I work for an auto manufacturer, and although I’m not in drive-trains (but used to work in our engine plant, but in fuel tanks), I can speak for body-in-white, which I have to imagine shares the same corporate philosophy as we do: eliminate TGW’s (things gone wrong), and let our customers know how to prevent them. There’s a reason that my company is now ranked on par with Toyota and Honda, and it’s not because we tell our customers not to change their oil for some stupid planned-obsolescence gambit.
Background: I’ve owned two Hondas, because at the time, the company I presently work for (but didn’t then) did build pieces of crap, and I was fed up. Also when I started at my company, there wasn’t a car we made that I would drive. I’m still picky – the company has changed, but I’ve not. I’m telling you, I know that we used to make junk.
Funny stuff, makes you wonder how long she would have went without an oil change, but just added a quart every now and then to keep it at the full mark.
It reminds me of a car I have sitting in my backyard right now that was donated to me. It’s old now, and this is the second engine that is also locked up in it. This woman got this Honda new back in the nineties. She too, drove this car hard for years, and NEVER ONCE changed the oil in it either on the first engine. She got up to around 100,000 miles or so before it finally locked up on her, I forget the actual mileage. Anyway, I asked her why didn’t she ever change the oil. She said, “nobody ever told me about that stuff, I didn’t know any better.”
Seems most of you have it figured out. Follow the owners manual for the correct interval when using their recommended oil.
Of course, if you use a better oil and better filter, it makes sense you can go longer, especially if the oil and oil filter company recommend and warranty for longer changes.
Only a few oil and filter companies recommend going longer. Mobil 1 is one company that recommends up to 15,000 miles up to 1 year when using their Extended Protection (EP) oil and filter. But only if you are out of factory warranty and do not do severe driving conditions, in which case you should follow the owners manual.
AMSOIL is another company that recommends and warranties extended oil and filter intervals. They offer oils for up to 35,000 normal miles up to 1 year for gasoline engines, and up to 3 times the recommended oil change interval, up to 50,000 miles up to 1 year, whichever comes first, for diesel engines. And you can go longer than that if a used oil analysis says the engine and oil are fine. Their EaO oil filters are recommended up to 25,000 normal miles up to one year. They have made recommendations like these since 1972 and have never voided a warranty or caused an oil related engine failure and have their own warranty in case it ever does.
As far as maximum time intervals for those who drive a few thousand miles a year, check your owners manual. Some may say 6 months, others a year. Pennzoil and QuakerState say up to 4 months. AMSOIL has one line of oils (XL) that says 6 months, their other oils up to 1 year or longer if used oil analysis recommends it.
