I got my car on Sept. 23, 2006. I currently have 4,800 miles on the original oil from the factory. Is it bad that I didn't do an oil change for one year?

 

It might be. I believe it is suggested to change the oil every 5,000 miles or every 5-6 months, whichever comes first. Don't qoute me on that one though, it's just what I read.

 

Its bad that you don't seem to drive enough to enjoy your car
I'd say its not horrible. Depends on how you put that 5k miles on it though, if you're using time degraded oil and floor it all the time when you *do* drive then its kinda bad just because you don't know how long the factory oil was sitting there, you could have 1.5 year oil depending on production date and when they actually fill it with oil. Even then though, people have done much much worse on purpose with no short term problems.

 

do you ride the bus?

 

hahaha.... I do ride the Muni everyday. My car is a bad investment, but I still LoVe it.

 

Yeah you should change it. Plus it's not that expensive.

 

I got my car a year ago and have about 2000 miles. I'm gonna get the free one year oil change before I lose it. And yes, I drive my car everyday just rarely need to take long trips. My trips are usually 1 to 5 miles.

 

should change it, time can kill oil, plus moisture can build up in it

 

Go with synthetic oil.
Oil will always oil but it's the additives that wear.
Synthetic oil's molecular structure holds the iomportant additive package much longer than dino oil.
I change my oil and filter once a year and do about 6-7K miles in the IS.

 

Even more reason to change the oil. Short trips are a killer on engine wear and engine oil.

 

I would like to know also. When I bought my car of last november and the car was an 06 I asked if my oil has ever been changed and they said "I doubt it".

 

change it now....with synthetic.....

side note: are you going to EOS tomorrow?

 

No, you will not see any short term aeffects. I am sure people will come on here saying the engine will die sooner, but you won't have your car that long (10 years/100k miles). Just get the complimentary oil change done soon.

 

Is your accumulated mileage so low because you rarely drive the car, or because you do mostly short trips (under 5 miles in normal weather, or under 10 in freezing weather)? Short trips result in acidic moisture forming, which is neutralized by additives in the oil. If that describes your driving and you plan on leaving your oil in the engine for extended intervals, consider getting an oil analysis with TBN, to see whether those additives are close to being depleted.

 

What is EOS? I am going to the LOVE party tonight at the Bill Graham.
http://skillsdjworkshop.com/lfafter07/
I will go in for my free oil change next week. I don't take short trips. I know that may do damage. I just don't drive enough.

Do you guys think Syntheic will REALLY help? Which brand?