whats the deal with the 15,000 mile oil change?

[LoudLT1]

ok i have 95 lumina 3.1 v6 - daily driver drive it about 250 miles a week or so. i've seen mobil 1 oil that says you only need to change it every 15,000 miles. that would be very convenient but i dont want to kill my engine. any feedback on this type of oil???
what about using it on the LT1 Z28 ????
eddie

[wolfdogs]

all along industry has been leaning towards "whats with this 3k oil change thing" being overkill.

gm has the oil minder system in all its vehicles now... i changed the oil in our envoy before the light told us...it had 6k on it.. i couldnt let it go any longer....

yet.....Honda is at 10k for maint from the factory, yet Daimler is at 5k and Ford is at 6k........

so......

whats going on here?

some gm's in our fleet, go 10 or 12k before the light hits.......


hmmmmmmm

[Trash man]

its a synthic motor oil. just think bout the filter and how it gets plugged. so imagine going 15K on one filter. i love my motor

[WICKED LT1]

That's all well and good, and for a fleet I'm ok with OEM intervals, however, I have never had or heard of an engine issue from changing the oil too often. The only time i can think of is during breakin when the parts need to wear a pattern for longevity. I have read all the studies I can find and I'm am going to be stubborn and keep spending the $15 or so every 3K. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.


-Paul

[97LT1Z28]

Overkill or not . . . . I ran my last Camaro 300K on the same engine without rebuilding. Regular Valvoline oil and Fram filter changed every 3K. I'm sticking with overkill.

[Injuneer]

Overkill or not . . . . I ran my last Camaro 300K on the same engine without rebuilding. Regular Valvoline oil and Fram filter changed every 3K. I'm sticking with overkill.

You might want to research the use of the Fram filters... there are a couple of online tests and comparisons that rate Fram filters at the bottom. Made with cheap cardboard end caps, tied together with string.... unbelievable how poorly they compare to brands like AC/Delco, Mobil, Wix and others. I wouldn't think of using one on my engine.

[Dave M]

I was reading through the owners manual of my wife's Rendezvous recently and it said the oil change indicator might not indicate an oil change is neccessary for over a year under the right conditions!! That's craziness!

[Joe K. 99 Zeee!!]

I was reading through the owners manual of my wife's Rendezvous recently and it said the oil change indicator might not indicate an oil change is neccessary for over a year under the right conditions!! That's craziness!

The owner's manual states that it predicts oil condition based on rpm's and operating temperature. I don't think it takes time into account. So, I could see how that could happen.

I've had the same thoughts about the Mobile 1 15,000 mile oil. Even if the oil is good for that distance, what about the filter??

[Steel2686]

If you're driving 250 miles a week with that car, that puts you almost exactly at 3,000 miles every three months. That's what most motor oil manufacturers recommend for time anyway... every 3k miles or 3 months. If I were you, I would just stick with changing the oil four times a year.

The major benefit I get out of synthetic oil is at start-up. In my daily driver, I don't get that GM valve knock that is so common for the first 10 seconds of run time on almost every GM motor. The oil seems to stay a bit cleaner when I go to drain it also.

Just my '02.

[LoudLT1]

thanks for the feedback dude's
eddie

p.s. the lumina battery took a dive this morning at sears while shopping and getting some really good deals on tools... it never ends i guess. i just got a red optima for the Z28 3 weeks ago..
eddie

[Joe K. 99 Zeee!!]

I seem hear about problems with optimas all the time....don't know what it is about them, but I'd stick with a traditional battery.