Change intervals question - pandemic edition

[Eric_GM]

Come on, 3 years? Can't spare $20 to buy a jug of SuperTech?

The problem in my case is mostly waste. I try to change oil in all 3 cars at roughly the same time and that means 18 empty 1qt bottles (it's impossible to find gallon jugs for the oils I use) and about 4.5 gallons of "used" oil that I have to go and dispose of properly. From what I understand, the bottles themselves are non-recyclable since they are contaminated with oil.

E39 uses almost 8qts, the VQ in the pathy ~6qts and the Corolla a bit less than 4. That's not counting the 1 or 2 extra qts for the bimmer since it consumes a bit of oil between changes.

What the oil costs is honestly secondary, especially considering that the fact I'm not using the cars has saved me a ton of money in gas and parts.

 

[jstert]

my snowbird toyota yaris’ oci is about 2yrs/3k miles of 5w30. it has gotten kendall or valvoline bulk semisyn, except last november, toyota synthetic with a 60k mile full monty tuneup and fluid change by a japanese car specialty garage.

when in use the yaris gets highway-driven for an hour every 4-5 days during 1-2 months, otherwise suburban-driven. then it sits on a battery tender for 2-3 months. i could probably stretch the oci longer but my usual $25 semisyn oil change comes with a free inspection by another set of better trained eyes up on a lift too and is small money in the greater scheme of things.

 

[SR5]

Change it every 2 years for low miles

That is what I do.
It's fuel burnt and miles covered that deteriorates an oil, not time sitting in a sump.

 

[Hall]

the VQ in the pathy ~6qts and the Corolla a bit less than 4

Those two vehicles can use any off-the-shelf oil and shouldn't be hard to find in 1-gallon or 5 quart bottles. That would solve your "issue" with the plastic waste.

 

[Gene K]

Castrol 0W-40. Buy 4 of the 5 qt jugs for all three cars. Change the oil every 36 months or when the car hits 10,000 mi (15,000 km). Ignore the fact BMW removed approval from all 0W oils. Make your life simpler.

 

[WeyounDS9]

Thanks for your replies, folks! I don't think there's a place where I can send oil for analysis nearby so I too go by looks and smell. The oil I changed in the e39 and the pathy was still translucent after 1.5 years and now after reading all the replies I feel bad I threw it away.

Unrelated but also true, rubber rot worries me a fair bit too, not to mention fuel going stale (I used to top them up but now I try to keep them around the half mark). The bimmer even needs a battery tender as it won't keep a charge after about 3 weeks.

I'm happy that I don't have to commute anymore, but it breaks my heart that the cars have been mostly relegated to grocery shopping and the occasional road trip.

Add some oil stabilizer to your fuel. Anytime I go away on a rip over 4 weeks I add a bottle of Seafoam, which is a mild stabilizer to the tank.
You can also use PRI-G or Sta-bil.
I also fill them up with Non ethanol fuel before I leave.

Ethanol based fuel will start going bad within 2-3 months with such measures aren't taken.
So in summary I'd worry more about my fuel than my oil if you dont take fuel precautions as listed above.

 

[930.engineering]

Two years.

 

[Johnmpb]

The problem in my case is mostly waste. I try to change oil in all 3 cars at roughly the same time and that means 18 empty 1qt bottles (it's impossible to find gallon jugs for the oils I use) and about 4.5 gallons of "used" oil that I have to go and dispose of properly. From what I understand, the bottles themselves are non-recyclable since they are contaminated with oil.

E39 uses almost 8qts, the VQ in the pathy ~6qts and the Corolla a bit less than 4. That's not counting the 1 or 2 extra qts for the bimmer since it consumes a bit of oil between changes.

What the oil costs is honestly secondary, especially considering that the fact I'm not using the cars has saved me a ton of money in gas and parts.

What special oil does a Nissan Pathfinder and a Toyota Corolla need?

 

[Eric_GM]

Just realized I left this thread abandoned, although not really cause it's obvious there's a general consensus when it comes to rarely driven cars.

What special oil does a Nissan Pathfinder and a Toyota Corolla need?

It's not so much that they have special needs, but mostly that around my neck of the woods what you get in every shop is at most a mediocre semi-synth of dubious origin.

From what I have read, the VQ in the Pathy is a bit more stressed due to the 2 tons it has to carry around and the ceramic dust from the cats. The 'rolla I'm sure can run on WD-40 but it hasn't lasted 50 years with Walmart oil either, so I'd like to keep pampering all 3 cars for as long as I can.

So in summary I'd worry more about my fuel than my oil if you dont take fuel precautions as listed above.

Yeah. I have had to re-train myself not to fill them all the way up and I try to use all what's in the tank in 3 months or less, but I do keep in mind adding a stabilizer if they go unused for more than that.