I change mine once a year or 10,000 miles whichever is sooner.

 

Like I said, it's what makes you comfortable.

BTW, Dyver, idling your car for 15 minutes a week is much worse than not running it at all. You don't get the oil temperature up enough to evaporate out the condensation that naturally gets into the crankcase via blowby. That condensation (water) interacts with the oil and forms acids that aren't very nice to your engine's internals.

Better would be to just put a battery tender on your car and leave her be until the weather is nicer.

HTH, and have a good one,
Mike

 

I change mine once or twice a year. Depends on the DIC.

 

My dic is @ 65% right now and ive put 3k on her, I am changing it tuesday, I use R.P and still change it EVERY 3k, no more. I know its overkill but it makes me feel better

 

I changed my at 4500 miles. DIC said I had 53% left. I was suprised at the sludge that was atttached to the magnet. So what ever makes you feel good, just my 2 cents

 

Me too....

 

You can go down to zero, but I have normally changed at around 5-10%. Anymore I don't put enough miles on the car and end up changing the oil once per year - normally the oil life monitor reads around 40-45% at change time.

 

What exactly occurs with the oil over time?... even without use?

 

Oil is a very complex stuff. The companies put all kinds of cool stuff in the oil to make it what it is and do what it does. Your filter removes junk that gets in the oil. After a while, the modifiers and detergents that keep the oil clean and flowing get used up. Heat breaks down oil too. Synthetic oil is a lot more resistant to heat than regular Dino oil. Its ability to resist breaking down and the superior chemical additives, molecular structures and detergents allow it to be used longer while maintaining the same viscosity and protection.

There have been tons of people on this forum who have run their oil way longer than when the DIC recommended it to be changed. They repeatedly sent samples in for testing to see if the oil was still good. It was and still provided ample protection. If your oil life reminder says ZERO, you could most likely safely use it for another 2000 miles or more. Oil is cheap enought to change it more often but, you know what,,,it just a big waste of time, money and how long do you really think your going to keep your car? There are people on here that have over 200,000 miles and their engines are still going strong! Thats with recommended DIC oil changes and nothing more.

Use the oil life reminder and stop worrying about your engine. It will last just as long if you change the oil every 1000 miles or when your DIC recommends it to be changed.

Life is too short. Enjoy your car and drive it like you stole it!!! It will be fine!

BC

 

Mine happened to hit 1% as I was driving last friday, so when I got it changed saturday. It was at 0% and said change it. good timing huh.