bklyn bill

I am wondering if i should change the oil (6000 miles) i have the car for 9 months and i am concerned that if i do not do something before i put it away for winter, everything will go horribly wrong.

Steve_R

What does your oil life monitor say?

What could go "horribly wrong?"

KGS365

yes change it ...gets rid of acids that can build up...especially if they are free

c54u

6000 miles....I would change it.

bklyn bill

I am new to this, my oil life reads 60% but is it ok to leave the oil in it until March or April?

Steve_R

Yes. Many will reply that you should change it, and it certainly can't hurt anything, but GM says to use the OLM to know when it needs to be changed. If you go by the OLM the warranty is valid, so even that's probably pretty conservative. If you gives you peace of mind, change it. Don't change it because you think something bad will happen if you don't.

dvilin

I used to change it before I put it away for the Winter, but last year and this year I change it when I put it back on the road. I do not think it makes any difference so I chose the more convenient time and that is in the Spring.

Fcal

Winter has nothing to do with it. I change my oil every 5K in all my vehicles.
You're at 6K and gonna store it, I'd change it.

Steve_R

What's magic about 5k miles? What do you know that the GM engineers don't?

Fcal

I do it with all my vehicles with synthetic, and never had a problem.
It's just the way I do things. The oil might not break down, but it does collect dirt.

J.Moore

First time car owner?

JimNeedsC7

Technically you are correct and definitely you are correct when the car is driven daily. Why change out perfectly good oil?

But when a car is stored that oil sits in the engine for days or months and the contaminants in it can damage internal component surfaces. Would it still be OK even if you left the used oil in? Definitely, since I have done it myself some winters when I was just too busy and there was a lot of oil life left.

But overall it is recommended that the oil be changed in most engines before they sit for any significant length of time in storage.

Steve_R

Recommended by whom? GM doesn't recommend that, they say to go by the OLM. If there was really any chance of damage, GM would recommend it to prevent warranty claims for damage; they don't.

JimNeedsC7

I was not really even recommending it myself, but that advice comes to me from friends who are mechanical engineers. I said that I have ignored this myself without any issues and that it does not really matter in practice. I also agree that you will be covered completely by the GM warranty and have not really done anything wrong.

Don't confuse me with someone who cares what other people do with their cars. I don't care if anyone ever changes the oil in their Vettes. I was just trying to add some professional mechanical engineering input to the thread.

But then this is the Corvette forum and no good deed ever goes unpunished here.

Steve_R

Don’t get upset. I was just asking for additional information, not attacking you.

JimNeedsC7

Sorry for any overreaction. It was a long week of trying to explain tech details to moron managers and I probably need a few more beers before I am human again.

dbdave

What about the multitude of vehicles sitting on new car lots that don't get driven or just get moved around the lot for months at a time?

JimNeedsC7

Most of those cars have not accumulated any appreciable mileage - so this does not apply to them. I am only talking about oil with some serious miles and therefore some significant level of contaminates.

I am also only talking theoretically from a hard core ME perspective not from a strictly practical perspective. I admit that I don't always do this myself and I doubt that in the long run it even matters.

Supersonic 427

I have heard the same over the years and have always changed the oil before storing the car for the Winter. Just had mine changed last week with only 1500 miles on the oil. I will run this oil until I store it next year. Would it harm anything if I waited till Spring? Most likely not....

Patman

I have been changing the oil on my last two Corvettes (since 2004) according to the oil life monitor and go much longer than 5k and have never had a problem (had 133k on my C5 when I traded for my C6) Go figure.

Oil does not collect dirt by the way.