Vis: SLAPSHOT’s manufacturers oil change interval question. It got me thinking...
10,000 mile intervals are probably ok with high quality synthetic oil and filter and average driving conditions when the car is new. But I think you are asking for trouble, especially if you go off road, or tow, or otherwise drive in harsh conditions. I also think that could be trouble as the vehicle ages and develops possible oil leaks or oil burning.
So why would some manufacturers recommend 10k, rather than 7500 or 5000 to be on the safe side? My hunch is that a lot of dealers do specials offering “free oil changes for the first 2 years” or whatever. The longer the interval, the more “generous” they can be with the deal, so the dealers may be pushing for a longer recommended interval.
But what do I know? Maybe the engineers have evidence to be confident in the longer intervals.
FWIW: my 2018 WRX has a 6000 mile recommendation, which I think is more reasonable.
Oil breaks down at 5000 that doesn't break down at all by 10,000. You can cause wearing a vehicle especially if you do a lot of city stop and go driving. If you do drive in the highway you can change it every 10 but you'd have to drive in the highway most of the time
Keep in mind that stop-and-go city driving should be considered "severe driving conditions", especially in warm climates.
This is probably the most hotly debated car topic on the internet, right after which oil to use.
General rule of thumb is 1 year or 5k miles with normal driving, which ever comes first. Oil degrades both over time & through usage. 6 months is pretty early, but considering its a kia it may not be a bad idea to do it sooner rather than later. Id say you can push it past 6 months, but atleast once a year, or 5k miles. Definitely don't go over.
I would still do every 5,000 miles for engine oil changes. And they also said ‘lifetime fluid’ for the transmission but you should also be on top of those ATF fluid changes as well.
Thank you!
Using the severe driving change interval will give you the best shot at reaching the 200-300k on the engine.
Scotty, You were right on oil change intervals, and I have the data to prove it.
My friend decided to do their first oil change for their brand new Toyota RAV4 Hybrid at the manufacturer recommended 10,000 miles. I was curious to see if it was too long for an oil change or just about right, so we did an oil analysis.
And the oil analysis turned out good for that specific car, with the oil still having some life left in it. They do mostly freeway driving, and like you said, engine wear is 10% of city driving, so the data lines up with 10,000 mile oil changes for the RAV4 Hybrid.
But the oil analysis company also provided some aggregated data across all vehicles tested, and the average oil change interval should be around 6,700 miles. And that is close to your recommendation of 5000 miles.
Thanks Scotty for your sage advice on oil changes and everything having to do with car maintenance and repairs.
BTW, here is a copy of the report:
Well thanks for sharing I like it when science proves me right
If you mean engine oil, change it every 5000 miles along with the oil filter, and use full synthetic oil. The oil specification should be mentioned in your owner’s manual.
All the best!
As Scotty has said many times, oil is cheap and engines are expensive. Which would you rather be replacing?
Thank you!
10,000 mile interval requires PERFECT conditions: light duty, high quality full synthetic oil (eg, Mobil1), high quality filter, careful monitoring (check oil frequently and watch for oil burning or dilution), and don't go a minute past 10,000.
But I would do 5000 for better peace of mind.
The general rule of thumb is 5000 miles or one year, whichever comes first.
Thank you
For all those people who think it's a good idea to wait 20k to change the oil.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3k3iXy8T8WE
I was reading my friends manual for their RAV4 Hybrid, and they also recommended oil changes every 10,000 miles. If and only if, 0W-16 was used. If any other compatible oil was used, like 0W-20, they recommended oil changes every 5,000 miles.
Hello Scotty, I come from the old school of thought and I am struggling with oil changes every 10k miles on my 2015 Toyota 4Runner and 2022 Lexus GX 460. My question to you Scotty is this if I changed the synthetic oil of both of these vehicles listed above every six months or 5k miles am I wrong to do this considering that it’s my intention to keep these vehicles for decades to come?
thank you Scotty
I would like to know answer to this too. Good question
A common comment on this site is that “lifetime” has different meanings. For the owner, it means the expected service life of the vehicle (people might expect 150-300k miles for most vehicles), whereas for the manufacturer it often seems to mean “until the warranty expires”.
So to your question, a 10,000 mile oil change interval might make the car last until the warranty expires. But if you want your vehicles to go farther (which would be a very long time for your 4Runner) a shorter oil change interval will probably be necessary.
It should tell you in your owners manual but around 5,000 miles. I wouldn't really go over that and don't forget to change the filter along with that. Also make sure to use the proper type/amount of oil and to check it on level ground.
This topic has been visited multiple times on the forum. The general consensus is that 5000 miles is the optimal mileage to change your oil and filter. Or, just take your manufacturer's maintenance recommendations and divide by 2.
Scotty's rule of thumb is highway mileage is equal to 10% of the wear that city driving causes. So 7500 miles on the highway would be roughly 750 in-town mileage. He's mentioned stories of people driving across the country via the highway on an oil change and it hardly got dirty.
You didn't specify your mileage. I relgiously do my oil in my truck every 5k miles, and I do 90% highway/country road driving as well. My Ranger has almost 281k miles. Older engines should be changed more often because they're old and more worn. Oil gets dirty quicker.
I don't see why you would want to prolong oil change intervals, oil is cheap insurance compared to an engine, but If you want to it, use a full synthetic oil and a high quality filter. I use Pennzoil Platinum every 5k. I would consult your owner's manual for the oil change interval, and go from there.
Change oil and filter once a year or every 5000 miles, whichever comes first.
I remember in owner's manual (Daewoo Nexia if I remember correctly) oil change was recommended every 10k km or 1 year. It also recommended more frequent changes if driven on macadam, dusty areas, uphill etc.
3 years old Auris recommends oil change every 15000 km or one year. But I make only about 10k km/year so I'm somehow on the safe side. But since the engine is designed only for 200k km, I don't bother very much.
There are also oils for diesel engines that can be changed every 30000 km. I guess those are useful for highway driving. I'm not sure they are useful for all other kinds of driving.
I'm in northern Ontario Canada. My local dealer says to change the oil in my Kia Forte every six months or 6000 kms.(4000 miles) even if using synthetic which I do. I find this excessive. What would you recommend so that I stay within warranty requirements?
Whatever your owners manual states. If you follow that maintenance schedule religiously then you should meet warranty requirements. You'll need to be sure that all maintenance is documented.
Too bad those oils and filters don't last the 20,000 miles advertised.
Scotty Kilmer says every 5000 miles but it can be extended to more if you do highway driving. He also recommends using quality filters as the cheaper ones have less mileage on them before needing to be changed.
Please correct me if wrong, but I'm sure I've heard him say this more than once in videos.
I'd assume a quality filter would be OEM. I can't find all the top makes over here in the UK, so I just use Toyota OEM.
Don't trust full synthetic at 10-15K. It's "IFFY" because of Possible Turbo Charges and GDI Engines that build up carbon
Unfortunately, oil changes won't help with that.
There's also a special motor oil for turbo's.
I'm sure they'd love to sell you special oil for everything.
Full Synthetic Oil is a waste of money.
all engines can benefit from the stability and cold start viscosity that "synthetic" oils can offer
not recommended because it lacks the proper additives and detergents that come in top tier gas.
I have yet to see any unbiased, independently corroborated proof that this provides any real world benefit.
Yes, Synthetic Oils can benefit from Cold-Start Viscosity in places that are cold. However, in warmer areas like Texas, Florida, and California...it is not needed unless if you really have to use it. Otherwise as I stated before, If you don't need synthetic oil, it can be a waste of money.
unless it's 200F where you live, then yes, there is still benefit. It's not just for places that freeze.
And again, "synthetic" oil is also more stable over of the course of 1000's of miles. Conventional oil loses it's film strength and other properties much quicker. This has been proven over and over.
Do change it every 5k miles. Whatever intervals in your owners manual divide it in half. It's not that expensive changing oil and filter yourself every 5k miles. And it's the cheapest maintenance you can do to make your car last.
Do it every 5000 miles unless you want the inside of your engine to wind up looking like this:
Change it every 5k or once a year whichever comes first.