I wanted to ask you guys how often do you change your oil, and what kind (brand, type) of oil do you use for you TC? I know the dealer recommends every 5,000 miles. I was considering doing it every 2,000, just because I like to have piece of mind that EVERYTHING is flowing smoothly in there. I brought this question up because I was talking to a co-worker today that owns a 3-series BMW, and told me that he changes his oil every 10,000 miles I couldn't believe this. I have never heard of 10,000 mile maintenance. He told me that he gets it done at the dealer, and that BMW has thier own motor oil. I guess that maybe it's formulated in such a way.... Could someone please enlighten me on this matter, as well as how often you all change you oil, and what type you use?

 

I would suggest around 3000...

 

I'll probably change it every 5-6k miles. If you use Mobil One, it'll go for 15k guaranteed (that's what the commercials say).

BMW uses Castrol Syntec, which is extremely good synthetic oil. 10000 miles is normal for the Bimmer.

 

those european cars can go forever without and oil change i just do it by the book about every5-6 thousand miles... ive had 3 already and baby still works fine... i use toyota engine oil iam thinking about switching to synthetic

 

they recommend every 5k in normal conditions , but if your vehicle is subjected to extreme condition which pretty much everyones is they say 3k.

 

i went in for my first free one at 1000 and the tech guys looked at me like i was crazy. the next one is not due till 6000, i still got several hundred more miles left.

 

i thought that using synthetic oil was only recommended for older engines ??

 

I change my car oil every 3500 miles. I use full synthetic Amsoil 5w30 weight and its been working fine for me. Amsoil says that you could change oil every 10000 miles with their oil, but I change it at every 3500 for better protection. I used to use Mobil 1 synthetic oil, but my supercharged prelude blew up on Mobil 1 so I switched to amsoil. My cousin had a integra with amsoil and had a stroker kit put in at 55,000 miles and the mechanic told him that his car had no sign of wear and tear at all, pistons and cylinder walls looked brand new. This is why I am a firm believer in Amsoil. Oh, synthetic motor oil just not recommeded for older cars, they tend to leak through the seals and gaskets of older cars because the oil is refine so good that it is fine enough to leak through. Brand New Corvettes and Porsches come stock with synthetic oil, so they dont hurt brand new engines at all!!! visit www.amsoil.com for more info!

 

I took mine in to the toyota dealership to get it changed at 1100 miles..

After I use up the 3 free Oil Changes I'll do it myself and use OEM Filters and Wal-Mart SuperTech Oil.. and change it every 6 Months or 3000 miles.. whichever comes first..

 

a lot of motor old run at lesat 3k miles sum syn run even higher mileage lik mobil 1 syn runs u at least 7k. but only under certain circumstances,

NEVER push your engine and keep it under 3 rpm and you shoud be able to run your oil for a VERY long time.

same goes for the new line of syn oils that run 5k, 7.5k and 15k miles.


as for me? i use mobil 1 syn and my last oil changed was last week with 7k miles on it. i ran 7k miles because i was relaly busy and dint have time to change my oil around 5k.

i dunno bout everyone else but i usually feel when my engines performance starts to drop. and when it does that, i chek the dip stick to see if the oil is dark. and if so, time for an oil change.

 

3-5K miles. Either way you can't go wrong. It's the easiest cheapest required maintenance and generally extends the life of the engine.

Important tip: document your oil changes. If there's a warranty issue, that's probably the first thing they look at. Meaning, wherever you change your oil (quik lube, dealer, local mechanic, etc) save those receipts with the mileage notated. If you do it yourself, good luck.

A mechanic or dealer can also check the belts, hoses, and connections at recommended intervals (and document that accordingly). They will also find the things you might not otherwise notice--like the DEAD SNAKE wrapped around your alternator. True story.

 

just changed at 3051. put in toyota filter and quaker state super synthetic.
oil changes just like the manual says, every 6 months or 5,000 miles.

 

"If you use Mobil One, it'll go for 15k guaranteed (that's what the commercials say)."

No f*cking way. Even if you use Mobil 1 change it at 3,000 (5,000 max)
It's pretty special ed to leave oil in your car for 15,000 miles.

 

my dealer told me to change the oil every 10,000 miles on my car. even my users manual says to. but i change it every 5k using mobile 1 synthetic.

 

They guarantee it. www.mobiloil.com

 

Synthetic oil is the best. I still haven't changed the oil in my tC.

 

under normal driving the recommendation is 7500 miles from scion and then 5000 for extreme. it is overkill to change oil every 2000 or 3000 miles. those numbers geared towards older cars and it is all marketing based to get more business. changing the oil every 3000 miles bring in more money for places like jiffy lube and people fall for it. it just is not needed. you can have peace of mind going 5000.

 

Blah, not this again. You guys need to look into the 3-4 page
discussion on this in the maintenance section.

Oh, and by the way, the Oil Change for new BMW (per the manual)
is 15,000 with approved oils. The newer Mercedes is similar
and even has some sort of sensors to tell you when your
oil needs the change if it's earlier then the recommended
duration.

 

synthetic oils never break down.

i read in a magazine VERY RECENTLY and they compared synthetic to regulat motor oil. the regular breaks down super fast but works EXTREMELY well the 1st 100 miles or sumting hahaha. while the syn doesnt breakdown at all.


but i know wat you mean. i use mobil 1. but the trick you dindt understand is, the oil is guranteed 15k miles under NORMAL driving conditions, not extreme extreme conditions.

so this means, NEVER revving higher than 3 RPM the whol 15k miles.

 

^ plus you need a filter that is up to the task