I'm at 60% after 3000 miles, all city driving. That may change your opinion a little.

 

Ill just do it the old fashioned way

 

i think it has less to do with revs than with stop and starts.

 

I guess the other point I was trying to make about this BSM (thanks niko3257), is pay attention to when yours changes. At this point, with 4036 miles, it has changed religiously at the "thousand" mark milestones.

Shora, you bring up some good points and if I hadn't experienced what AmsOil did with my truck, I'd be changing more frequently too. I beat on that V6 harder than any other vehicle I ever owned and the engine took it - and never showed signs of wear. That's just me, I've got other friends that use the same oil and some swap out more frequently and others let it go (I don't agree with that).

 

***yawn*** Another oil change interval thread.

Face it -- the only way we will ever know whether one method is better or worse than any other will be to buy multiple identical cars, drive them identical miles at identical times, and do everything else exactly the same on all of them with the exception of oil change regimens. Even then a case could be made for other factors influencing the outcome.

So pick your favorite religion and stick with it. The really important thing is that you're paying attention to the maintenance of your vehicle, and at the end of the day that's the most valuable aspect of the oil life minder.

 

Then why does the owners manual say you have to reset the oil gauge after you change the oil?

If this meter actually did anything whatsoever besides countdown the miles till 0% oil life it would reset itself automatically after you changed the oil and started it back up......

 

How does it know you changed the oil and it's supposed to reset itself? There's no sensor on the drain plug that detects when you dump the oil... you have to tell it.

 

I am a new owner of a fit and only have 200 miles on mine right now. I think I might go with the 50% oil marker as my point of reference for oil changes. That sounds about right to me.

 

Thats just it, it doesn't.

The owners manual says YOU have to reset the oil life meter each time you change the oil.

 

I don't understand your point. As others have said, the system doesn't directly monitor anything about the oil. It's also not a simple countdown based only on mileage, as evidenced by owners getting to the various % points at different mileages. That's not an either/or proposition.

The engine computer has any number of inputs at its disposal: engine/coolant temp, RPM's, throttle position, injector pulse width (amount of fuel injected), run time (either per trip or total), etc. Any of these could be used in an algorithm that determined oil life based on some lowest common denominator oil (API SM). This could be much more accurate than some arbitrary owner determination of regular vs severe duty schedule or a one-size-fits-all mileage interval.

So once again, the system doesn't directly measure/test the oil, but it does have to be reset when the oil is changed so it can begin calculating the oil life based on the conditions the new oil will be experiencing during its run.

 

really? hummm... my MINI (per its obc) goes out to 15k miles or once a year on synthetic. on my hobby cars where i rarely drive more than 7k miles a year, i only do the chance once a year. never had a problem.

btw, black color does not mean the properties have broken down. you have to get it analyzed to get true readings if your oil has degraded or not. not by the color.

 

I would never go more than 7500 miles on synthetic. I pla to change every 5000 miles. Better safe than sorry, only costs less than 30 bucks anyways. Sure you've never had problems, but I wouldn't risk it just to save 60 dollars a year.

 

I believe TXMATT is right. I know for a fact that other makes use an algorithm method using some of these inputs to determine oil life. I would think that if you don't exceed some perameters, your oil minder might go to a default mode that counts down by milage. As for oil change intervals, some manufacturers go almost 20,000 between scheduled oil changes. But remember, they are probably concerned mainly about being able to advertise their oil change intervals as being high without much regard for longevity. As long as the vehicle makes it out of the warrany period, it's mission accomplished. The tolerances on todays engines, however, are so tight, that you could probably go 100,000 without an oil change. Just don't expect it to make it to 100,001.

 

I agree 100% and i will be doing the same

 

I don't think so. Just think about how much flow you'd be getting through that filter! Anyway, I wouldn't even want to try that.

 

you think im doing wat i do to save money?
i am sure i can think of better ways if that was the
reason.

but i just dont believe in overkill. personally ive never had
a chance to drive a car 15k miles in one year so ive changed
either 7k miles or 1yr on my hobby cars and when the 15%
comes on the FitS.

 

I should clarify...I change the oil in my cars about every 5000 miles using full synthetic. But I have personally pulled the valve covers off cars that haven't chaged their oil in 70,000+ miles. It was a disgusting mess, and full of sludge everywhere except on moving parts, but it could probably run to 100,000 as long as you kept the crankcase full. It's not something I would try on my car though.

 

A gearhead buddy inherited a 50K+ Mazda that had never had an oil change. Jim sorted that out with oil/filter; thing is still running now at 90K and regular changes. Engine seems fine.
I'm at 6K for synthetic changes in everything else. Honda seems pretty adamant about not changing the OEM oil too soon.
Moon

 

My oil meter is also changing right at the 1,000 mile marks.

 

Mine just flipped to 90% at a very uneven 1460 kms (912 miles). This is with 70% city driving in the winter. At this rate, I would reach 20% by about 11,680 kms. Normally I change every 6-8K or so. Not exactly sure which way I'll go on this, but I'm leaning towards keeping my 6-8K tradition.