Oil Analysis on Prius @ 15k miles, 0W20 Mobil1 - Page 2 - Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum

alohaspirit · 07-11-2009, 08:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by krousdb

Why would you say the risk is high? Jiffy Lube, Auto Dealerships and the oil companies have done a good job brainwashing the public that you NEED to change your oil every 3000 miles.

How much do you pay for an oil change? I pay about $18 for the oil and filter and change the oil myself. Currently I have 175k miles on the car. So at 25k miles per change, 7 changes, that adds up to $126. If I change oil every 3k miles, 58 oil changes, that adds up to $1050. I have saved nearly $1000 and have created 180 fewer quarts of oil that needs to be recycled.

Just for comparison, if I, like the majority of car owners payed some else to change my oil at $40 a pop, that adds up to $2320 or over $2000 in savings.

I saved this for future engine oil conversations

Thanks!

Btw, thanks to discounts/rebates/bulk buy/etc,
my 4.5 qt oil change with filter cost about $5
(I shudder when I think about the day when I run out)
lol

On a side note, Im curious how long you can go without changing oil.
I remember an oil filter (which used a large roll of toilet paper)
which let one guy go for well over 100k on the same oil

DC5_Angelo · 07-11-2009, 10:41 PM

i agree 3k oil changes are excessive, the dealer i work at reccomends 5k oil change intervals. I was simply saying that 20k intervals seems risky. I have yet to see a prius sludge up but im sure its not cheap to replace the motor

stevey_frac · 07-11-2009, 11:45 PM

The oil change interval on my Cobalt can extend up to 10k miles. Factory. And for the type of driving I do, i think that's fairly conservative.

Once i'm out of waranty next year, i'm going to start an oil analysis program and extend oil changes to twice a year, about every 20k miles.