Mirage MID (Multi Information Display) service reminder / wrench icon

[db1980]

Oil change intervals are like religion. Everyone has their own beliefs, and other people are not likely to change that. Many times its all about what they grew up with etc.

My religion:
I saw mention about outside temperatures and a "hot" climate being harder on oil. Actually the running temperature of the engine is probably about the same, that's what coolant is for, to keep the engine at a constant temperature. Lower outside temps are probably worse as you can get condensation, and moisture in oil is one way to break things down.

I used to do 3000 mile oil changes. in my experience, modern engines outlast the rest of the car, and usually when they do die it's something not related to the lubrication (like head gaskets, or even external factors like timing belts etc). This isnt the era of an engine being worn out at 100,000 miles. The 3000 mile interval is a leftover from that time, Oil and engine design are both better now.

I have 17,000 miles on my Mirage. First oil change I did early, maybe at 2000 miles. I had to go to the dealer for a tire replacement and since the first oil change was free, I just had them do it then (for break in purposes, and that was likely just paranoia). My second oil change was right around the 10,000 mile mark and the oil was still amber colored, looked and smelled healthy. I checked it regularly as I was nervous about the longer interval. The engine hasn't used any, about 7,000 miles later, and still is healthy looking. I think good engine design and build quality combined with high quality synthetic oil for me made the 3000 mile interval obsolete. It's just a waste of time and money to do it at 3k miles on this car in my opinion (and its just an opinion)

Now, on an old higher mileage car where there is a lot of wear, and things like the pcv system may not work right, I would be more worried about contaminants and shorten the interval some.

[nickpon]

My wrench icon is now on (on every screen) after 4170 km...anyone know why it would come on so early? Definitely doesn't need an oil change yet, obviously.

Also, the one screen that originally showed the wrench along with what seemed to be a countdown to service (which was 8000km when the car was brand new) now just reads -----.

[Eggman]

My wrench icon is now on (on every screen) after 4170 km...anyone know why it would come on so early? Definitely doesn't need an oil change yet, obviously.

Also, the one screen that originally showed the wrench along with what seemed to be a countdown to service (which was 8000km when the car was brand new) now just reads -----.

Have you scanned your car for any codes?

[satria_wr]

The service reminder use fuel flow meter to determine how many miles to service. Also based on fuel avg consumption value too.

[nickpon]

Have you scanned your car for any codes?

Nope, I don't have a scanner.

As far as I know, the display never asks for different kinds of service--just the wrench icon. Therefore, I can just reset it and then do it again when I actually need the oil change. The manual says it's for a "periodic inspection."

I suppose it's on because the manual says to change the oil every 8000km or 5 months, and it's been about 5 months since I got the Mirage. However, there's no way that I'm gonna change it every 5 months if I'm only doing about 4000km in that time. I wonder if not doing it every 5 months would effect the warranty. I'm sure most of us can agree that that's an insanely short interval.

[Eggman]

I'm sure most of us can agree that that's an insanely short interval.

Not sure if it will affect the warranty, but I can tell you that motor oil additives are lost or degraded to the point that they need to be replenished after a certain amount of time. That is why there are two criteria behind oil changes - mileage and time. Change at six months in order to replenish the additive pack.

For more info, read more about this at Bob Is The Oil Guy: Motor Oil 101. This is a series of articles that can explain this much better than I can.

Best wishes.

[RodeRoNL]

So it's 12.000 km for North America and Canada. So basically we are saving in service cost in Europe but pays a lot more on fuel.

The difference in interval in oil changes in North America and Europe is due to the quality of the fuel (especially the sulphur content). The quality of the fuel is better in the EU.

As for intervals: Every manufacturer takes every possible variable into account. Climate, dust conditions, fuel quality, driving styles for every market and adjusts the intervals accordingly. So, the best thing to do is just to follow the instruction manual (or the wrench on your dashboard).

[nickpon]

Not sure if it will affect the warranty, but I can tell you that motor oil additives are lost or degraded to the point that they need to be replenished after a certain amount of time. That is why there are two criteria behind oil changes - mileage and time. Change at six months in order to replenish the additive pack.

For more info, read more about this at Bob Is The Oil Guy: Motor Oil 101. This is a series of articles that can explain this much better than I can.

Best wishes.

Yeah, I know that. I just don't agree that my oil is completely degraded after such a short amount of time. I wonder if anyone here actually changes their oil after 5 months if they haven't hit 8k. Seems like lots of users here go well beyond that to change theirs. 4000k on a new car with synthetic just doesn't make sense. If it had been a year, then I would agree that it's time. I'm going to hit 8k after about 8 months.

Had I gotten the Mirage a year before I did, I'd probably only have 2k on it by now. Imagine that, being recommended to change the oil after 2k...

I'm going to start a thread asking Canadians about their oil change interval.

[Daox]

Oil change intervals are a hugely varied topic. Oil change places throw a sticker in for 3k miles from now because that gets them more business. OEMs give specs based off of what they know about the engine and the oil specs they provide and the warranty they spec out. I tend to follow them, but I still find if I stretch out the intervals more there are absolutely no issues when I've done oil analysis' in the past unless I had other issues (like a dirty air filter which has happened and the analysis showed it needed to be changed).

[Eggman]

Yeah, I know that. I just don't agree that my oil is completely degraded after such a short amount of time.

I think that is why it is called a service reminder, not a mandate.

I wonder if anyone here actually changes their oil after 5 months if they haven't hit 8k. Seems like lots of users here go well beyond that to change theirs.

Perhaps the ones driving many miles. Manufacturers stretch their oil change intervals to make service costs appear lower to the consumer, and this works on the ones who don't count on having to refresh their motor oil based on time rather than distance.

4000k on a new car with synthetic just doesn't make sense. If it had been a year, then I would agree that it's time. I'm going to hit 8k after about 8 months.

It is my understanding that synthetic oil has more consistent viscosity over it's useful lifetime (and temperature range), but does not necessarily improve on additive packs any more than regular oil. Please correct me if I'm wrong on this point. I think this is why some motorists don't pay extra for synthetic for everyday use - because it doesn't necessarily benefit them.

Had I gotten the Mirage a year before I did, I'd probably only have 2k on it by now. Imagine that, being recommended to change the oil after 2k...

Imagine that - a new Mirage (or any other car for that matter) that has been lingering on a sales lot for a full year. I wonder if the additives in that stagnant motor oil are still up to the task? If that were my car, I would want to get some fresh oil in that engine.

I'm going to start a thread asking Canadians about their oil change interval.

Look forward to reading it.