12,335 miles between synthetic oil changes! Never again!
- Thread starter KlubMarcus
- Start date
Color by itself means nothing, could be bad or perfectly fine.
Yes, that was my point. It's a meaningless metric.
Back in the 70s, I did 20,000 miles plus, on a 68 Cougar, and the original Mobil 1, as a do it your selfer. There were no issues at all..
I used to have a small WokeTube channel that made me a tiny amount of money, but I don't have enough hits on Rumble to get anything besides a quart of fluid.On my wife's car, we went from 6K mile oil change to a 9K mile oil change. The two used oil analysis I did showed MUCH LESS WEAR per mile than those that changed around the 6K mark. The engine also ran fantastic and returned great fuel mileage. SO Shorter OCI is not always better. The Color or opacity of an oil will tell you if the oil has been changed recently, but other than that - not much else.
It seems 12K miles was too much for you wifes car so that 2x per year OCI is probably a good place for you.
In those Northern states that have severe seasons - I cant argue a Late Fall and Early Spring oil change schedule.
Carry on.
p.s.: did you get enough video hits now to get a Kewpie Doll from YewToob?j/k
- Ken
I'm so glad that I don't film for a living!I did 20k miles on a 68 Cougar with the original M1. Not a hint of an issue.
that alone doesn't prove anything but at the very least a paper towel test since oil can look equally black when its draining down but its true tone shows on a paper towel.
I've seen black oil that's very light brown on a towel with only 6k miles and black oil on a paper towel with 14k looked almost completely black on the paper towel.
Not a super accurate test but if its light to medium brown it most likely isn't beat to death. if its dark brown going for black id be say to say that's its expiring soon and if its completely black on a white paper towel id feel safe to suggest its done for. That car i checked on that didn't have a change in 14k and yeah on the paper towel it was black. no brown in it anymore.
I've seen black oil that's very light brown on a towel with only 6k miles and black oil on a paper towel with 14k looked almost completely black on the paper towel.
Not a super accurate test but if its light to medium brown it most likely isn't beat to death. if its dark brown going for black id be say to say that's its expiring soon and if its completely black on a white paper towel id feel safe to suggest its done for. That car i checked on that didn't have a change in 14k and yeah on the paper towel it was black. no brown in it anymore.
It was sold as a "20k mile or one year" oil. And better protection than a 10w-40 oil.
I dug up this old video of mine where I'm changing the oil and filter on a 2008 Nissan Altima 2.5 S sedan. If you watch until the end, you'll see the mileage since the last oil change which is 12,335 miles.
Darkness doesnt mean a thing. Its just dirt and carbon, which is what the oil is supposed to keep in suspension and flush out of the engine. Considering the millions and millons of dollars that automakers spend on R&D and that they are putting their rep on the line when they tell you how often to change your oil, do you really think they would specify 12K if it wasnt safe and they werent confident in it?
My non-hybrid gas engines receive an oil change every 3K and the hybrid receives one every 5K. All 3 vehicles get full synthetic oil.
Why? I am accustomed to inspecting the vehicles every 6 months for any issues. 2 out of 3 vehicles have over 150k miles. Since I already have the car racked up, it gets an oil change as well.
Why? I am accustomed to inspecting the vehicles every 6 months for any issues. 2 out of 3 vehicles have over 150k miles. Since I already have the car racked up, it gets an oil change as well.
I've learned through my UOAs that 7500 miles is the limit for my driving habits in my 2018 Taurus 3.5L. So I went back to doing 5k. So yes, do UOAs do you can figure out what's best for you and your ride.
Which gasoline engine was it?
BMW N52.
Meaningless, Oil color is rarely the diagnostic tool of choice when it comes to evaluating how worn out an oil is. UOA exists for a reason and is a superior tool for evaluating viscosity break down and TBN.
We have a car with this exact engine and sump (2015 Nissan Rogue) and frankly it just makes oil dark, it’s been maintained to the letter on 5000 mile intervals or less with Full Synthetic oil and on my most recent change (Monday) the oil drained out dark. To give context I accidentally reset the maintenance minder when changing the battery and neglected to notate the mileage on the previous oil filter so I just set it to 3,000 miles since I couldn’t exactly remember the mileage I changed it.
I’d wager the engine probably had 3600 miles on RGT 5w30 with a Napa platinum filter and it still came out dark. Weird to see posts on a site like this where there is a high level of knowledge and usage of diagnostic tools.
We have a car with this exact engine and sump (2015 Nissan Rogue) and frankly it just makes oil dark, it’s been maintained to the letter on 5000 mile intervals or less with Full Synthetic oil and on my most recent change (Monday) the oil drained out dark. To give context I accidentally reset the maintenance minder when changing the battery and neglected to notate the mileage on the previous oil filter so I just set it to 3,000 miles since I couldn’t exactly remember the mileage I changed it.
I’d wager the engine probably had 3600 miles on RGT 5w30 with a Napa platinum filter and it still came out dark. Weird to see posts on a site like this where there is a high level of knowledge and usage of diagnostic tools.
Last edited:
How was the oil consumption on it after 18k miles?
I dug up this old video of mine where I'm changing the oil and filter on a 2008 Nissan Altima 2.5 S sedan. If you watch until the end, you'll see the mileage since the last oil change which is 12,335 miles.
I'm waiting for the firing squad and get the Pop-Corn ready!
I'm waiting for the firing squad and get the Pop-Corn ready!
It may not be scientific, but much like taking a glass of clean water, and adding pollution and dirt and such to it will make it dark and "dirty." It's suspending contaminants, and therefore has less ability to suspend more contaminants and may lose some lubricity (i.e. gritty, at capacity to store more contamination, etc.), and worn out to an extent.
At 12k miles in particular, it's reasonable to believe that dark oil is near or at or maybe beyond its serviceable life.
Similar threads
