I shudder to hear that people are leaving that goo in their engines for such long times. Oil does a lot more than just lubricate. It cools, it takes out the trash, so to speak, the byproducts of combustion and every few minutes it carries its load of trash to the filter. Depending on the individual engine, that filter may get loaded up sooner than later.
I drive a car I've not seen mentioned in this thread, a 2009 Suzuki SX4 iAWD. I pound the heck out of my little car, with lots of off-road driving, so I go to the "Severe Usage" section of my Owners Manual, where is states, in no uncertain words, that both the oil and filter should be changed every 3k miles or every three months. No surprise to me, that's exactly what my dealer's Service Manager told me the day I picked up my new SX4.
It's no big deal, because that's what I've been doing with every car I've owned for the past 50 years.
Yes I use dino oil, currently, Castrol GTX 20W50, with a Purolator Classic filter. There is no way in this world or the next that I could afford to replace my engine, so I take as good care of it as humanly possible.
Following my Owners Manual to the letter, as to the maintenance schedule is just the first step.
I actually enjoy the experience of changing my own oil. It also gives me a chance to pull a full PM (Preventive Maintenance Inspection) on my car. I look for leaks, loose parts, any damage to the undercarriage by rocks, etc. I top off all the fluids and check my battery fluid levels.
At 20 months old with 20k miles, my little car still looks like new, both inside and out. Things could go very wrong and I'd never know it, if I only serviced my car once a year. That's ridiculous.
Cheers Mates!
The Shadow (almost 68, in Florida)
