oil change

[dvieira]

Hello..

should a person change their engine oil by the date or mileage, example, i drive 33 miles each way to work and back, it's been a year and half since i've last changed my oil, and only a around 3300 miles since last oil change, those miles are highway, i use Royal Purple synthetic also.....

Thank you

dave

 

[Stox5225]

I’m not sure if there is a lifespan for the detergents in oil, but I can’t see more frequent intervals being bad lol. I’d be happy changing mine every 6 months. You could always send out a sample to a lab and see what they find and recommend. I just did 20k swapping out only a filter every 5k. That’s the same oil (maybe added 6-8 qts plus a qt in each filter) since 2016.

 

[BigPapa]

Help me out. Something's not adding up for me here. You drive 66 miles a day to work and back, you changed your oil 18 months ago, and you've only driven 3300 miles since then. From those numbers, you only work @ 33 days a year?

As to time vs mileage on an oil change, I personally would change my oil at least every 6 months if I didn't rack up enough mileage in that time for an oil change, unless it was a ridiculously low number of miles, then I'd say at least once a year. There are corrosive chemicals that build up in your engine oil over time.

 

[GAmes]

I like the send it to the lab answer. The time/mileage oil change intervals are an obsolete method with today's oils and filters.

 

[fest3er]

I put Amsoil in my engine at 60k miles. I didn't not drain the oil again until 290k; I changed the full flow and bypass filters about every 24k miles and the full flow about every 12k miles. (Yes, removing the drain plug required creativity and persistence due to rust, but I eventually got it out.)

If you don't use bypss filtration, the general rule of thumb for Amsoil is to change the oil and filter at 25k miles or one year (for normal operation; severe operation requires shorter intervals). The one-year limit is specified because an engine that isn't run often enough accumulates water (condensation). The limit applies to small engines as well; change the oil in your lawn tractor or mower at the prescribed hours of operation or one year. The 25k mile limit is specified because the total base number (TBN) is consumed over the life of the oil as it cancels (counteracts) the acids of combustion; those acids cause sludge to build up when they aren't addressed.

Definitely send an oil sample to be analyzed. Don't rely on guesswork; act on facts.