More proof that the 3000 mile change is bogus

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Remind me never to buy a used car owned by your stepdad. I change coolant and brake fluid at every oil change, regardless of the service interval.

Yeah, no kidding. "Fortunately" he trades cars pretty often, so there probably isn't much damage done...but makes me think why bother changing every 3K if you're going to get rid of it in 3 years
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Coolant at every oil change? I hope that's not like 3-4X a year...
 
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Originally posted by Matt89:
Coolant at every oil change? I hope that's not like 3-4X a year...
Nope, I don't do that sort of mileage, so I don't always service every 6 months - hence the extra fluid changes for piece of mind. Also, my car is a Subaru Outback, and the EJ25 2.5 is known for having head gasket problems, so I keep a close watch on the coolant level and condition regularly.
 
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Originally posted by Audi Junkie:
I feel for you. So many people don't want to do anything more than gas-n-go. It is a tug-of-war with my parents to get them to run super gas in their cars. Mom's 1996 VW has a 10.5:1 ratio but calls for regular due to consumer demanded issues. The super would keep the fuel injection clean and it would run better, a bigger-bodied car with the small engine option.

I disagree here. I don't see a need to run premium in a car not requiring it. The biggest difference in fuel grades is the octane. There may be some addative difference in some stores, but not enough to merrit the 20+ cent difference. Shell says they use the same addative levels in all grades. If it requires premium than that's another issue.

-T
 
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Originally posted by Matt89:
"Nearly every new vehicle owners manual states that severe drivers should change their oil every 3,000 miles. Most drivers don't consider themselves to be severe drivers, although they actually are."

***This just isn't true. MANY now have "severe" intervals of 3750 or 5000. GM's 3000 mile interval only applies to dusty conditions - otherwise follow the onboard oil change system.


(1) It says "nearly all"

(2) If you listen to a Jiffy Lube commercial, they define severe as stop-n-go, high speed, or hot weather.

(3) In reality, only the stop-n-go would be severe. The high speed and/or hot weather has no impact and is defined as "normal"-7500-mile changes in car manuals.

(4) Conclusion: Jiffy Lube is spreading lies to make every one think they are driving their cars severely.

(5) #4 is not surprising. Jiffy Lube will do whatever it takes to put more money in their pockets. They can't break the laws, but they can redefine everyone as a "severe driver" through ads & lying.

[ April 28, 2004, 01:25 PM: Message edited by: batterycar ]
 
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Mom's 1996 VW has a 10.5:1 ratio but calls for regular due to consumer demanded issues. The super would keep the fuel injection clean and it would run better, a bigger-bodied car with the small engine option.

I have never seen evidence that a vehicle which calls for regular fuel will return higher fuel economy with premium fuel. I have seen the opposite, that vehicles which call for premium fuel sometimes give worse fuel economy and performance on substandard octane fuel.

In California at least, all fuels are required by law to carry a goodly amount of detergents. In some other states it *might* still be the case that higher grades of fuel have more detergents, but I have not seen an documentation which proves it.

Generally speaking, running premium fuel in a vehicle which specifies regular fuel is a waste of money.

John
 
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Originally posted by Audi Junkie:
Dad's Mercedes calls for super-gas right on the fueler door...does not ever happen. What I have to do is add some TL-3 fi cleaner
Your dad's not too bright (no offense intended). Running 87 in a car that calls for 93 minimum will be experiencing pre-ignition and the cumulative damage caused by that.

I don't think you TL-3 would fix the problem? The octane's still too low.
 
Lots of good, science and analysis-based evidence on this site that 3K oil changes are unnecessary for the great majority of drivers.

On a more acecdotal point, we know that oils of today are greatly superior to the lubes of 1966. Yet the 1966 Chrysler Imperial required 4K oil changes for warranty purposes (I recently linked to a vintage ad for that car which addressed this issue). To think that somehow powerplant design, machining capabilities, materials engineering, and petrochemistry somehow haven't progressed substantially beyond what was available in 1966 -- that concept's a joke to me.

Excepting truly Severe Service, 3K oil changes are a great idea and good practice...if you happen to own a Jiffy Lube franchise.
 
Something to think about.

Guy in a class at school(works at Kwik Kar, drives a 5.0 mustang, thinks he is master mechanic) just told me Kwik Kar sent him off to lube tech school. Says they taught him at school that synthetic oil cannot go longer than 3000 miles and is a myth. When I asked him why double the price he said it makes your engine last longer.

Oh, and everyone should have their engines flushed every third oil change despite maintenance intervals. His comment there, all the old oil never completely drains out and will cause build up. But what about the flush that doesn't drain completely out? He didn't say...
 
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