming full circle! I used to be able to say with some confidence that the '80's tech cars I like don't really require any more maintenance than a more modern car. Up to the late nineties, maintenance schedules haven't changed much. But here I stare at the maintenance schedule for Jess' Mini.... and I have nothing to do.

~15k mile oil changes, air and cabin filter good for twice that, driven by the computer's recommendation
replace coolant every 4 years
replace brake fluid every 2 years
and
.......
oh, O2 sensors, plugs, and new belts every 100k.

that's all? Everything else is "inspect this and that".
Power steering fluid? Fuel filter? PCV or EGR or something like that? Trans fluid? Come on! Am I really supposed to believe this? Am I missing something?

[BLAIR]

do you really wait 15k between oil changes? I just wouldnt feel comfortable doing that. I worked at a highline european shop where all the Porsches and BMWs only were dues oil changes every 15k. The techs always recomended no more than 5k between changes.

[Feersty]

Time to move on up Chan!

[BLINGMW]

do you really wait 15k between oil changes? I just wouldnt feel comfortable doing that. I worked at a highline european shop where all the Porsches and BMWs only were dues oil changes every 15k. The techs always recomended no more than 5k between changes.

I know, and most enthusiasts refuse to believe it either. But, you know, we were doing 12k mile changes on our 91 Accord, a car that was never designed for that, and an oil sample analysis confirmed it was doing fine. So I'm willing to believe that a more modern engine, designed to run on synthetic oil, would be just fine. Oils are getting better, engines are getting better, but there's still so many people out there insisting on 3k, 5k oil changes when the manufacturers are fairly likely to know what they're talking about. :dunno:

I think in the next 10 years, more people are going to be convinced these longer intervals are just fine. And these techs at the euro shop... what exactly was their incentive to spend $$ and time to figure out if the longer intervals were ok?....

[.RJ]

but there's still so many people out there insisting on 3k, 5k oil changes

*raises hand*

[Evan]

Im trying to go 5k miles on my street miata and it just feels soooooo wrong.
I think if i switched to synth and went 10k miles per change my head would explode.

[BLINGMW]

so.... why? I mean, the auto manufacturers say it's fine, there's oils designed to support it-- they're comfortable enough to have 15k printed right on the bottle. I don't exactly see their incentive to sell less oil.... are you saying they're collaborating to send our cars to an early grave or not doing enough testing? I'd have trouble believing either one.

*edit* A quick look at bobistheoilguy, I don't see a lot of people going that far either, but the few that have seem to be ok....

[.RJ]

are you saying they're collaborating to send our cars to an early grave or not doing enough testing? I'd have trouble believing either one.

Its either a conspiracy to sell more cars... or sell more oil.

If the oil testing supports 12-15k oil changes, then why not I guess?

Either way:

[Evan]

so.... why? I mean, the auto manufacturers say it's fine, there's oils designed to support it-- they're comfortable enough to have 15k printed right on the bottle. I don't exactly see their incentive to sell less oil.... are you saying they're collaborating to send our cars to an early grave or not doing enough testing? I'd have trouble believing either one.

*edit* A quick look at bobistheoilguy, I don't see a lot of people going that far either, but the few that have seem to be ok....

no, im not saying that at all.

Im saying I have been brainwashed into thinking I must change every 3k.

although I do believe on higher mileage cars need more frequent oil changes, due to more dirt accumulating in the oil. My last miata would get lifter tap and slightly lower oil pressure after 3k.

[CaptainHenreh]

Mazda tells me every 3K for the MS3...

Of course, that could be due to more particulates from the direct injection, but the owner's manual is pretty clear on the interval, and it isn't eleventybillion miles.

[.RJ]

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although I do believe on higher mileage cars need more frequent oil changes, due to more dirt accumulating in the oil. My last miata would get lifter tap and slightly lower oil pressure after 3k.

If the car has had regular oil changes (and solid maintenance) all along, shouldnt it be pretty free of dirt/sludge?

[Ginger]

OK, I have to jump in and ask something I saw on the Amsoil website. I know, it's private advertising on private testing and shouldn't be trusted, but has anybody else seen the 2 oil change 400,000 mile diesel?

[Andy]

I change the suby and the miata at 10K with synth. Blackstone gave both samples a clean bill of health. It seems like the lifter noise that I heard when we first got the car is gone now.

[Evan]

http://neptune.spacebears.com/cars/stories/mobil1.html

although I do believe on higher mileage cars need more frequent oil changes, due to more dirt accumulating in the oil. My last miata would get lifter tap and slightly lower oil pressure after 3k.

If the car has had regular oil changes (and solid maintenance) all along, shouldnt it be pretty free of dirt/sludge?

woulda coulda shoulda? regardless of the reason, the oil gets really dark really quick.
proof is in the puddin'

My last miata would get lifter tap and slightly lower oil pressure after 3k.

[ScottyB]

If the car has had regular oil changes (and solid maintenance) all along, shouldnt it be pretty free of dirt/sludge?

don't ask my old A4 but that is a pretty model specific.

personally i'm with Evan, i'm trying to ween myself off of the 3k mile change interval. so far i've been taking the X and the suby to 5k intervals. if they were turbo'd i would be around 4k most likely.

i've got the blackstone test sampler kits and will probably do a sample in a few months to see how long i can actually extend it out to.

[Andy]

At a minimum, you should follow the manufacturers recommended intervals. If the engine designers are telling you to change oil at 5k or 7.5K with dino, why in the world would you change your oil at 3k?

[CaptainHenreh]

At a minimum, you should follow the manufacturers recommended intervals. If the engine designers are telling you to change oil at 5k or 7.5K with dino, why in the world would you change your oil at 3k?

Andy, try and keep up, that's what this thread is about.

The manufacturers are saying 15K Oil Changes are A-OK and some folks are debating whether it's really OK.

[.RJ]

Andy, try and keep up, that's what this thread is about

Rickshaws dont need oil changes :dunno:

[BLINGMW]

how about a lifetime fuel filter? I was a bit thrown by that one too.

And are we all on the same page that lifetime trans fluid is BS? Do we have any data to support that? I mean, after seeing these trucks with engine oil going 100s of thousands of miles, I guess I could see that manual trans oil, being significantly less stressed, should last that long as well.... :dunno:

[Andy]

At a minimum, you should follow the manufacturers recommended intervals. If the engine designers are telling you to change oil at 5k or 7.5K with dino, why in the world would you change your oil at 3k?

Andy, try and keep up, that's what this thread is about.

The manufacturers are saying 15K Oil Changes are A-OK and some folks are debating whether it's really OK.

Oops. I don't have any car that anyone would consider new so I guess to me, 7.5k intervals are for the brandy new cars. I guess manufacturers have move even beyond that.

Instead of debating it, why not just test the oil on preset intervals. If the oil keeps coming back good, then you're fine.