Do you follow the 3 month/3k mile oil change?
09-22-07, 01:20 AM
#76
It all depends upon driving habits. I would not buy the little old lady from Pasadena's 30 year old car with 30,000 miles as she drove it 1 or 2 miles each time she took it out.(well maybe if it was a superbird with a hemi) That would not be enough time for the components to properly warm up and burn off the condensation of the various chemicals created by the combustion of the engine. In her case 3,000 miles may not be soon enough as the oil breaks down quicker by not reaching proper operating temp. I'm sorry for alway's referring back to my Honda/Acura experience but with almost 300,000 miles driven on 2 cars with no engine failures or problems and changing the oil and filter at 6,000 miles with Castrol GTX myself,I don't think I have pushed my luck. I drive mostly highway and almost 100 miles a day. The cars burnt off all the added chemicals and the oil was able to do its job longer because of it.
I was a member of the Honda Car Club back in 82 for several years and we had guest speakers from various automotive fields come in and give a presentation about their specialty. One was from Castrol. He assured us that any name brand Pennsylvania crude oil would last the 7,500 miles that Honda recommended as long as the car hit normal operating temp. He pointed out that it was mostly the people who were selling the oil who said change at 3,000 miles. More sales=more profit for them. His company had something to gain also but they felt it was better to make a better product and live by quality then quantity.
Toyota has had some problems with sludge in some of their engines. They have tried to pass off as much as they can by saying it was due to infrequent oil changes by the owners. If you couldn't prove you followed their recommended schedule, you were screwed. They changed the design I believe and the problem has lessened. I also had a Camry with 189,000 miles before I sold it and followed the same 6,000 mile schedule with no problems. I heard other stories with engines under 60,000 miles and the sludge created problems. To me, it was driving habits. What worked for me did not work for others. All of my cars were almost as quiet when I sold them as the day I bought them.
My wife's Maxima however I change the oil and filter between 4,500 to 5,000 miles as she drives shorter distances. I also use GTX in her car and it is just as dirty with less miles.
Now is todays oil as good as yesteryears? Only the oil companies know for sure but I would think the synthetics are. Afterall, they cost more and the sales people are convincing us that is what we need. They wouldn't lie to us now would they?
I was a member of the Honda Car Club back in 82 for several years and we had guest speakers from various automotive fields come in and give a presentation about their specialty. One was from Castrol. He assured us that any name brand Pennsylvania crude oil would last the 7,500 miles that Honda recommended as long as the car hit normal operating temp. He pointed out that it was mostly the people who were selling the oil who said change at 3,000 miles. More sales=more profit for them. His company had something to gain also but they felt it was better to make a better product and live by quality then quantity.
Toyota has had some problems with sludge in some of their engines. They have tried to pass off as much as they can by saying it was due to infrequent oil changes by the owners. If you couldn't prove you followed their recommended schedule, you were screwed. They changed the design I believe and the problem has lessened. I also had a Camry with 189,000 miles before I sold it and followed the same 6,000 mile schedule with no problems. I heard other stories with engines under 60,000 miles and the sludge created problems. To me, it was driving habits. What worked for me did not work for others. All of my cars were almost as quiet when I sold them as the day I bought them.
My wife's Maxima however I change the oil and filter between 4,500 to 5,000 miles as she drives shorter distances. I also use GTX in her car and it is just as dirty with less miles.
Now is todays oil as good as yesteryears? Only the oil companies know for sure but I would think the synthetics are. Afterall, they cost more and the sales people are convincing us that is what we need. They wouldn't lie to us now would they?
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