***Oil Change Intervals ***

[UtahVXer]

For anyone interested in determining the optimal change interval for their type of oil and driving conditions, this company offers a free oil collection kit for laboratory analysis. (The analysis costs $22.50.)
http://www.blackstone-labs.com/index.html
They will give you suggestions for oil change intervals based on the laboratory analysis. This way you can avoid the unnecessary trouble and expense of too frequent changes. They will also tell you about such things as the presence of wear metals, silicon, coolant and other things that can let you know the condition of your engine and how it is wearing. Just thought I would share this information in case anyone else is interested.
Here is another site with interesting information: http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/whatisoilanalysis.htm

[Joe_Black]

LOL, I don't think there is such a thing as "too frequent oil change intervals". ;)

Knowing what's going on inside your engine through oil analysis isn't a bad thing, but is overkill for general automotive applications. Where you see this used regularly is in heavy equipment and industrial environments, where engines run in stationary, extended, and severe situations. For the engine you drive down the road each day you just can't go wrong with a 3000 mile oil and filter change. It's the most inexpensive maintenance insurance you can find with the least amount of effort.

Everyone's out to make a buck though and $22.50 doesn't seem like much, although I'd rather spend it on 5 quarts of Mobil-1. :)

[UtahVXer]

You could also change the oil every day, but you probably don't. Analysis is the only way to determine the proper change frequency.
I think the small fee is worth every penny for the detailed information the analysis gives you. Below are some examples of just some of the problems various contaminants can indicate. For more information see above two links.
Peace of mind is priceless.
Also, in the long run it will save a lot more money (and protect the environment) by avoiding wasteful and unnecessary oil changes.

Indicator -- Acceptable Levels -- Engine Problem -- What to Check
Silicon (Si) and
Aluminum (Al) 10 to 30 ppm Dirt ingestion Air intake system, oil filter plugging, oil filler cap and breather, valve covers, oil supply
Iron (Fe) 100 to 200 ppm Wear of cylinder liner, valve and gear train, oil pump, rust in system Excessive oil consumption, abnormal engine noise,performance problems, oil pressure, abnormal operating temperatures, stuck/broken piston rings
Chromium (CR) 10 to 30 ppm Piston ring wear Excessive oil blow-by and oil consumption, oil degradation
Copper (CU) 10 to 50 ppm Bearings and bushings wear, oil cooler passivating,radiator corrosion Coolant in engine oil, abnormal noise when operating at near stall speed
Lead (Pb)* 40 to 100 ppm Bearing corrosion Extended oil change intervals
Copper (CU) and
Lead (Pb)* 10 to 50 ppm Bearing lining wear Oil pressure, abnormal engine noise, dirt being ingested in air intake, fuel dilution, extended oil drain intervals
Aluminum (Al) 10 to 30 ppm Piston and piston thrust bearing wear Blow-by gases, oil consumption, power loss, abnormal engine noise
Silver and
Tin 2 to 5 ppm
10 to 30 ppm Wear of bearings Excessive oil consumption, abnormal engine noise, loss in oil pressure
Viscosity Change
Lack of lubrication Fuel dilution, blow-by gases, oil oxidation, carburetor choke, ignition timing, injectors, injector pump, oil pressure
Water/Anti-freeze
Coolant leak or condensation Coolant supply, gasket sealed, hose connection, oil filler cap and breather

[Ascinder]

We also do regular oil samples in Aviation, every 25 hours we pull samples from the engine, main transmission, hydraulics, and tailrotor gearbox. I think though, that once you establish a baseline, it does become irrelevent in auto applications. I personally would love to have the 5,000 mile interval claim made by synthetic oils backed up by factual lab results. That's where that $22.50 turns into an investment instead of wasted money. If your oil is still good after 3,000 miles and you are just throwing it out, that sounds like excessive maintenance to me. If you can do 6 oil changes every 30,000 miles vs. 10, that also seems like less work ;) . My main reasoning though is to see if using full synthetics is breaking down any of the seals in the systems, or shrinking them and letting stuff in that isn't supposed to be there.

[UtahVXer]

I use Mobil1 Extended Performance with the Mobil1 EP filter, and change after 10,000 miles.
I used to think like Joe.
But now after further research, I believe that anyone who is using synthetics and changes every 3,000 is wasting a lot on unnecessary changes. True, there is no harm done by changing more frequently, but there is also no benefit to doing so, since modern synthetics are capable of performing much longer. I just wanted to post the information for others who might be interested in testing their oil.

[psychos2]

If you have an oil consumption problem ,this may tell you why. If it is due to stuck rings and excessive blow-by. It can also tell you of premature bearing wear. I have said it before, this is a way to help prevent engine failure by knowing what is going on internally. It is cheaper to rebuild the engine then to replace the whole thing do to a spun bearing. I am not saying do it at every oil change, but if you think you have a problem why not. shawn

[Joe_Black]

True, there is no harm done by changing more frequently, but there is also no benefit to doing so, since modern synthetics are capable of performing much longer.
Unless you've got magic elves in your filter the harm in not changing at least the filter regularly is that it stops filtering once its limited capacity is reached and goes into bypass mode. As for the oil, it's the transport medium for all the stuff you don't want in your engine. The longer it comingles with that stuff the more it degrades and will eventually turn into corrosive abrasive. It's your engine, do as you will. Me, I like my machinery and have equipment nearing 100 years of operational use. And it didn't get that way from not changing the oil fequently.

And since it's synthetic oil and hopefully take your used oil in to be recycled you shouldn't be making any impact on the environment no matter how much you change the oil.

[UtahVXer]

I agree with Shawn that it is not necessary to test all the time; but every couple of years to recheck the health of your engine, especially if your driving conditions have changed. Like having lab work done on your blood every once in a while to see if you have cholesterol, etc.
Joe also makes a good point about changing the filter regularly.
Shawn, where do you test your oil?
Or do you also use Blackstone?

[psychos2]

I agree with Shawn that it is not necessary to test all the time; but every couple of years to recheck the health of your engine, especially if your driving conditions have changed. Like having lab work done on your blood every once in a while to see if you have cholesterol, etc.
Joe also makes a good point about changing the filter regularly.
Shawn, where do you test your oil?
Or do you also use Blackstone?

I get it done thru Kendall. shawn