I have a 1999 C5 Vette...

The manual said that the i could wait 10000 miles between oil changes...

My dad has a 2002 C5 and it now says 15000....

Granted I have never waited that long... the longest I have waited is when the OIL LIFE MONITOR said 40% which was about 6K Miles...

I was wondering what has changed... and if any of you wait the full time or go by the percentage...

I know that is you have H/C or drive your car hard.... the Oil Life Monitor will drop quickly ... a friends went to 10% in only 2000miles...

But neither of us drive it hard... he has yet to hit even 80MPH....even though he has 1500 miles on it.... we did the 500mile Oil Change so remove the oil from the break in process... but now wonder how long to wait.....


Thanks for your advice...

Please dont advise us to do it ourselves... I do oil changes to all of my cars and his cars... except the Vettes and we have our reasons why...but the main one is that our dealer's service department is actually very good... the service tech's that work on Vettes own one themselves... one even has a LPE 500TT and another owns a 2002 Mallett 427Supercharged Z06(590RWHP)... so I know they respect the cars... The service techs say to go by the monitor...when it says 50% they say to make an appointment...
for me 50% is around 5K...


Thanks
:cool: :cool: :cool: :cool:


[Modified by NewVetteLover, 10:19 PM 11/30/2001]

 

I did my first oil change at 500 miles and plan to do the regular changes at 3,000 mile intervals. It's probably a bit sooner than necessary, but I figure it is good insurance, especially since I do lots of city driving. I also installed a magnetic drain plug.

 

Knowing that the oil-life algorithm was developed after many man-hours of testing and that a comfortable safety factor has been built in, I will change my oil when the monitor reads 10-20% oil life remaining. Of course it doesn't surprise me that a dealer or quikie-lube would suggest having your oil changed much sooner. However, I can assure you that if you are suspicious of the oil monitor algorithm and send some of the oil (after the monitor indicates that there is a small -10% or so- amount of life left) to a place that chemically analyzes it, the results will prove to you that the oil is still protecting your engine.

Then again, if you really have nothing better to do, then go right ahead have that perfectly-good oil changed!

 

Your post makes all the sense in the world but you may have to resign form the all **** club!

 

Better watch out when dealing with manufactures oil recommendations as there is always a tug -o-war between engineering and marketing and fleet fuel econ numbers. Marketing wants to advertise less maintenance. All oils start to get dirty and start layout sediment at 2k to 3k miles on cars with 5qt capacity, more oil = ability to keep sludge/sediment in suspension. Automotive filters are not that good, small partials still circulate and when the oil can no longer carry them all they fall out and create sludge.
Lighter weight oil recommendations = better gas mileage = better fleet mileage and there are government regs. heaver weight oil (to a point don't go overboard)= better protection.

 

10 or 15K is OK with any good synthetic such as Mobil 1, Amsoil, or Redline. Most of us opt for earlier changes; I do mine at 5 or 6K. Changing synthetic oil at 3K is a waste of money, but it makes some folks feel good. It would make more sense to change filters at 3K and leave the oil for 6 or more.... :smash:

 

Test show that an oil filter loses its ability to filtrate beyond 4k...3-4,000 :yesnod:

 

I think CarandDriver had a 3-series that asked for an oil change
after something like 15K-17K miles...something crazy like that. And
they beat on their cars too...

 

That makes sense... since Oil Filters are mostly created the same... but I have to agree with the others who have said that a 3K interval may be a waste of money..... I guess we will change filters at 3K and oil when the monitor says 30-40%.... I guess GM cannot be wrong since...Mobil's website says it lasts longer than there standard oils which they say would last upto...5K. So Tri-Synt... should be good for that...

 

I found this in the Mobil1 web site:

Oil Change Intervals And Procedure

My family has used Mobil 1 for years and, according to my father, you only drain the oil out and change it at 10,000 miles, but every 3,000 miles before that, you change the oil filter and add a quart of oil up to 10,000 miles? My Mercury dealer says, no, completely change the oil and filter every 5,000 miles with Mobil 1. Who is right?
-- Marsha Adams/shoofly, Springfield, Illinois

We hope our answer does not cause a family feud. Your primary source of information should be the vehicle owner's manual. The Mobil 1 Tri-Synthetic™ series motor oil changes can be extended to the maximum distance or time recommended in your manual. We also recommend following your automobile dealer's advice about changing both the oil and filter at the same time . Be sure to give your father credit for picking a motor oil that provides superior protection for your family vehicles.

 

My father and I are not arguing... we really both want to know... I have done mine on a 5K interval from the start but we were un sure... Since I bought mine used I didnt get the manual but I did find one online...
it said 10000miles... which I dont think that I will ever do since I have to change the oil before the winter anyways...... I think that we will just stick to the 5K interval on all of our cars since we use a synthetic in all of our cars.... Mobil1 in GM cars and Castrol in all others....


Thanks :cool:

 

Re: Winter storage. I thought this was interesting ( again from the Mobil1 website FAQ):

"How long can Mobil 1 synthetic oil stay in my Corvette before degrading (if the car is in storage), and can I run the car with brand-new oil that has remained in the car for five to six months?
-- Daniel Phaneuf, Montreal
For vehicles that are driven on a regular basis, we recommend following your owner's manual for oil change intervals. With Mobil 1 Tri-Synthetic™ series motor oils, the interval can be extended to the maximum distance or time specified in your manual. If the vehicle is used very infrequently, then we recommend a yearly oil change just prior to the time you would use your vehicle the most. If you are storing your vehicle for an extended period of time, please contact your dealer for the proper procedures."