jsollmi

I have a 2017 Z51 with 1080 miles. The dealer did the 500 mile oil change after I proved to the service manager that it was required for a Z51. After the oil change I put on an additional 520 miles. The OLMS indicated 89 percent when I stored the vehicle Dec 6th. I haven't started the vehicle and yet the OLMS latest reading indicates 78 percent. Simple math tells me that the time factor of .274 is subtracted daily no matter what. Driving the vehicle also subtracts 1 percent for every 50 miles. The OLMS does not do any analysis that I can tell. The first 500 miles was an easy break-in the next 500 was more steady highway and city mix. I never had this occur on my C6 which was good for 10,000 miles (changed oil annually regardless of miles). I sent an email to Chevrolet customer service and then called. The response was " take the vehicle in and have the OLMS diagnosed". From what I read on the forum regarding OLMS . The conclusions are that is the way it works. If it does work that way,then the information is useless. When I put my vehicle back on the road in the Spring I will have 55% left. So if I lose 8 per cent per month based on time and drive 800 miles per month a 16 percent reduction for a total of 24 percent per month in a little over two months, with about 2200 miles driven since the last oil change this idiotic system will tell me I have 0 percent life and must change the oil. Why bother using Mobil 1 which is good for 10000 miles. Has anyone had this idiotic system diagnosed to see if it is operating properly?

spearfish25

Just replace the oil every 3-5k miles and be done with it. Oil life monitors are for our wives, not us.

64drvr

Did the dealer reset the OLM during the 500 mile oil change?

RonC7

Remaining oil life is based upon time as well as engine operation. The recommended oil change interval is 12 months, so you can expect the remaining life indication to drop by 8.3% every month even if the engine is not started.

Plan on an oil change 12 months after the 500 mile change.

NSC5

It is exactly as Ron noted. Prior to the enhanced OLM system GM owner's manuals noted that the oil had to be changed at least once per year regardless of the OLM percentage. On recent vehicles a calendar has been added to the OLM system so that it accounts for the required annual changes so that owners won't ignore the need to change even when the vehicle is seldom used.

Intermittent, especially light usage where fluids aren't held at normal operating temperature for a sustained period of time, is one of the quickest ways to degrade lubricants. The latest OLM system is far better at catching the many factors which degrade oil and time is one of them since it has been exposed to contaminants and the environment once it leaves its sealed bottle and goes into the engine.

The OLM system is working just fine. The only way to keep Mobil 1, or any other premium oil, from degrading is to store it carefully in its bottle like a fine wine. Once it is run in an engine its life is starting to decline.

jsollmi

Yes The OLM is bogus

jsollmi

Thank you I like your reply. Too bad Chevrolet customer service couldn't give me that answer. The OLM is not needed for Corvette owners.

jsollmi

I was planning on an annual oil change as I always have done if it weren't for the damn OLM which will tell me to replace 5 months prematurely

NSC5

I remember a few years ago that the customer service people were pretty good but now that is a rare experience. They actually do more harm than good much of the time when they provide incorrect information to customers like they did to you.

I spent a couple of years in sales management right after I got my undergrad degree and one strict rule I made sure that all of my people knew and followed was that it was perfectly acceptable to tell a customer you don't have that information but you will research it and get back with them. Making up an answer or knowingly providing false information provided them with the wonderful opportunity of exploring other career options.

NSC5

If you are running low mileage per year but not doing excessive idling, short trips in cold weather, or track events (that involve very high oil temperature) then I would be very tempted to stick with the 1 year changes however that is only if you only run it a limited number of miles each year. Even though Mobil may say the oil is good for 10,000 miles GM probably won't agree in this case and you could definitely get into warranty issues.

My 2008 CTS came with a very long change interval for the OLM system that I felt was ridiculously long and I changed the oil and filter at the 50% mark and then did another change near 0% and reset the system. About 2 years after I bought the car Cadillac recalled and reprogrammed the system with a much shorter change interval because timing chain tensioners were failing. A friend went through a similar issue with his BMW using Mobil 1 with a long change interval and the top end looked like some Jello had been installed there when the valve cover was off at 85,000 miles.

I think it would have been better if the OLM dropped the normal amount per month (based only upon operation) and then started a more rapid decrease at around 10 months to take time into account for owners who do run very few miles per year. In your case (and mine) I do an oil change right before winter storage and so the time penalty adds up heavily by Spring and then normal Spring/Summer driving decreases the estimated life on top of the somewhat fake "average time" penalty. I guess GM didn't want people complaining about a sudden drop in OLM estimated life but I would much prefer it just decrease like the old system then flash a warning and drop to 0 as the 12 month time expires.

To be safe while in warranty it is best to just deal with some basically unneeded changes.

jsollmi

Thank You but the only people who can plan on replacing oil at 12 month intervals are the ones who never drive their cars. That is the problem I drive mine.

jsollmi

Great sense of humor! Thanks again.

jsollmi

Looks like is should plan on replacing oil two times a year even though I will put on 6000 miles at most. Nah I don't think so I will just reset and buy stock in Mobil

Kracka

Oil life monitor works perfectly in my 2014. It takes time, miles, driving conditions, etc. into account and typically has me change my oil once or twice per year (I'm averaging just shy of 10k miles per year).

-My 2012 Chevy Cruze's OLM was reprogrammed by the dealer at one point and that made it much more accurate/reliable.
-2012 Chevy Volt's was not accurate as it did not take time into account, and with the engine rarely running in that car you could go nearly forever without it telling you to change the oil.
-2013 Chevy Volt's is much more accurate as it now takes time into account, and will slowly count down to 0% after 2 years (the more the engine runs, the faster it diminishes).
-2017 GMC Terrain's seems to function similarly to the reprogrammed 2012 Cruze, 2013 Volt and 2014 Corvette.

eboggs_jkvl

I don't see how twice a year is possible?

Let's see:

Change the oil 1/1/2018 and don't touch the car until 1/1/2019, gives you 12 months of time and 1 oil change.

Change oil 1/1/2018 and drive the car 6000 miles most likely will be close to an oil change at 6000 miles but you'll still have some time left and you might still make the 1/1/2019. When 1/1/2019 comes around, you'll have 6000 miles and 12 months on the calendar and time for an oil change. I usually get into the 7000 mile range for my "year" of time. I'm changing my oil once a year, more for the time, rather than the total of miles. My car is not stored in the garage at all. I drive it year round as a daily driver (or as often as I can). To change the oil, from my DIC, twice a year would require me to drive 15,000 or so miles in a year.

Drive the car. When the DIC says change oil, change it. Enjoy the car, don't stew over a silly old oil change!

Elmer

rrsperry

If you aren't following the OLM then you risk your powertrain warranty.

(will they? who knows. Could they? Absolutely. You are REQUIRED to follow the service recommendations, and keep proof.)

I mean it's what, $70 twice a year? I mean really...

Flame Red

Fixed that for you...

Kracka

If anything, the opposite is true! Dealerships want you in more often than the OLM suggests. Most dealerships are still suggesting 3-5k mile changes, where the OLM is typically in the 6-8k mile range for a car that's regularly driven.

jsollmi

That is not point. If you install a gas gauge that tells you need to fill the tank and you still have 3/4 of a tank you would get pretty upset . If GM installed an OLM then let be accurate. There are trying to make it idiot proof. Any who has a vette usually takes very good care of them. How many owners are out there that say oh I think I will skip an oil change this year and wait for two years. . I would guess none.

Kracka

I beg to differ. The father of a friend of mine put about 1k miles per year on his 2004 C5 and only took it for an oil change when the OLM indicated to do so. Since those older systems didn't take time into account, it ended up being only about once every 5 years. From the time it was brand new until it was willed to my friend, it had seen only 2 oil changes beyond the factory-fill from 2003 until 2014 when it came into his possession.