Maintenance schedule

[theforerunner343]

Hello, I'm trying to decide which maintenance schedule I should follow between regular/severe, maybe someone can help me out. I live in a small city and rarely encounter stop and go traffic. My wife uses the car for an hour commute (one way) twice a week and I drive it to work and back 3 times a week (10mi round trip) and also for trips around town like the grocery store. So, I would say that *most* of the time would fall under normal conditions, however I do live in SW Michigan and temperatures are currently 30-40 degrees F and come January I'm sure we'll have some sub zero temps. I don't want to be wasteful and follow the severe maintenance schedule if I don't need to so I'm hoping someone more knowledgeable can shed some light? Could I follow the regular maintenance schedule and just get oil changes every 3k mi during the winter and 7k during the warmer months? Any input would be appreciated.

[Daox]

I'd say you're fine for following the normal schedule. Changing your oil more often won't help on those -20F days. Cold oil is cold oil and won't move as fast no matter how new it is.

On the other hand, a block heater would definitely help you out and get a warm engine faster.

[Canoehead]

I'd say you're fine for following the normal schedule. Changing your oil more often won't help on those -20F days. Cold oil is cold oil and won't move as fast no matter how new it is.

On the other hand, a block heater would definitely help you out and get a warm engine faster.

I have a related question. I don't drive much, and most of my miles are on the highway. Still, I run into the overtime long before the over mileage. I just had a second oil change done and am still under 10,000 km (<6000 miles). The dealership assured me that oil gets moisture in it and goes bad just from sitting. True or false?

Thanks.

[Daox]

True and false.

Water in oil is not a good thing. It can cause frothing and that kills the ability of the oil to hold a film which is what the bits of your engine ride on to avoid friction.

However, a sitting engine is not going to collect anywhere near significant amount of water. If your car sits and its in freezing and then thawing, then freezing and thawing over and over in a very moist environment it may be possible you could build up some water in your oil. However, the amount of water is going to be incredibly tiny, and once you run your car and get it up to temperature once the water is gone.

If you have any concerns about if you're changing your oil too late, just send it in for analysis. I think it cost about $25 and they can tell you exactly what in your engine is wearing and the place I've used in the past (blackstone labs) will even help you figure out what the problem is and how to fix it. They measure stuff in parts per million so they can see subtle things before any real damage is done.

As for me, I run (usually generic brand or whatever is on sale) synthetic in almost all my vehicles for ~10k miles. Time really isn't a factor, but its usually once a year. My oil analysis come back just fine unless there is another contributing factor/problem (like old air filter, coolant leak, etc).

[Canoehead]

Thanks Daox! I suspected as much, but will follow the six month intervals (correction - I think it is 5 months) for warranty purposes using synthetic and Wix filters. Maybe after that I will switch to some sort of more premium oil and go a bit longer. My car was on the lot for a year before I bought it, and I suspect the probability that they changed the oil in that time is approaching zero.

[laceygirl]

When I cracked my head gasket in my old 1974 Torana I had a lovely oil and water mix happening I was devastated.... Creamy caramel coloured goop all through my engine... It was a nightmare to fix....

[deleted user]

I got a bike running that sat in a garage for 28 years. Ran it 200 miles on the oil that had sat in it that long and on the original tires that were 40 years old! I wanted to see if it was going to blow all the oil out the tailpipe. 28 year old oil, changed 1 mile before it was taken off the road, and no oil filter, just a screen (1971 CB350 Honda). Never used a drop before I sold it with 6100 miles. Had 4718 when it came back to life (1983-2011).

Oil has been underground for 60 million years?

regards
mech

[Cobrajet]

A lot of these oil recommendations are based on the old dino oil from years ago. New synthetics are LIGHT YEARS ahead, and I don't think the fact that oil has sat in your crankcase with little use for six months is going to make it go bad. Putting these recommendations in the factory manual gets you back into the dealership for an oil change you don't need.

Two things ruin oil...heat and contamination. Your oil won't get too contaminated just sitting in your driveway. And it certainly ain't gonna get too hot.

After all, we're not talking about MILK here, are we?

[Eggman]

Forgive me as I posted this elsewhere. It is relevant to this conversation, and more eloquent in addressing this topic.

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/motor-oil-101/

[Canoehead]

Great article, Eggman. Thanks for that!