timvette7

You sir are very wrong. The olm can go a little long on the mileage before signaling a change is needed. Please listen to me , as someone who has seen the difference inside the engine that oil makes and who has talked to gm service manager and techs about this subject and tuners such as MTI . They all agree the more frequent you change your oil the better. They all agree that the synthetic oil used in these engines are great but you still should change every 3 to 5000 miles. It's not that you can't go longer on the oil change , it's just that their are a lot of carbon from the fuel that gets in the oil along with other containments. The oil does retain the viscosity and lubricity for a long time but it just gets dirty hence the reason it gets black in color the longer you go on the oil change. In short you can never change your oil enough but you can go too long. Also , don't always go by the computer. This message is from experts who you can trust about the subject.

Regards,
Tim

WestPalmCorvette

Well,
I had a nail in my rear tire that had to be repaired, so I had the oil and filter changed while I was at dealer.
1500 miles on the car, oil life was 78% on computer.
Had the work done at Vera Cadillac in Pembroke Pines.
Did a great job, lifted the car with pucks, brought me back to service area and let me inspect the underbody.
Very professional service.

slacker1201

My exact point...You can reset the oil monitoring system without changing the oil. If it is reading 25% and I push the reset button, it will show 100%...even though I didn't change the oil. Even after a few months of driving, it still takes months for it to drop back down to 25% even though its still the same oil.

I had many BMW's that would go for 13-15k miles between oil changes, I always did an extra oil change. The more oil gets broken down is that much harder on your motor.

I would much rather spend the extra 60 bucks for an oil change for my 100k car.... and have the insurance that my motor has clean oil!

slacker1201

GOLD72

The current GM OLM will never be completely accurate because it does not directly measure the condition of the oil. It only makes programmed predictions according to other easily measured parameters being input into the algorithms such as rpm, oil temps, etc. This programming can not make assessments on contaminants which is the point for making more frequent oil changes.

b4i4getit

That may be true but did you ever think that GM would not factor in a bit of engineering tolerance to make sure they are not taking a chance ? Consider that their warranty system would have to pay for a new engine if a customer followed the OLM as instructed and there was a problem. The OLM system is in most of their cars. They would not allow it if it ended up costing them money. Those of you that change your oil like you change your underwear are living in the past.

timvette7

The answer is no. Follow the olm and your engine will probably make it through the warranty period . After that they don't care. Don't be ignorant , listen to the wisdom from my previous posts is to the reason why you should not always go by the olm.

911/Q45

How many have put over 100K miles on a Vette? Unless they do, they'll be changing their oil at least once a year and the OLM interval will be N/A, therefore fine.

GOLD72

My post was stating a fact about the OLM that explains why there are those that want to change more frequently than the OLM. I was not agreeing nor disagreeing with more frequent changes. I am certainly not one of the change every 3k miles mindset. With my driving regime of mostly 65-75 mph freeway commuting, I feel very comfortable with 7500 mile changes which happens to be the OLM limit for my previous Z06 and now current ZR1. I have no criticism for those that believe differently for their situations.

b4i4getit

You have no wisdom in your previous post only conjecture. Check this link.

http://neptune.spacebears.com/cars/stories/mobil1.html

From the link above -

"What this means is that compulsive oil changers are actually causing more engine wear than the people who let their engine's oil get some age on it. "

"One thing we're pretty sure about though: 3,000-mile intervals is a huge waste of resources."

timvette7

The article is full of crap. Coming from someone who has 2 engineering degrees and who has conversed with some the best engine builders in the world on this subject I say again the more you change your oil the better. Anyone who would argue that is ignorant and knows nothing about combustion engines or the oil that runs in them. With that said you can safely run longer on today's leading synthetic oils than conventional oils but both oils get dirty with contaniments that the filters don't always catch therefore the more often you change your oil the cleaner it is and the cleaner your engine is running. it really is that simple.

QUIKAG

Okay, but with the apparent logic you have with two engineering degrees, you can also appreciate the incremental risk increase of doing too many unnecessary oil changes and possibly overfilling/underfilling/installing a bad oil filter or misinstalling it, etc. Not to mention, even doing an 10.5 quart synthetic oil/filter swap yourself, it's $60+ and 30 minutes of time. While, it's a immaterial cost in the scheme of what a new LS9 or ZR1 costs, it's still a waste of money and resources to do it every 3k.

A blackstone lab (or equivalent) oil analysis would be your best tool to determine an ideal oil change internal. I change mine probably every 5k miles or so, but I do several track days a year where the oil has gotten up to 290F temp, so it's my 'sleep better at night' insurance.

That said, if changing your oil every 3k gives you a warm fuzzy and also allows you to sleep better at night, go for it. It's your time/money/and incremental risk increase.

b4i4getit

I still disagree with you. But since I only have one engineering degree I don't see the point in continuing since you will probablt resort to capital letters next. You sure use the word ignorant in a lot of your posts though. However there are other articles out there from people with more education than you that still dispute your claims. Mobil Oil put out a white paper a few years ago that I tried to find that made your points even more ridiculous. Change your oil after every drive if you want to since its your car. I am just trying to shed some light on this crazy notion that changing your oil every 3000 miles is required.

timvette7

I don't mean to come across too harsh but I am real passionate about this subject. Don't get me wrong, I don't think you should change your oil every time you drive but I do think that changing your oil sooner than later is a good thing. 5000 miles I think is ok for these cars but 3000 miles is even better. Also, a lot of these reports and test analysis that you read are from the oil manufactures who are trying to sale their oil over the other brands. My points come from engine builders who tear down these engines and rebuild them or modify them including myself. We see the parts that wear the most and also see the difference that oil makes and the difference in going longer on oil changes makes first hand. Most of my fellow mechanics will agree with me because they see it first hand everyday. Gentlemen , enjoy your cars , be safe, and take care of them. They are wonderful cars and we are all lucky for having the chance to own them.

Best regards,
Tim

GOLD72

I too only have one engineering degree (BSME) but I do have 45 years of driving experience and 45 years of maintaining my own cars of which many I have kept well past 100k miles. And the vast majority on just plain dino oil also. I have yet to ever have an engine problem due lubrication. The one engine I rebuilt myself had 108k miles on it with virtually no internal wear in the cylinder bores and the cam looking like it would go many more 10s of thousands of miles. It is the only engine I ever had that required any repair whatsoever other than external accessory replacements. #1 wrist pin was loose was the reason for opening that L48 engine up over 30 years ago. If my goal was to keep a car for 200k+ miles, maybe I would feel differently about more frequent changes. But I suspect something else would fail in the engine that would have nothing to do with the oil or more frequent changes. If I was just puttering around in the neighborhood with the engine never really get warmed up, I would certainly recommend more frequent changes. JMHO.

1FASTZR1

I have a question that hopefully you all can help answer.

I just purchased my 2011 ZR1 with 4 miles on it, heres my question;

The car was on the Dealer floor for 11 months. I found the dealer delivery tag on the floor when I cleaned it out (10-7-2010).
That puts the oil at over 1 year old. Even though the car only has 400 miles on it now, should I change it because its over a year old?

Thanks for your help!




wru

911/Q45

I'd say no. With no miles on it it didn't have any contaminants or moisture in the oil to foul things.

Chevy Cust Svc

1FASTZR1,
It shouldn't need to be changed. However, as a safety precaution I'd recommend asking the dealership when they last time they either changed it or flushed it.

Chevrolet Customer Service,
Justin

range96

Why would the dealer change the oil on the car with 4 miles on it???

3LZZ06

I'm pretty sure the OP is saying that it hasn't been touched yet...