oil change... time vs mileage

I remember oil changes on my 88 4Runner. Every 5,000 with dino and it wasn't nearly that dark. Only difference was it was all highway miles. Now days the only time i'm on a "highway" is towing a fishing boat for 45 miles on a 2 lane road... then up to lake at 6,000'.

 

This is an absurd take. You have an OIL FILTER that is filtering anything large enough to be harmful. Anything small enough to pass through an oil filter does not present a risk to the engine.

 

Every time you think about your excessive oil changing, drive to the store and buy an ice cream cone. It’s fine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-yt5a1cWd4

 

5,000 miles or one year, whichever comes first. There are plenty of very detailed videos discussing the newer 10,000-mile oil change debate. The short version is that manufacturers stretch oil change intervals mainly for regulatory compliance optics and marketing appeal, not because the oil is necessarily able to last 10,000 miles. Even oils advertised as 10,000-mile capable often struggle to reach that distance without noticeable breakdown. Like most car topics, it is a never-ending debate, but numbers and oil analysis don’t lie. Independent oil analysis often shows that 5,000 to 7,500 miles is a safer range for long-term engine health, even with modern synthetics. If you take the time to do your research, there is a lot of proof and information available.

I can't recommend Blackstone Labs enough. I send in a sample every three oil changes, and they use the data from my specific truck to recommend how often I should change the oil. For instance, with my truck and driving conditions, it's every 5,500 miles using Pennzoil Ultra Platinum FS/HM 5W-30 before it starts to shear down.

Good listen for any guy's super geeky about oil like me...
https://youtu.be/nJ43HTJaw1s?si=Lop2kd0Jmdy5FX92

 

What is an oil change?

 

For the little driving that I do, every 6 months regardless of mileage.

 

I would think climate plays a role in how long one could wait without changing the oil despite low miles. I change it every 3k sometimes every 2500, because I can. That works out to every few months or occasionally a few times a month depending on driving habits.

 

"you don't need to change the oil since your car burns a little oil, the oil changes itself"..so a friend told his girlfriend once, the irony is his dad was a mechanic. Yikes..

Makes sense, especially when I used to DIY them. Freezing in this ice cube is torture enough.

Deputy Enos Strate approves of this.

I do every 5K or 6 months, though the past 5 yrs since I am now working from home is the first time in my driving life that it's been based on time. Cheap insurance in my eyes as some have stated, and it's a good amount of shorter drives now versus the 30 minutes each way to the office.

 

Nevermind a 4,000 mile interval being overkill. I want to know where you're finding 5.5 quarts of oil and a filter for $30.

 

lol, 6 quarts of valvoline 0w-20 full synthetic and an oem Toyota filter is $43 + tax at Wally World. Call it $50 for an oil change.

 

I drive less than 10k miles a year, but oftentimes over 5k. I change it every year.

 

Every 5K, Mobil 1, YZZD3, 210K

 

plus .25 quart bring my dipstick up to the full mark.
4,000 miles works out to about a year as I have other vehicles that I use also.

 

Indeed. Why change the oil at all? You could just change the filter once in a while.
At what point does sludge start to form? Yes, most engines will keep running as long as you keep the oil level up. You've never seen clogged oil screens? Flat cam lobes? Oil control rings stuck in their lands?
Which engine do you have? This...

Or this


Look, I've been I the industry since 1982. Done tens of thousands of oil changes. Didn't really see too many problems back then except for extreme neglect. After the auto makers all went with the 10,000 mile OCI (and 20k on the oil filter) we started seeing more oil related issues. Mostly oil consumption complaints. Rarely saw that before.
Pulling the plug on a $40,000 car with less that 20,000 miles and less than a quart comes out. Yeah, that's awesome. Re-ringing cars still under warranty, not so much.
So, anyway , you do you. I'll continue to baby my stuff and not give it a second thought. I'll save pennies somewhere else.

 

I'm kinda with you... at 1,000 miles i aveage 6 months but can go up to 12 depending on the season. Do you do mostly short trips and how's the oil color at 6 months?

 

I think I’m only averaging 5000km per year on my truck. Mostly short trips, have a 2min commute to work.

The oils dark but nothing crazy or concerning.

 

Totally forgot that I'd been ordering five-packs of filters (I usually do two changes per year, each at 5,000 miles), so I'm actually paying less for them. I'm using Mobil 1 Super Synthetic, though, so it's around $45-50 after tax for me.

 

A great wise lady once said "the cheap comes out expensive"..nuff said. I'll chance throwing away a little use on my oil for the peace of mind.

 

how many months on average does that come out to for you?

 

I used to drive for work, so +/- 20K a year was norm. Now its ~12K a year, so 2-3 oil changes a year.

Roughly every 5-6 months.