Oil change frequency
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From: Minnesota
Oil change frequency
Hello, been a while since I posted here.
I normally change the oil in my S2000 once every season. I had been changing my oil with AMSOil which advertises 15000 miles. Last year I only drove the car 1500 miles and it has been in storage for the past 7 months. The oil still looks like it just came out of the bottle. Is it necessary to change the oil still?
I normally change the oil in my S2000 once every season. I had been changing my oil with AMSOil which advertises 15000 miles. Last year I only drove the car 1500 miles and it has been in storage for the past 7 months. The oil still looks like it just came out of the bottle. Is it necessary to change the oil still?
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From: Atlanta, GA
I'm hesitant to extend the interval past once per year - regardless of the mileage. Sure, it would *probably* be ok, but given the cost of an oil change relative to the cost of a new engine, I'd prefer not to take the chance.
Joined: Aug 2012
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Oil gets old because it wears out, but also because it becomes contaminated with use. These contaminents can be corrosive. So even just sitting, in a car that is stored, used oil is causing internal damage.
This is why its a good idea to change oil before end of season storage. You want fresh oil in there when the car is going to sit for a spell.
So an extended drain interval is not the best choice for a car driven low miles and stored.
But the reality here is its a newer car (not some old-school classic), which means much less contamination occurs than cars of old. So after 1500 miles the oil is probably not very contaminated. That the oil still looks clean backs up that assumption (not that all bad stuff makes the oil look bad, but generally if it looks bad it is bad).
I wouldn't worry about it, but for future I would plan for an oil change at least once/year and/or prior to storage.
That may influence the oil you select.
This is why its a good idea to change oil before end of season storage. You want fresh oil in there when the car is going to sit for a spell.
So an extended drain interval is not the best choice for a car driven low miles and stored.
But the reality here is its a newer car (not some old-school classic), which means much less contamination occurs than cars of old. So after 1500 miles the oil is probably not very contaminated. That the oil still looks clean backs up that assumption (not that all bad stuff makes the oil look bad, but generally if it looks bad it is bad).
I wouldn't worry about it, but for future I would plan for an oil change at least once/year and/or prior to storage.
That may influence the oil you select.
