Which OLMs use driving conditions ?

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MikeySoft

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Which OLMs use driving conditions ?

Do all newer car's Oil Life Monitors use driving conditions for computing remaining oil life! Or do some only uses mileage ?

Are their any newer cars which do not have OLM?
 
Certainly not all newer cars take into account driving conditions. Many are still just miles/time counters.

Also, what is your definition of "driving conditions"? GM OLM takes into account things like rpms, operating temperatures, etc.

There are others such as BMW that are based on a dielectric sensor.
 
I doubt unless its a car that cost more than 75k they bother too much with driving condition.

The car's ECU probabley averages RPM , speed to come up with OLM even if it was very advanced.

Car manufacture's are going by people change oil at their dealerships ( fail ), and dealership use syth or semi syth ( sometimes fail ), so they are calculating for syth based oils out of factory.

I wouldnt trust the darn thing , go with your guts, all the knowlege you need is on this website.
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Certainly not all newer cars take into account driving conditions. Many are still just miles/time counters.

Also, what is your definition of "driving conditions"? GM OLM takes into account things like rpms, operating temperatures, etc.

There are others such as BMW that are based on a dielectric sensor.


I have own Hondas so all I know about is Honda uses the first definition of driving conditions.

I did not know about sensors like the BMW has.

I would like to know which ones uses either definition or only miles/time.
 
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This is the first time I've heard that BMW uses sensors. I would like some facts on this, including when it was introduced.

For nearly all of them, I believe it's much more than a simple mileage counter. It takes into account cold starts, in particular. If the thing considers cold starts and also has mileage of course, it can quickly factor in average trip length which is going to be a big component of the oil's health.
 
I think they could also use if it got up to operating temperature.

This should be easy, Start with a max mileage, then subtract from oil life for each cold start but add a little back if it reach operating temperature.
 
OK, I did some internet research... ;-)

BMW does have a sensor, but it's only part of the overall OLM. The sensor measures oil level, temperature, and conductivity, which can be affected by water or metals in the oil. So if conductivity is high it will probably do something in the overall OLM, but the OLM also factors in the other known parameters (mileage, fuel usage (yes...), cold starts, etc.) into it's algorithm.
 
Originally Posted By: crw
BMW does have a sensor, but it's only part of the overall OLM.

Yes, it's just one data point.

Quote:

but the OLM also factors in the other known parameters (mileage, fuel usage (yes...), cold starts, etc.) into it's algorithm.

Yeah, my 11-year-old 530i's OLM is purely based on amount of fuel burned. BMW set it at 2375 liters, which is somewhat high, IMO, but maybe someone's research went into it.

I didn't know they still rely on fuel usage to some extent these days. I thought they moved away from it. Did you find any official literature on this? The details are hard to come by.
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: crw
BMW does have a sensor, but it's only part of the overall OLM.

Yes, it's just one data point.

Quote:

but the OLM also factors in the other known parameters (mileage, fuel usage (yes...), cold starts, etc.) into it's algorithm.

Yeah, my 11-year-old 530i's OLM is purely based on amount of fuel burned. BMW set it at 2375 liters, which is somewhat high, IMO, but maybe someone's research went into it.

I didn't know they still rely on fuel usage to some extent these days. I thought they moved away from it. Did you find any official literature on this? The details are hard to come by.



Official, certainly not. Just guys in forums saying stuff.... But the rationale appears to be that lower MPG means that the car is driven hard, so it lowers the life expectancy of the oil. I'm not sure how they account for different qualities of fuel.

The OLM on my E36 is a generation ago and I'm sure does not have this sensor. I just try to stay current because I figure more BMWs are in my future.

I am the OLM in my 1975 2002. ;-) Once a year, baby!
 
Originally Posted By: crw
Official, certainly not. Just guys in forums saying stuff.... But the rationale appears to be that lower MPG means that the car is driven hard, so it lowers the life expectancy of the oil. I'm not sure how they account for different qualities of fuel.

Right. Lower MPG also means the car may have been driven in city vs hwy, or it had a lot of short trips/cold starts, etc.

But I was asking if you found any literature stating that fuel usage is still being factored into the equation on brand new bmws. I know they used it in the past.
 
GM uses a computer program that considers: total rpms, engine temperature, ambient temperature, etc. Starts with a mileage and subtracts due to above factors. Another explanation, the GM engine oil life monitor counts engine revolutions and accumulates the number for the basis of the oil life calculation. It then adds deterioration factors for operating temperature, start up temperature, soak times, ambient, coolant temperature, etc...

Total rpms compensates for city verses highway miles. Lower total rpms when on highway.

My Nissan just has a mileage counter, 3750 or 7500 miles. Although you can set other mileage.
 
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Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
crw said:
But I was asking if you found any literature stating that fuel usage is still being factored into the equation on brand new bmws. I know they used it in the past.


I believe they are, but nothing official. One poster says it's based on:

1. Fuel usage per mile (which differs from strictly fuel usage, of course)
2. Total number of days, although there is a debate between 1 year or 2 years
3. Any pertinent readings from the sensor.
Click to expand...
 
Originally Posted By: crw
One poster says it's based on:

1. Fuel usage per mile (which differs from strictly fuel usage, of course)
2. Total number of days, although there is a debate between 1 year or 2 years
3. Any pertinent readings from the sensor.

Among other things, Honda's oil life monitor considers
1) mileage driven,
2) ambient temperature,
3) engine operating temperature,
4) engine operating speeds (RPM),
5) accumulated RPMs since last oil change (last time the monitor was reset)
6) the number of start/stops during the measured mileage,
7) engine operating temp during each start/stop interval.
 
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Mikeysoft, the current Infiniti G37(S) is a simple set of mileage reminders. I was even told to rotate my tires on my staggered setup.
 
GM's system was dissected here years ago, search is your friend.

It is as sophisticated as anything out there, despite dielectric sensing. Counts every single rpm then factors in temp, speeds, time, distance, etc. Even takes into account stationary ops.
 
The Ford Focus manual says:

Your vehicle is equipped with an Intelligent Oil Life Monitor that
determines when the engine oil should be changed based on how your
vehicle is used. By using several important factors in its calculations, the
monitor helps reduce the cost of owning your vehicle and reduce
environmental waste at the same time. This means you won’t have to
remember to change the oil on a mileage-based schedule; the vehicle lets
you know when an oil change is due by displaying ENGINE OIL
CHANGE DUE or OIL CHANGE REQUIRED in the message center.
 
Originally Posted By: kam327
The Ford Focus manual says:

Your vehicle is equipped with an Intelligent Oil Life Monitor that
determines when the engine oil should be changed based on how your
vehicle is used. By using several important factors in its calculations, the
monitor helps reduce the cost of owning your vehicle and reduce
environmental waste at the same time. This means you won’t have to
remember to change the oil on a mileage-based schedule; the vehicle lets
you know when an oil change is due by displaying ENGINE OIL
CHANGE DUE or OIL CHANGE REQUIRED in the message center.


Ford uses two different systems: one is just a counter. The IOLM (intelligent oil life monitor) is the one above. F150s have IOLM on all engines except the 6.2 which is just a OLM.
 
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