100,000 mile OCI

[tnt_motorsports]

In order to go 100k I think oil pan capacity would have to increase significantly. Semis go tens of thousands of miles on gallons of oil capacity. TBN would be the factor for changing for me.

Oil pan capacities have increased in the last several years to achieve manufacture recommended OCI. My wife’s T&C goes about 9,000 miles before the EVIC comes on. It holds about 6 quarts. The old 2006 held 5 quarts and recommended 7,500 miles.

 

[DGXR]

If someone would combine a very efficient engine, large oil capacity, high quality oil and awesome oil filtration (bypass / redundant systems), oil service intervals can be extended significantly. 100k is a stretch though. Maybe someday...

 

[IndyFan]

Anyone think we can get to 100k OCI for new cars? Even medium duty trucks from Ford have 150k OCIs for the 10 speed transmission. (No combustion of course in a tranny). The trend has been longer OCIs. Mobil 1 AP...ect. Wonder if the technology is there for a “filled for life” just top off your oil for cars......

I could do it with my 2008 Jeep 3.8, probably easily. It uses almost a quart of oil per 1k miles, so it would refresh itself enough to likely make it! Lol! I'd want to change the filters, though. I'd bet a Fram Ultra would easily make it 25k in that Jeep, so maybe only 4 or 5 filter changes would get it there.

I won't do it, though, because I've got a lifetime powertrain warranty.

 

[aquariuscsm]

I know of a number of transmissions that are/were well over 200,000 miles and have never had a fluid change. My sons 2005 Tundra is around 250,000 miles and it spent a good bit of it's early life pulling trailers with me behind the wheel. Factory fill....no issues. I've never changed auto trans fluid in anything I've ever owned in 45 years of driving. Never had a transmission issue either.

I think some people get lucky. If you’ve priced a transmission lately,be prepared for sticker shock. I’ll always advocate regular fluid changes in everything mechanical.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Briggs and Stratton did a life time fill with lawn mowers... Most people don't make monthly payments on a lawn mower though.

I think they were just taking advantage of what's been going on forever. People never change or check their lawnmower oil. With as little as my yard is, my free mower is going on year 2 of its current 20w-50 M1. Still good on the dipstick and clear.

I know of a number of transmissions that are/were well over 200,000 miles and have never had a fluid change. My sons 2005 Tundra is around 250,000 miles and it spent a good bit of it's early life pulling trailers with me behind the wheel. Factory fill....no issues. I've never changed auto trans fluid in anything I've ever owned in 45 years of driving. Never had a transmission issue either.

I did a drain/fill on a 240K Toyota A340E. It came out looking and feeling like very nasty motor oil. Replaced the trans fluid a few times and it outlasted the vehicle.

 

[Gene K]

I think some people get lucky. If you’ve priced a transmission lately,be prepared for sticker shock. I’ll always advocate regular fluid changes in everything mechanical.

It's my experience if you have a sound transmission design they last 150,000 - 300,000 mi in passenger use without fluid changes. Regular fluid changes will extend that by about 50%.

 

[walterjay]

I think I saw somewhere that when Mobil1 was introduced someone ran a Lincoln with M1 20wt and went 100k before changing the oil.

 

[tig1]

i guess i'm old school but say even 10k would worry me let alone 100k ...

I'm probably older school than you, and have been doing 10K OCIs for the last 42 years with great results in various engines. Oil used? M1!

 

[NH73]

Amazing how you can never get an exacting definition of what "lifetime" means.

If you have ever notice, most manuals stop at 120,000 miles to 150,000 miles and just tells you to start over again. I guess that would be the lifetime.

 

[NH73]

I would not be comfortable with an OCI that long. I'm sure a certain percentage of people would love that long of an interval. These same people are the ones who never check the oil level in between Oil changes.

I can imagine the cost of an oil change once you hit 100K miles. They would probably charge you $500 or more at the Stealership saying this oil is made from the world's finest unicorn tears or some BS like that.

Yep, $500 to change oil. You will probably got to drop the pan, because there would be no drain plug. Expensive equipment would be needed to measure the oil, because no dip stick. Or they would need a expensive flushing machine to change the oil. And you would need to tear the engine apart to just get to the filter. That why it would cost so much.

 

[BISCUT]

If you have ever notice, most manuals stop at 120,000 miles to 150,000 miles and just tells you to start over again. I guess that would be the lifetime.

I've noticed how they end abruptly. Never a clear definition of lifetime.

 

[tblt44]

BMW had lifetime transmission fluid.
When tranny failed that was the life of the fluid

 

[spasm3]

I think Saturn perfected that engine technology, just never marketed it.

The Saturn my son had was using oil at a rate that did not require changes, I was adding a quart every 800 miles, and later every 400.

I changed filters every 10 k with an ultra and just added oil.

 

[addyguy]

In the 1976 Popular Science Article the Ford engineer Did a 100k interval on a synthetic oil.

However, he was adding a quart every 1k and changing filters at 12k, making it a running oil change.

 

[OilUzer]

In the 1976 Popular Science Article the Ford engineer Did a 100k interval on a synthetic oil.

However, he was adding a quart every 1k and changing filters at 12k, making it a running oil change.

he was adding a quart every 1K? So was the car burning oil or did he drain some every 1K?
That would be at least 100 quarts of fresh oil in 100K not considering any loss due to the filter changes every 12K.

if he changed the oil every 5000 miles (assuming 5 qt per oil change), he would use 100 quarts in 100K. not sure what that article was trying to prove. He was just doing incremental changes.

 

[Bailes1992]

Bailes1992 above said, "...and replace the bypass when oil flow starts to dwindle."

I always wanted to know how bypassers knew when to change the bypass filter's element.

How did Bailes1992 know when the oil flow started to dwindle? ....a teeny-weeny flow rate gauge?

Visual check? Or take a small container, time how long it takes to fill with a fresh new filter with the engine at operating temperature and check regularly to see it drop off.

Or just check how hot the filter gets at regular intervals after a long drive. If it's still cold after a run you know there isn't a lot of flow going on.

 

[350Rocket]

I saw an 05 Impala taxi (ex cop car) with the 3800 go 60k miles on bulk conventional (140k to 200k miles roughly) before the oil filter rusted through. It still ran great, but likely wouldn't have much longer. It rusted out around the rear struts and got scrapped shortly after 200k miles.

 

[supton]

I wonder if it's the timing chains that would hold this back. Lots of small points of high friction. Maybe if timing gears or a timing belt was used instead? I know some motors are prone to timing chain problems, and given how many don't, it leads us to think it's a design issue for just that motor. But still. Timing chains are very long and wear prone, it seems. Maybe the chain would be good for 2 OCI's under this regimen, which is quite frankly all that the OEM would want to design for anyhow.

 

[Kira]

Thanks Bailes1992. I had no idea. So, if ever I install a bypass system I'll include a 1/4" ball valve on a T so I can sample flowrate. Cheers

 

[Bailes1992]

Thanks Bailes1992. I had no idea. So, if ever I install a bypass system I'll include a 1/4" ball valve on a T so I can sample flowrate. Cheers

That might not work as you would think as the side towards the engine will still be open and oil cable to travel back to the engine.

You'd be better off fitting the return into the oil cap or in the rocker cover just to the side of the oil cap where you can quickly inspect the flow rate.