oil change intervals

[Jasonmc73]

And yet the majority of engine oil manufacturers guarantee 15,000 MILES for their oil. I think we probably change our oils too early. I,m guilty as well, although now I do 10,000klm services which includes half of that mileage towing.

Yes their oils are so much better than yester year absolutely, when oils were change at 5,000k's.

But they (oil companies) have no idea how much any one engine will contaminate that oil & its additives?

It's one of those questions you can ask & get 10 differing opinions that are all not so bad either

For me personally i'm a 10,000k interval man.

Wives car schedule is 10,000k's I change it at about 8500k's per change, engine is tight only done 37,000K's.

[Dicko1]

Yes their oils are so much better than yester year absolutely, when oils were change at 5,000k's.
But they (oil companies) have no idea how much any one engine will contaminate that oil & its additives?


It's one of those questions you can ask & get 10 differing opinions that are all not so bad either

For me personally i'm a 10,000k interval man.

Wives car schedule is 10,000k's I change it at about 8500k's per change, engine is tight only done 37,000K's.

"But they (oil companies) have no idea how much any one engine will contaminate that oil & its additives?" Their research and warranty would see them test their oils for many millions of kilometers on every type of engine available...thats why they recommend different oils for different engines. There would be bugger all difference between a 3.2 lt P aj motor and a 3.2 lt Ford motor or a 3.0 litre Prado.

[Jasonmc73]

"But they (oil companies) have no idea how much any one engine will contaminate that oil & its additives?" Their research and warranty would see them test their oils for many millions of kilometers on every type of engine available...thats why they recommend different oils for different engines. There would be bugger all difference between a 3.2 lt P aj motor and a 3.2 lt Ford motor or a 3.0 litre Prado.

I agree to disagree on this occasion,

It's just my opinion the oil companies have no idea how many kilometres the engine has done, condition of injectors, how a particular engines combustion is going, carbon build ups in intakes, lazy turbo's, blocked air filters, ambient temperatures, how far one travels in any one journey, wether the engine spends lots of time idling, if it is used for 24 hour periods or used in short bursts, if its under 90% load or 10%.

But yes there oil will last as they say, doesn't mean to say it isn't contaminated.
Yes there oil will be fine just as they say. Might be full of water & or diesel & carbon depending on the application its used in, but the oil itself will be just fine & there justification for that engine failure/ wear not being their problem also just fine & 100% correct.

Different additives for different types of engines is for good reason I guess, low ash, more detergants & dispersants in diesel oils etc.

[Dicko1]

I agree to disagree on this occasion,

It's just my opinion the oil companies have no idea how many kilometres the engine has done, condition of injectors, how a particular engines combustion is going, carbon build ups in intakes, lazy turbo's, blocked air filters, ambient temperatures, how far one travels in any one journey, wether the engine spends lots of time idling, if it is used for 24 hour periods or used in short bursts, if its under 90% load or 10%.

But yes there oil will last as they say, doesn't mean to say it isn't contaminated.
Yes there oil will be fine just as they say. Might be full of water & or diesel & carbon depending on the application its used in, but the oil itself will be just fine & there justification for that engine failure/ wear not being their problem also just fine & 100% correct.

Different additives for different types of engines is for good reason I guess, low ash, more detergants & dispersants in diesel oils etc.

They would base their testing on a standard and probably highly modified as well. They put these engines under extreme pressure..you wouldnt be able to replicate it at any stage. Contaminants are not their problem. They would well be aware of carbon build up , ambient and extreme tempsratures, endless days of idling, over revving well beyond manufacturers recommendations.etc.etc. These companies are trillion dollar industries that spend hundreds of millions on research and development. There would not be scenario that havent looked at . Like buying a washing machine, tv or phone...extensive testing shows that under normal operating conditions all is fine. Quality motor oils will last well above what we expect..

[Jasonmc73]

They would base their testing on a standard and probably highly modified as well. They put these engines under extreme pressure..you wouldnt be able to replicate it at any stage. Contaminants are not their problem. They would well be aware of carbon build up , ambient and extreme tempsratures, endless days of idling, over revving well beyond manufacturers recommendations.etc.etc. These companies are trillion dollar industries that spend hundreds of millions on research and development. There would not be scenario that havent looked at . Like buying a washing machine, tv or phone...extensive testing shows that under normal operating conditions all is fine. Quality motor oils will last well above what we expect..

All good mate I changed me oils at 10,000k's, i'm a believer in the actual quality of modern oils

If you want to know as Sharkcaver says for any particular engine do scheduled samples will show you the contamination for your engine for your application, 15,000 might be plenty for you.

[dhula]

There is no way I would take it out to 20,000km.

I used to work for a company a fair few years ago that used dino oil and made the change from 10k engine oil changes to 20k changes on one of the fleets. It took a fair effort to have the changes made but it did come in eventually saving money and the planet as well.


~65L sumps (IIRC but I probably don't) and triple oil filter stacks helped with the decision but what always got me was that the OEM recommended 60k (again IIRC but probably don't) changes due to being fitted with "extended service packs"

[SpanishForWhat?]

My two cents...

I did oil analysis on an older (diesel) project vehicle to test whether I could extend the 5k interval to 10k. Analysis proved it was no issue.

Wish I had gotten around to doing it sooner on the Pajero - but I guess going from a vehicle with recommended 5k intervals to a vehicle with recommended 15k intervals seemed incredible.

Then again, the recommended interval on a Discovery 4 is 26k km...

My results:
Last oil change at ~165k km
Oil tested at 181k km
Lab results indicate oil has had a very marginal reduction is viscosity but is otherwise clean and could almost pass for new.

For reference, my NT had no DPF from factory, has had the EGR disabled since 45k, and I run Penrite HPR10 10W50.

So I'm going to test again at 20k km. May as well save the time and money if I can.

[drgtr]

My two cents...

I did oil analysis on an older (diesel) project vehicle to test whether I could extend the 5k interval to 10k. Analysis proved it was no issue.

Wish I had gotten around to doing it sooner on the Pajero - but I guess going from a vehicle with recommended 5k intervals to a vehicle with recommended 15k intervals seemed incredible.

Then again, the recommended interval on a Discovery 4 is 26k km...

My results:
Last oil change at ~165k km
Oil tested at 181k km
Lab results indicate oil has had a very marginal reduction is viscosity but is otherwise clean and could almost pass for new.

For reference, my NT had no DPF from factory, has had the EGR disabled since 45k, and I run Penrite HPR10 10W50.

So I'm going to test again at 20k km. May as well save the time and money if I can.

Would love to see your posted results. I just would like to understand how much is marketing and how much is science that we can have oil changes truly at 15000kms or even 20 000 without shortening our engine life