1995 Mercury Grand Marquis OCI - 3000 miles?

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Hello All:

I purchased a 1995 Merc. Grand Marquis in July. The owner's manual states that the OCI should be 3000 miles or 3 months with "severe" service and 5000 mile/6 month OCI with "normal" service. Here is the info about the car and usage:
1. 151000+ miles.
2. Driven approximately 50 to 100 miles per week, all around town with some idling. It never sees the highway nor does it get stuck in major urban traffic jams.
3. All short trips.
4. The car is driven gently.
5. There is no sludge, no oil burning or leaking. The oil pan, rear main bearing seal, radiator, trans cooling lines, alternator, plugs and plug wires, coils and brake master cylinder were all recently replaced. Trans fluid just changed with Mercon V; differential fluid changed; new air filter. Overall condition, very good. Previous owner stuck with 3000 mile OCI using a variety of instant oil change places.

I am using an inexpensive dino like Mobil 5000, QS green or Supertech with Purolator Classic filters. Should I stick with a 3000/3 month OCI even if I am only putting approximately 1500 miles on the car in 3 months? I know that almost everyone says that 5000 mile OCIs are fine with modern dino oil, but I am concerned about the recommendation in the owner's manual. Thank you in advance for your input.
 
The manual was written for the oils available at the time.

Oils are much better now, you can do 6 months or 5k miles with ease.
 
I bought it for my son. It cost $1300.00 and I had to do about $2000 worth of repairs. I figure that $3300 isn't bad for a car that will probably last 3 to 5 years if maintained. The car had never been abused and the parts that need to be replaced (the radiator and oil pan) went bad due to rust, not neglect. It runs really well. I would trust it to go across the country today if needed.
 
Why? Because that car will take more abuse on the road than any other car can. The ONLY downside to one is feeding it! That car should be able to get more than 3-5 years out of it with normal servicing.
 
I'm using M1 5W-30 Extended Performance in my '98 MGM on a one year OCI, mostly sees around town but also 20 mi highway run every couple of weeks... Last change it logged 9539 mi...

I'd throw those Purolator Classic filters in the trash, had startup knock in a '03 with 26K mi, never a problem with the Pure One or Motorcraft...
 
When I drive from Miami to N.Y.C. I average 25MPG on 87 octane..That is with the a/c constantly on..I used to do slightly better before ethanol went into the gas.

As far oil changes go..Before my mom stopped driving due to health issues she did all VERY short runs almost everyday of the week..Zero highway..I could not believe how beat up that oil looked after only 5 months..I dumped it every 5-6 months..I was putting in 5w20 Motorcraft Blend in her 05 4.6..With highway runs in my car I can easily go 5-7500 miles and the oil still looks good on the same Motorcraft oil..That is even with some gridlock mixed in.

A lot people here say you can not go by color of the oil but when the oil is turning from dark amber to black and like to get it out of there.

BTW that was a awesome deal for 1300 bucks for that well maintained car..That car is probably better then a late model P71 Police Interceptor..Nice find!
 
Thank you for your responses and compliments so far. Yes, I have read on many occasions that the Panther platform cars are very durable, reliable and safe. My son needs a car like this. Apparently, repairs, maintenance and insurance costs are low and this defreys the cost of gasoline somewhat. I cannot believe how well this car runs. It has its warts: there is rust, the AC doesn't work (I suspect a rusted condensor) and I had to wire the rear windows shut because the window regulators no longer worked. I may fix these down the road, but we'll see. I think that I will try a five or six month OCI, but keep an eye on the condition. I'm surprised to hear about problems with the Puro classic. Almost everyone on BITOG thinks that Puro classics are good filters, especially compared to the basic Fram, the STP and other less expensive filters. Anyway, I only have 3 Puros in my stash. After I use them, I will switch to Motorcraft. Thanks again.
 
Congrats on the new Grand Monkey.

'95 and earlier 4.6s had valve seal issues which would cause oil consumption, even though there were no other symptoms, and no visible smoke from the tailpipe, so keep an eye on the oil level until you are comfortable with how long it takes to get to the add line, especially if you extend the OCI.
Originally Posted By: z917990
Yes, I have read on many occasions that the Panther platform cars are very durable, reliable and safe.
You read right. 150k is just about broken in.
Quote:
After I use them, I will switch to Motorcraft.
Good choice, although unless you have start-up rattle there's no reason not to continue with the Classics.
 
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