# Oil Change--How Often? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 17, 1999, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oil-change-how-often/2746 "1999-08-17T13:39:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 1999, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oil-change-how-often/2746/41 "1999-08-21T22:25:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Tuba, did the english ever get the hinge and latch problems fixed? On my old mini, my brothers triumph, and some others i knew ,it was lift up HARD on the door to unlatch and latch. I dunno anything that comes easy on those cars. That being said, I’ve always loved them, ever since I got my first ride around a race track in a MGB ages ago. It’s like having malaria; you do recover, but you have occasional fits of fever afterwards. Sports car fever, it’s the worst. If I found one I could afford, I’d buy it, even now; I mean, I already know how to call for a tow truck . . . I know enough about those wiring harnesses to buy a fire extinguisher and keep it handy . . .and I know how to get oil stains off the driveway. 🙂 your humble TubaDiva ---
**Author:** ![1420Vel.GN](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/35a633/32.png) [@1420Vel.GN](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/1420Vel.GN)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 1999, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oil-change-how-often/2746/42 "1999-08-22T15:06:00Z")
TubaDiva, after reading your last post I’m afraid you might not be too enthusiastic about what I’ve got in the garage. Buick Grand National ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 1999, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oil-change-how-often/2746/43 "1999-08-23T05:29:00Z")
In the old days, you went to a store and got what was called a ‘lube, oil & filter.’ Nowadays, there are no lube fittings for them to lube. As a matter of fact, probably haven’t been any since around 1980? So, when you go in for a lube these days, they must be pulling your leg…maybe its just an attempt to extort more money, right? ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 1999, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oil-change-how-often/2746/44 "1999-08-22T18:33:00Z")
> [@](#): > > TubaDiva, after reading your last post I’m afraid you might not be too enthusiastic about what I’ve got in the garage. Buick Grand National Cool! It doesn’t matter WHAT you run, but THAT you run. (Although I DO wonder sometimes about those folks that race on ice.) your humble TubaDiva who can’t have Speedvision on 'cause then nothing gets done but racing ---
**Author:** ![1420Vel.GN](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/35a633/32.png) [@1420Vel.GN](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/1420Vel.GN)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 1999, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oil-change-how-often/2746/45 "1999-08-23T05:10:00Z")
TubaDiva, Cool Man; some of my sports car friends don’t think to much of drag racing. I enjoy having so much power it’s all I can do to just keep it in a straight line. I’ve taken a friends car thru an autocross course, man what a new set of sensations. If you wonder about those ice guys, let me lay this one on you. This was on ESPN2. These carpenters are some crazy cats - they were racing belt sanders. They had a track, were organized, and had different classes for some of the more heavily modified sanders. ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 1999, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oil-change-how-often/2746/46 "1999-08-23T05:31:00Z")
A couple of years ago Consumer Reports did a story on how often to change the oil in your car. Was 3,000 miles the magical number? They tested the hardest working engine driven by lunatics out there: The NYC taxi cabs. Put fresh oil in a bunch of cars and tested it at 3000 and 6000 miles. They also tested the synthetic oils too, but I don’t recall the results. They came back with a verdict of change it every 6000 because of the oil was losing viscosity or someother such buzz word. I have been pretty faithful to that since then. My two bits ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 1999, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oil-change-how-often/2746/47 "1999-08-23T05:31:00Z")
Autocross! Look out for those suicidal pylons – they’ll throw themselves under your car in a heartbeat. 🙂 Racing belt sanders? Okay, now I HAVE heard everything. Is this a Tim Allen thing or what? You realize this does give a whole new meaning to the term “bench racing.” (Workbench racing!) your humble TubaDiva "I need some parts for the race, go by Home Depot and get me . . . " ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 1999, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oil-change-how-often/2746/48 "1999-08-23T16:17:00Z")
“it every 6000 because of the oil was losing viscosity or someother such buzz word” By that time, an average person would have added more than 6 quarts of oil or more…so it would still be a working oil. ---
**Author:** ![stf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/db5fbb/32.png) [@stf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stf)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 1999, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oil-change-how-often/2746/49 "1999-08-24T05:02:00Z")
here’s a related question… The last time i was at the dealer for some kind of arcane maintenance, I got a sales pitch about cleaning the oil pan (dissolving the tar out of the pan). The guy claimed it needed to be done every 12000 miles, it cost a lot, close to $100 bucks or so. needless to say i told the guy to take a hike. never heard of such a treatment, couldn’t find it in my manual, etc. this is why i never use the dealership unless i have to. anyone ever heard of such a thing? is it necessary/worth while? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oil-change-how-often/2746.md?page=2)